“Trained Out(?)”
“I’m trained out” – this is a sentiment shared by many leaders who have been working in middle and/or senior management positions for 15–20 years, having participated in numerous training sessions and perhaps completed several coaching processes. Can we truly reach the end of the road where there is nothing new under the sun? In many cases, it is noticeable that those who voice this motto are not always able to practically apply all the things they think they know. In such instances, it is worth looking deeper, behind the surface of things.
When a leader feels "over-trained," there can be several reasons for the phenomenon. Below, I list three circumstances, each with corresponding solutions that can help push past the difficulties on the path of leadership development:
FIRST REASON
It is possible that in the case of their previous training sessions, they didn't feel the training was about them; the perceived usefulness/value was low, and they had no say (i.e., autonomy) in what training they wanted to attend. The first reason, therefore, may stem from the fact that, in most cases, they didn't see the point, had no influence, and didn't feel the experience of competency development or progress. It might also have happened that the previous trainer was not professional enough, or the organization did not support the integration of learning into practice. Due to past negative experiences, they lost their desire for "unnecessary" investment of time and energy.
Solution: This phenomenon is common, but there is a solution. If this describes you, proactively reflect on what you consider your own topic, what you would like to learn about, which subject makes your heart beat faster—that is, in what area do you feel enthusiasm? On a scale of 1 to 10, where do you stand now? First, define for yourself where you want to go, what you want to develop in yourself. What would you expect, what would be a useful outcome? If you envision a training, when would you say it was truly worth attending? If you can concretize these, become an active participant in the selection of the trainer, the definition of the topic, and the planning of the training structure. Even during the training, you can, as an active participant, steer the emerging questions toward what would be most useful for you.
SECOND REASON
There is also a phenomenon where a leader fundamentally likes training, has had super experiences, and previously enjoyed training and coaching, but currently feels they are burnt out, lacking the time or energy for development. Apathy and enervation are common. This phenomenon often arises from overload. Such a leader often feels guilty if they don't enjoy a training they otherwise consider useful, but their body and intuition resist participation, or they participate with low intensity.
Solution: If the above is true for you, don't worry. Everyone occasionally gets overloaded, perhaps even reaching a certain phase of burnout. This is a natural phenomenon. The solution is ensuring self-empathy: if you have a part of yourself that doesn't allow you to rest, you will feel that this is "too much." In many cases, perfectionism, the "I am strong" command, or the "I can withstand it for everyone" drivers are activated. In such a case, the permissive self can ensure that, instead of being a slave driver, the need for rest should be satisfied first. Give yourself time, activity in a different area, recharge, and energize. It is completely normal for someone to feel overwhelmed and temporarily suspend their own development. When cognitive function is overloaded, it is worth going out into nature, onto the street, and LIVING. Any kind of physical activity (dancing, sports, massage) can also be helpful. You will truly enjoy the training when you have unburdened and rested yourself beforehand.
THIRD REASON
It is also possible, as I alluded to in the first point, that for some reason, the implementation of learning into practice is not working in the organization. That is, excellent training and coaching processes supported development, and the leader enthusiastically applied the learned models and tools, but they failed to achieve a breakthrough.
Solution: There is a methodology specifically aimed at practical implementation (training transfer), called Action Learning. This tool involves 4–6 focused conversations or sessions among different colleagues, where there is always a topic owner, and the others help explore the challenge, make suggestions for further development, and share their own experiences. This ensures that the learning from the training can be better integrated, and accordingly, colleagues are not left alone after the training, thus ensuring that the methods learned previously can also work "live."
Naturally, numerous other scenarios are also conceivable, such as a leader in their 50s simply being bored with various training sessions because they genuinely know everything about communication tools, leadership, delegation, etc., and have entered a life stage where they would rather focus on their family and view their work as something they can do by routine. If the internal fire, the intention to develop, is missing, then training sessions can indeed appear as a burden, and this can be true even when talking about a company with relatively few changes. However, this is rarely the case in practice; most organizations face daily changes and challenges. It is worth following the latest leadership methodological trends, expanding the existing toolkit based on new research findings, or finding new meaning in leadership (returning to the example, the emphasis can shift to knowledge transfer for young people, thus allowing the leader to find motivation again in this role by prioritizing talent succession, sharing experiences, or mentoring young staff).
Leadership development and self-knowledge development are processes that go hand-in-hand, and neither ever ends. New situations and new people can bring newer and newer challenges that are worth continuously reflecting upon. If there are still reservations about another training session, this itself is a new opportunity for self-reflection: the leader should determine exactly what is "triggering" them, what underlying causes, feelings, thoughts, and beliefs are appearing in this resistance, and use these realizations for their own development.
Written by: Dr. Gábor Balogh, associate professor