作為一個職業人，不斷更新和擴充自己的技能對于你的職業發展非常重要。當你熱情地參加很多培訓課程時，不會想把時間或金錢浪費在沒有意義的內容上。

As a contractor, constantly updating and expanding your skill set can be critical to a thriving career. While you may be a natural candidate for training classes, you don't want to waste your time or money on classes that have no solid takeaway.

如何評價一門課程是否能夠滿足你的需要?以下六個步驟能夠幫你判斷，同時還能幫你充分正確利用這些課程，擴寬職業發展的機會。

How can you evaluate a course to make sure it's what you want and need? These six tips will help you identify and get the most out of the right training and professional-development opportunities.

評價自己

“你需要在職業發展的時候非常主動。” 一家執行發展咨詢公司的老板夏爾曼·馬克萊爾(Charmaine McClarie)建議說，“你對你想要的目標越明確，你想獲得它就越容易。我會建議客戶率先寫一寫排名前三到前五的那些他最不愿意在職業培訓工作坊聽到的內容，然后，通過比較你的理想要求和那些工作坊提供的內容，來做出一個合適的選擇。

Assess Yourself

"You should play a very proactive role in your professional development," counsels Charmaine McClarie, president of McClarie Group, an executive-development consultancy. "The clearer you are about what you want and need, the easier it is for you to get it. I recommend clients write their own takeaway list of the three to five things they would like to get out of a professional development workshop first. Then, find a best fit by comparing your ideal takeaway list with workshop offerings."

調查

在簽約之前，了解一下課程傳授的方法，一家IT咨詢和培訓公司Demopoulos Associates的創始人泰德·戴蒙普洛斯(Ted Demopoulos)說，“避免只是祈禱培訓撒播的少量信息符合你的需求，或者可能在未來的某天能夠用到，”他說，“你需要同時尋找那些教會你如何學習的課程，而不只是傳授只是。可以通過詢問顧問如何參與這些課程，這可以讓你從理解到應用。”

Investigate

Before signing up, check out the methods used to deliver the learning, says Ted Demopoulos, founder of Demopoulos Associates, an IT consulting and training company. "Avoid ‘spray and pray' training that throws lots of information at you and hopes some of the knowledge sticks and is actually used someday," he says. You should also look for sessions that help you learn how, not just what. Do that by asking the instructor how participants will be moved from understanding to application.

通過你的人脈網

評價一個培訓課程很好的方法是詢問其他人，一個哥倫比亞培訓職業培訓學校的培訓官可麗莎·湯普森(Kenisha Thompson)建議道，她擁有非常豐富的培訓課程經驗。“我評價一門培訓課程的標準有很多，通常會綜合使用。”她解釋說。她可能會使用的人脈資源包括，大學里上過這些課程的同學，課程的介紹者等。如果曾經上過課的學員對課程有不太好的評價或這課程介紹人的介紹就讓你不滿意，那你一定不會選擇這門課的。

Use Your Network

A great way to evaluate a training program is to ask other people, says Kenisha Thompson, a communications specialist with insurer Aflac in Columbus, Georgia, and a veteran of many training courses. "There are several ways I evaluate training programs offered, and I usually use a combination of them," she explains. Her primary resources: colleagues who've taken the course and the course instructor. A bad review from past participants or an unsatisfactory response from the instructor is a red flag you don't want to ignore.

當心那些流行語

“避免一些許下大承諾的含糊描述或課程，一定要等待確定這么課傳授的是你想要的以后，再決定報名。”一個緬因州專業發言人米歇爾·尼加爾(Michelle Neujahr)說。“一些課程提供的東西所用的詞匯很寬泛，比如激勵、有趣、充滿動力等，如果沒有實質內容，這些課程千萬不要選。”

Beware the Buzzword

"Avoid vague descriptions or programs that make huge promises, and be careful of programs that are designed to sell products or systems unless that is what you are looking for," suggests Michelle Neujahr, a professional speaker from Yarmouth, Maine. "Some things to look for are general words like motivation, fun, energetic. And if there is no content -- no ‘as a result of this session you will learn' -- keep looking."

了解課前準備

這個課程是否要求你在上課前做一些準備工作，比如閱讀或者思考一些你經歷的類似的項目?“這個要求通常就能把一般性的培訓課程和極好的培訓課程區分開來。”紐約獨立培訓師安德里亞·尼伯倫(Andrea Nierenberg說，他同時也是The Neirenberg Group的創始人。“極好的培訓課程知道如何讓你更有效地學習新信息，會想方設法讓更多的新信息能裝進你的腦子里并被你更有效地接收。“除此之外，熱身能夠讓你學得更快。”

Look for Prework

Does the program ask you to do some work before you get there, such as reading a book or thinking about an analogous project you're working on? "That often separates the good training programs from the great training programs," says New York City-based independent trainer Andrea Nierenberg, founder of The Neirenberg Group. "Great programs know that effectively learning new information is more than just showing up and hoping the program pours new information into your head." Plus, going in warmed up will help you get up to speed faster.

尋找充滿挑戰的情景

保證這個培訓能充分為你“充電”。“一個好的培訓項目就像在你面前豎了一面鏡子，會不斷要求你克服缺點和弱點。”馬克萊爾說，“你可能不會看到反映出來的你的樣子，但一定要記住這些小小的建議，它們是保證你的時間和投資獲得最大回報的重要指標。”

Seek Challenging Situations

Make sure the program is going to stretch you. "A good program will also hold up a mirror in front of you and challenge you to work on your weaknesses," says McClarie. "You may not like what you see in your reflection, but any unease you experience will help fuel you to the kind of action that will create results."

The next time you're looking for a training program or professional development opportunity, keep these tips in mind. They're the best way to make sure you'll get a good return on your time and monetary investments.