As Debbie Harry would say: “Picture this”

During the late 1990s I was working as an internal consultant for a large American organisation implementing lean manufacturing into a number of our European factories.

One of the concepts we were working on was the “visual workplace”

Wherever possible, this involved removing reams of work instructions and procedural manuals and replacing them with flow charts and pictures.

Where we had toolboxes and drawers for hammers and spanners we put up shadow boards making it obvious where things should be stored and simple to see when tools were missing.

Click image for Wikipedia entry on "5S"

We also implemented a technique called 5S for workplace organisation that involved using visual images as much as possible. It also meant making things like low stock conditions obviously  visual rather than by a physical count.

(Contact me if you want to know more about the application of 5S. It’s a fab tool and can be used in any work place environment. I even use it in my office!)

Machine operations manuals and maintenance guides were replaced by photographs showing key elements of the equipment and detailing sequences to be followed. We even videoed change over operations to train new workers on how to do these things.

At the time we knew that these were good things to do but didn’t fully appreciate the reasons why they were good things.

We are all now far more aware of how the brain likes to work. For example, we now know that the brain is a picture processor. It processes and recalls images far more readily than pages of text and, because of this, it can extract and remember more information if it is presented visually.

So the brain is an image processor but even though we know this, do we still apply our understandings to our chosen profession?

As you sit here reading this, have a look around your work place.

• Are instructions for how to do things written into manuals or are they in pictures and images.
• Is you work place a visually stimulating place?
• How about your training materials?
• Do you hand out training manuals full of text or are they colourful and stacked with visually appealing nuggets of learning?

We can use images to create emotional anchors as well. An amusing image is far more likely to be recalled later and with it the key learning point associated with it.

And as we have discussed before, the brain loves it when learning is linked to an emotional experience.

So our call to action is this:

How much of your current work world is based on pages of text and how much could be replaced by brain friendly images?

What would this mean for your learner’s experience and, even more importantly, their recall three months down the line?

Debbie Harry image by McMarcLouwes
less words image based on Mandrill photo by tibchris

Paul and Ally are working on an exciting 6-part (online) course to help your learners fully engage with your training - sign up for the 'early bird' list for advanced notification and more info

If you liked this, you may also like these:

1. Dale’s Cone of Learning figures debunked Edgar Dale was a US educationist and professor of educations at Ohio State University. In 1946 he...
2. Recall: It’s a bit like opening a document Our understanding of how the brain stores and retrieves data is still in the early stages...
3. Brain Friendly tips for students For a lot of us, the exam season is upon us;  for some it’s mocks, for...
4. Smelling mistooks dont mutter Researchers have shown that when we read, the brain looks for patterns. No surprise there as this...
5. A question of curry The Friday night ritual of watching TV while waiting for the Indian take-away to be delivered inspires...