Corporations spend billions of dollars every year on employee training. These investments are meant to increase productivity, improve communication, and boost the bottom line, but often managers and executives feel as if they’ve thrown away their training dollars. Nothing changes.

The problem with corporate training is that when the learners get back to their work, they forget what they’ve been taught, and/or they’re too busy to apply what they just learned. The training investment is wasted.

My brother, Kees, and I (Anthonie) wrote this book because we’ve seen this happen too many times. [Editor’s note: Although Kees and Anthonie wrote this book together, “I” refers to Anthonie throughout the book.]

We are former top athletes who competed at the highest Judo level in the world. We spent many hours every day for many years becoming the best in our sport. We know how to train, and we know how to make training principles stick.

After my Judo career with experience as an Olympic athlete in 1992 in Barcelona, I was a corporate business trainer for knowledge and soft skills for more than ten years. When I compared how training was applied in the sports world versus the corporate world, I noticed a big difference. Training was given, but it was never followed up with reinforcement.

The combination of training and reinforcement is what transformed Kees and me from kids who liked to be physical into Judo champions. Without training reinforcement from our coach, we would never have made it to that level.

Solutions offered in the learning industry are good at regurgitating lessons and reminding learners of what they’ve been taught, but they don’t reinforce lessons, which is required to create lasting behavior.

In this book, we describe an effective methodology that has proven its success in the last 12 years. We want to educate the learning industry and inspire every learning professional to see that reinforcement is much more than just sending reminders or a focus on knowledge retention.

By using this book, learning professionals can create a solid reinforcement program. The methodology used in The 7 Principles of Reinforcement is perfectly balanced between engagement and results. Using The 7 Principles we describe, you can develop a program that reinforces learning and drives your talent and organizational strategies forward. Then you can be assured that the knowledge and skills your learners have been trained in are put into practice and that you are spending your training dollars well.

By applying The 7 Principles of Reinforcement, you drive training results and increase learners’ engagement. A strong reinforcement program with a focus on results, but with no participation, does not create lasting behavior change or impact in your organization. But high engagement does not always guarantee good outcomes. Only the perfect balance between a strong foundation with measurable results and a focus on engagement guarantees the transfer of training from learning into application.

We have divided the book into four parts, and throughout the book we use a lot of examples from our sports careers to explain The 7 Principles and the methodology.

Part 1 explains how you can achieve behavior change by using reinforcement. We explain what reinforcement is, what is needed for behavior change, the difference between training goals and reinforcement objectives, and what influences behavior change.

In Part 2, we provide an overview of The 7 Principles of Reinforcement, and then explain how the first three principles are used to build a strong foundation to drive results. Chapters 6, 7, and 8 contain tools and assessments to help you to build and improve your foundation.

Part 3 helps you build your engagement to increase learners’ participation. In Chapters 10, 11, and 12 we explain the three principles that help you create messages that will reinforce the training and keep your learners’ minds engaged. Again, each chapter provides tools and assessments.

To analyze your reinforcement program, you will find a more detailed look at the methodology in Part 4. A methodology based on your specific reinforcement lever helps you determine when improvement is needed. Chapter 16 suggests ways to check and improve your reinforcement messages. The S.A.F.E. methodology is based on 12 years of analyzing reinforcement messages and determining their impact.

Chapter 17 explains the different approaches by training type. Chapter 18 provides you the best practices on how to introduce training reinforcement programs in your organization and explains the role facilitators have in a successful reinforcement program. In Chapter 19 we describe the final recommodations to become a reinforcement expert.

The Appendix contains all the tools you need to build an effective reinforcement program. Also make sure to visit www.the7principlesofreinforcement.com, where you will find digital versions of all the assessments, tests, and action plans, along with reporting options. You can also download additional reinforcement programs based on this book.