Learning Rebels Podcast

About Learning Rebels Podcast

Get the live, unfiltered conversations behind the popular Learning Rebels Coffee Chat. Workplace Learning will never be the same.

Publisher

Shannon Tipton

Category

business · education

Language

en

Explicit

No

First episode

24 Sept 2021

Latest episode

6 Oct 2026

Latest episodes

101 episodes in the feed.

1. 

   6 Oct 2026

   Dog-Ears and Sticky Tabs: How Do You Read?

   It all started with the BIG question on the table. What are you reading this summer, and how are you finding the time to do it? This Coffee Chat was a lighter edition and we kicked it off with a confession: "I don't have time to read" is often a convenient excuse. Shannon admitted she'd just spent an hour watching baby goats on YouTube, so, yeah, we all have minutes hiding somewhere. The idea of "reading in the flow of work" took off, with ideas like turning wait-room minutes into article time, listening to audiobooks on the commute, and swapping the phone game for a book. One participant swears by the Kindle app plus Hoopla and Libby, which connect to your local library card for free e-books. Then the debates got fun. Do you finish every book you start, or do you quit if it doesn't grab you in the first couple chapters? (Spoiler: it depends on how much you paid for it.) Dog-ears or bookmarks? Highlighting or Post-it flags? Audiobooks or physical copies? Several people can't focus on audiobooks at all, and one pointed out that when the narrator's voice doesn't match the character in your head, it throws you right off. We also got into the readability of nonfiction, including why some design books don't follow their own slide rules and why book ink has gotten so light. On the study-skills side, Andrew shared SQ3R (survey, question, read, recite, review), an old-school method for digesting a chapter by writing your own questions first and answering them as you read. Others noted that if you can't explain what you're reading to someone else, you probably haven't absorbed it yet. And Shannon shared why her nonfiction lives on her Kindle: she can highlight and annotate without feeling guilty about marking up a "book book." The book recommendations came fast. On the L&D side: Julie Dirksen's Design For How People Learn, Rick Altman's Crush Your Next Virtual Presentation, Steve Spangler's The Engagement Effect, Katrina Kennedy's Learning That Lasts, Slideology, Presentation Zen, The Coaching Habit, The Power of Habit, Value Proposition Design, and Imagine It Forward. For leadership development, the group pointed to John Maxwell (with a few honest "not my style" votes), CliftonStrengths, DiSC for leadership, and a tiered two-year program one participant saw at a retailer. We also heard about book club ERGs that spin a wheel to pick the monthly read, plus collections of mythology, witchcraft, mysteries, and cookbooks. The takeaway? Reading doesn't have to be a big production. Swap one scroll session for a chapter, keep a book (or a Kindle) with you, take notes somewhere you can find them later, and quit the book that isn't working. The chat's final tips included 30 minutes before bed, audiobooks while walking, and simply making time for yourself. So what's the one book you're recommending this summer? Stay curious! -Shannon Video VimeoCoffee Chat: What We're Actually Reading: L&D Picks for SummerMore actions Transcript Summary: Learningrebelslearningrebels.com/wp-content/uploads/20...More actions Transcript: OtterOtter Voice Meeting NotesMore actions Chat Box: Learningrebelslearningrebels.com/wp-content/uploads/20...More actions Resources: Summer Learning Bingo LearningrebelsLR-Summer-Learning-Bingo-Final.jpgMore actions Libby – Library ebook and audiobook app LibbyappLibbyMore actions Hoopla – Library ebook and audiobook service Hoopladigitalhoopladigital.comMore actions BookBub Bookbubbookbub.comMore actions Paperback Swap PaperbackswapVerification RequiredMore actions Stanford explanation of SQ3R StanfordReading Efficacy: The "SQ3R" MethodMore actions Books: Link to Reading List PDF Learningrebelslearningrebels.com/wp-content/uploads/20...More actions These are the books mentioned but the links and titles are all in the PDF Learning & Professional Development Learning That Lasts — Katrina Kennedy (mentioned multiple times) Slide:ology (written as "Slideology" in the

2. 

   22 Sept 2026

   Energizing Engagement

   It all started with the BIG question on the table. What symptoms tell you it's time to try something different in your virtual training room? This Coffee Chat dug into engagement techniques for virtual sessions—not brand new tricks necessarily, but fresh spins on tools we've gotten bored with. We opened by identifying the warning signs: nobody's responding to questions, cameras are off, people have two screens open answering email while half-listening. One participant shared a telling story from evaluating a five-day virtual regulatory course—the first day and a half felt unnecessary and could've easily been asynchronous, while the meat-and-potatoes content later in the week, where people actually needed stories and case studies, got rushed through. The lesson? We often just lift a face-to-face structure into Zoom without rearranging the puzzle pieces for the medium. The group tackled how to handle important background information without losing people to a lecture. Ideas included drip-feeding pre-reading in small chunks via email days before class, using short videos or animations to prime people ahead of time, and putting accountability back in learners' hands—like requiring them to bring a real example to class, even if you don't strictly need it, just so they show up having actually thought about the content. One participant put it well: "This will be better for you if you bring it." Breakout rooms got serious attention—specifically why people groan at the mention of them virtually but happily do the same table discussion in person. The consensus: it's often poor facilitation, not the format itself. Fixes included designating a leader or moderator for each room ahead of time, using chat "blast" features to send reminders or curveball questions into rooms, and being genuinely purposeful about the activity instead of just filling time. As one person put it, breakout rooms need to end with people thinking "I'm really glad we had that conversation," not confusion about what they were even supposed to talk about. We also got into practical chat-feature tricks: the "waterfall" (or reverse waterfall, or chat geyser, depending who you ask) where everyone types their answer but waits to hit send until told to, which removes the fear of being first and gives slower typists and thinkers room to process. Using people's names in the chat pulls them back from multitasking. And building in extra wait time after a question matters more virtually than in person, since you can't read body language to know when someone's thinking versus checked out. Finally, the icebreaker debate got fun and honest—apparently there's a lot of quiet hatred out there for "two truths and a lie" and "what's your spirit animal." Fresh alternatives floated included favorite dinosaur, favorite Muppet, giving people a choice of two or three icebreaker questions instead of one, and end-of-session activities like summarizing the day's learning without using any words, or writing one lingering question on an index card to remove the fear of asking something "everyone else already knows." The takeaway? Engagement in the virtual space takes more energy and more intentional structure than face-to-face, not less. Know your tools well enough to troubleshoot them for others, give people processing time, and always have a plan B when your audience isn't who you expected. So what's one engagement technique you're going to try or retire after this conversation? Stay curious! Shannon Video VimeoCoffee Chat: Energizers for the Classroom Transcript Summary Learningrebelslearningrebels.com/wp-content/uploads/20... Transcript: OtterOtter Voice Meeting Notes Chat Box: Learningrebelslearningrebels.com/wp-content/uploads/20... Resources: SessionLab A great resource for facilitators. It has workshop templates, agendas, activity ideas, and a library of facilitation techniques. SessionlabA Better Way to Design Workshops | SessionLab Liberating Stru

3. 

   8 Sept 2026

   Feedback That Actually Changes Behavior

   It all started with the BIG question on the table. How do we give feedback that actually changes behavior instead of just making people feel good? This Coffee Chat dug into feedback across three very different environments—e-learning, virtual live sessions, and in-person training—and how the mechanics of each shape whether feedback actually lands. One participant built a HAZWOPER training scenario with a live risk gauge that tracked accuracy, risk, and time based on the learner's choices, showing them the consequences in real time rather than just saying right or wrong. Another described branching scenario software where feedback isn't punitive—it explains why an answer is correct or incorrect so the learning actually reinforces itself. A librarian trainer shared a clever twist: requiring supervisors to approve a new hire's performance evidence before they could finish a course, which pulled supervisors directly into the feedback loop and dramatically improved how prepared people showed up to follow-up sessions. The group agreed that context is everything—feedback tied to the moment, using the learner's own scenario and vocabulary, sticks far better than generic "good job" messaging. One person emphasized pulling real terminology straight from subject matter experts so feedback feels authentic to the learner's actual work. Then we moved into the messier territory of virtual breakout rooms. The honest consensus? A lot of breakout room feedback is, in Barbara's words, "lame." People spend half their time deciding who should lead instead of doing the work. Solutions included pre-assigning facilitators or leaders to each room ahead of time, using private chat messages to redirect someone without putting them on the spot, and using the chat "blast" feature not just for time reminders but to throw curveball questions that spark reflection—something the group realized they hadn't fully explored as a feedback tool. Another idea: bring back previous participants as trained feedback-givers in breakout rooms, turning it into a continued development opportunity for them too. Finally, we talked about live, in-person feedback—and the risk of getting too casual with it just because everyone's in the room together. One participant shared a memorable framework: give one specific thing you loved, and one specific thing you'd love to see done differently next time—avoiding the word "but" in between. Another pointed out that when you redirect one person in a group setting, everyone else is watching how you handle it, so the tone matters as much as the content. The group also floated "help me understand how you got there" as a coaching-style question that lets people talk themselves into recognizing what needs to change, rather than being told outright. The takeaway? Good feedback is specific, contextual, motivating, and actionable—no matter which environment you're working in. And sometimes the best feedback doesn't come from you directly; it comes from designing the system (a gauge, a supervisor checkpoint, a peer rubric) so the learner sees the consequences and course-corrects themselves. So how are you making your feedback more actionable this week? Stay curious! -Shannon Video VimeoCoffee Chat: Building Feedback and Support to Change Behavior Transcript Summary Learningrebelslearningrebels.com/wp-content/uploads/20... Transcript:OtterOtter Voice Meeting Notes Chat Box: Learningrebelslearningrebels.com/wp-content/uploads/20... Resources: Bring E-learning to Life with Interactive Scenarios: ArticulateBring E-Learning to Life With Interactive Scenarios Toolbox Tip: Creating Scenarios in Articulate Storyline (includes source file) Tdtd.org/content/atd-blog/toolbox-tip-crea... Books: Thank You for the Feedback by Douglas Stone and Sheila Heen AThanks for the Feedback: The Science and Art of Receiving Feedback Well: Stone, Douglas, Heen, Sheila: 9780143127130: Amazon.com: Books Design for How Pe

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