Kelly LaForest

Microsoft Office 365 blog by a OneNote MVP.

Latest Posts

Captain Hindsight – Cliff Notes for Coaching – Documentation

What I’ve learning (and wish I had known in hindsight) about being a good coach is: Documentation   Many people think a training or coaching session is like high school or university where they are expected to scribble every word you say in a paper notebook they will never look at again. Remind them there …

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Captain Hindsight – Cliff Notes for Coaching – Staying on Track

What I’ve learning (and wish I had known in hindsight) about being a good coach is: Staying on Track: Create a checklist in OneNote of all the topics you’ve agreed to cover in the session. If you see more than ten items on the list for a two hour coaching session, ask yourself if you’re …

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Captain Hindsight – Cliff Notes for Coaching – Hands-on Practice

What I’ve learning (and wish I had known in hindsight) about being a good coach is: Hands-On Practice: Whenever possible train them in their own environment – at their desk looking at their computer screen, using their program, and applying the task to a real item on their to-do list.   This makes the action …

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Captain Hindsight – Cliff Notes for Coaching – Language and Tone

What I’ve learning (and wish I had known in hindsight) about being a good coach is: Language and Tone: Phrase things as “we”. You are working together. Make the person you are coaching feel like you are on their team, there to support them. This leads to less “You did it wrong” language being used …

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Captain Hindsight – Cliff Notes for Coaching – Speed

What I’ve learning (and wish I had known in hindsight) about being a good coach is: Speed: Going at a conversational pace is key. Pause. Breath. Give them space to process and ask questions. Avoid talking like you’re reading the script to a Gilmore Girls episode. Stick to small doses of knowledge transfer. A firehose …

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Cliff Notes for Coaching – A Captain Hindsight Blog Post

A colleague of mine is going to be diving into the world of train the trainer and coaching. I’m stupid excited for her as training or coaching another person really helps you realize how much you know. Hearing this exciting news prompted a flood of memories from the very first ‘training’ sessions I ever gave. …

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New Mantra: I Am Proficient with Technology.

I recently did a coaching session for a new staff member at HeroWork on general Office 365 101 and how to use the Office 365 Admin Console. The perfectionist inner critic that lives in my head was shocked to hear the positive feedback I received afterward. I always feel like I know nothing because there …

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A Year in Review – Goodbye 2016!

Goodbye 2016. Hello 2017! A new year means its time to come up with a new set of goals. But first, a moment to reflect back on some big moments for me – both personal and professional – in 2016. Personal Accomplishments: August 2016 – Got engaged! My boyfriend of five years, Rick LaForest, popped the …

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New Year, New Writing Style for Oh365Eh

In the past, my blog posts have tended to be very detailed instructional how to posts, stuffed with step-by-step screenshots. It’s a labour of love, but one that takes a lot of time. Already a month into 2016, I’m finding that I am struggling to make time to write posts of that caliber due to …

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Who Is Kelly Marshall?

When I first started this blog back in 2013, I wrote a general “Who Am I?” blog post to introduce myself to the world. Not much has changed since then. Where Am I? I am still a Business Development Manager & Consultant with itgroove in Victoria, BC (and am damn grateful for it!) Where Did I Come From? (…Can …

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