As you prepare your staff to perform at the highest level of excellence, some questions arise. Many employees report that meetings and on-the-job training are a waste of time. They grow bored and do not really learn anything new. Businesses focus on practical training rather than on empowering the individual. Teams are often class-based, and employees have little influence on management’s attitudes.

If this situation sounds familiar to you, here are six tips that can transform your staff’s enthusiasm level.

1. The trainer matters.

Not every person is qualified to train people, whether they have education and management degrees or not. People who prefer indirect and friendly communication tend to beat around the bush. This communication style slows the process of preparing employees. Mysteries abound, because the staff trainer is too vague on details. Make sure that your trainers are direct and to-the-point. They should also be patient and enjoy answering questions.

2. Learning style matters.

Understand the different learning styles. Some people are visual learners who tend to thrive in a classroom setting with notes on a blackboard. Many people, however, are not visual learners. They are distracted during lectures. Other learners may be auditory, kinesthetic, solitary, social, logical or verbal. Ask your employees how they prefer to learn. You might be wasting your time if they have a different learning style than the one you are using to train them.

3. Encourage a humble work atmosphere.

If your company has social groups, and people are competing for positions, they likely will not want to learn from each other. Level the playing field. Listen to everyone. Each person on your team has different strengths and weaknesses. Encourage everybody to contribute.

4. Understand personality.

Understanding unique personalities is essential to understanding your employees. Everyone thinks and acts differently according to their individual personality, based on their innate character and life experiences. Many people therefore recommend taking personality tests with all of your employees. Though there is some debate about how effective certain personality assessments are, this activity may help you to understand both yourself and your employees better. Furthermore, even if you do not use an established personality assessment, it is worth taking the time to sit down with the individuals in your company—and encourage them to do them same with others—to really get to know how each other thinks and works and learn each other’s strengths and weaknesses.

5. Hire a training company.

Sometimes, you may need some assistance managing employee improvement. There are many good companies and nonprofits that you can enlist to develop your employees. Free resources like Khan Academy and Wikipedia can give your staff tips. Other consultants are available for a fee. Have a constellation of mentors to get your team running at full speed.

6. Connect training with advancement.

Make a clear connection between participating in on-the-job training and earning better pay. Make sure that employees know the benefits of the training. Provide a certificate. These incentives will give them tangible evidence that their training was really worth it. If you directly connect training with career advancement, you will be doing your workers a big favor. Not having a clear connection tends to make people grumpy.

There are many considerations to make as you train your employees. They partly depend on your industry. Some fields require annual check-ins to make sure that workers are still qualified for their jobs. Whatever your staff’s realities, knowing how to help them can put you on the road to better profits and efficiency. Don’t frustrate your employees by devaluing their work. Make sure that every person feels like they belong and are necessary to your team. You will be surprised at how many workers just need a little bit more appreciation.

Make a fresh start today by using training companies or thoughtful communication with your employees. They will thank you for taking the time to make sure that their work environment is actually helping them.

Brigg Patten writes about business and technology.