I was employed, at the time, as a trainer in a project to provide ex-offenders with job seeking and job retention skills. I had been very successful at one office for the company, but when I transferred to the main office in New Brunswick, New Jersey, my effectiveness dropped. Sharply. Which meant that my "guys" weren't getting work. The days were becoming pretty routine - by 11AM the office manager and the job developer (one almost as middle-class as I was and the other a very street-wise dude) would be in the class separating me from the students. I couldn't understand why they didn't understand the way things were "supposed to be" and they were getting very weary of listening to me. The shouting matches were getting worse.
On the Monday after my first weekend I was suprised at one point to look up and see Dave and Fred peeking through the door with strange looks on their faces. Looking at my watch I realized it was 1PM and the discussion showed no signs of slowing. I called for lunch, and listened to Dave and Fred express their amazement. More importantly, I realized that I was not only listening to the guys, learning about what really went on for them, but I WAS HAVING A BALL! Work had transformed from an ordeal to an exciting place to be. Could the training have done that? I was anxious to get to that mid-session and find out.
I wasn't alone - others were having similar experiences. I was looking forward to the second weekend.