Advanced Training Design Training
for Trainers & Facilitators
Design effective learning experiences through an intentional, goal-oriented and creative approach
November 2026 | 2 days, 9:30–17:30 | Location: Zagreb & TBD
Ready to bring your workshop design to the next level - and blow your participants’ mind?
The Advanced Training Design course is built for experienced trainers who want to enhance their workshop design with fresh frameworks, tools, and techniques.
If you’re looking to break out of your routine, gain feedback from peers, and get inspired by new ideas and approaches, then this is the course for you!
Bring your design to a whole new level, enrich your training approach, and create even more effective, unforgettable learning experiences!
Take your training sessions to the next level by mastering the art and science of impactful training design.
The Advanced Design Training includes two full live days on location, plus a 2-hour online pre-module to set you up for success.
Why Training Design is the key to the success of a workshop?
Every great workshop starts with strong planning. Training design is the backbone of any impactful workshop - it sets the foundation for the entire learning experience. When done right, it ensures that your learning goals are not only met, but achieved in a way that truly engages and inspires participants.
A well-designed session:
- Captivates attention and boosts engagement from start to finish
- Feels like an experiential journey and is filled with exciting discoveries
- Ensure the energy levels of the group are steady
- Hits the learning goal in a gradual, brain-friendly way - without overwhelm or confusion
- Turns complex concepts into clear, actionable insights
- Creates learning experiences that participants remember and apply long after the session ends
The design phase is a crucial space to explore various options and It allows us space and capacity to explore options and reflect on our plan for all the different scenarios that might develop within the workshop, ensuring that all learning goals are met in the most effective way.
It’s a time to reflect, strategize, and prepare, offering the flexibility to reflect on all the possibilities openly and broadly - something that’s nearly impossible once the workshop is in motion.
Without strong design skills, even the most knowledgeable trainers risk losing their audience to familiar habits, blind spots, and missed opportunities for deeper insights.
What you’ll gain when you join
There are two key ways in which these training will enrich your learning design skills:
1 - Identify gaps & blind spots
You’ll receive valuable feedback and insights from a group of experienced trainers, along with new frameworks and tools to address any areas for improvement in your design and delivery.
2 - Explore opportunities for more creativity & shake up your routine
What are the possibilities and opportunities to make my workshops even better? Discover fresh ways to enhance your workshops by gathering a ton of tools, tips, and ideas from the group. Learn from deep discussions on the pros and cons of different approaches, and get inspired by the diverse workshop examples shared by fellow trainers.
What will you walk away with?
Frameworks for effective training design:
Step-by-step approaches and many real-life examples on how to structure sessions that inspire, engage, and deepen learning
Creative tools & techniques:
New ideas and methods to make your sessions interactive and participant-centered, and to refresh your approach
Personalized feedback:
Tailored insights on your training designs to help you recognize blindspots to overcome as well as possibilities that you can leverage in your future designs
Practical applications:
Hands-on exercises to immediately apply what you learn
New perspective on design & exchanging ideas with other trainers:
Engaging in many discussions about pro’s and con’s of different approaches in design will give you a broader perspective and deeper understanding on how to make you design (even more) goal-oriented and effective
What does the program look like?
Throughout the two-day immersive in-person program, we will work on your real design examples.
You will have an active task to prepare a design that you will deliver and discuss with other trainers in the group.
With this approach, you'll get tailored feedback on your own design, fresh ideas to enhance it, and insights from observing how other trainers approach design and cope with challenges.
Through group discussions, you'll have the opportunity to dive into different approaches and gain valuable experience by practicing, reflecting and exchanging ideas.
Who is this course for?
This program is for you if you are:
- A trainer who has experience designing workshops but wants fresh tools and insights to make them unforgettable
- Facilitator with experience in workshop design who feels you started doing things iin a routine way and crave new ideas, tools and methods energize your sessions
- Alumni of Train the Trainer or similar programs (recommended but not mandatory), looking to dive in deeper and get better at training design
Note: While there are no strict prerequisites on the experience level, this event is designed for trainers who already have foundational knowledge and experience in designing workshops and want to advance their skills.
Join an intimate group of 10 trainers and gain actionable strategies for better workshop design.
(If you are new to training design, consider starting with our foundational Train the Trainer program.)
What participants say
As this is the first time we are running this specific topic in this specific format, to give you a glimpse of how we work at Trainers Toolbox,
here are the words of our participants from other advanced training events at Trainers Toolbox:
Logistics & pricing
Dates
Location
Interested, and have preferences on location? Contact us via the contact form or application form to share your preference for dates and location, and we will contact you updated when designing the calendar and seek to adapt to your preferences.
Group size
Price
Discounts: a 10% discount is available for alumni of Train the Trainer, other advanced programs, or members of Trainers’ Conversations.
What's included:
Meet your trainer –
Mirna Šmidt
Mirna Šmidt combines 18 years of experience in delivering training with a strong foundation in psychology and adult learning.
Mirna loves sharing messages about impactful learning & the science of positive psychology, often through powerful stories. You can see an example of one of her many speeches in her TEDx talk.
With an MSc in Engineering & Computing and an MSc in Applied Positive Psychology, she combines scientific insight with practical experience to create memorable, goal-driven learning experiences.
Mirna has delivered programs in over 30 countries for NGOs, startups, and corporations like Cisco, L’Oreal, and Molson Coors, engaging participants from more than 50 nations and leading workshops at global conferences such as HR Week, Hive Global Leaders Summit, and Women in Data Science.
As the founder of Trainers Toolbox and Happiness Academy, she focuses on empowering other trainers in facilitation skills, designing & delivering impactful learning experiences & positive psychology – the science of wellbeing.
Discover more about Mirna on LinkedIn – and do connect!
Frequently asked questions (FAQ)
This program is designed for trainers and facilitators who already have some experience in training design and want to take their skills to the next level. If you’re unsure about your fit, contact us via contact form or the application form to discuss your goals.
While the program is tailored for those with experience, we welcome trainers with diverse backgrounds and perspectives. Once the majority of the participants who apply are experienced, we are open to have a couple of less experienced trainers join, for freshness of perspective. Contact us to explore if this program aligns with your goals.
Refunds are not available due to the personalized nature of the program, but you may transfer your spot to another participant (assuming you /we find a person who is a fit for the program, to ensure that other participants’ experience is protected).
Yes, we are happy to discuss flexible payment options. Get in touch via contact form or application form to discuss.
Absolutely! We’re here to help with logistics and recommendations.
Train the Trainer is a science-based, hands-on course for new and experienced trainers who want to design and deliver powerful adult learning experiences.
Delievered over a 3-month with live online modules and finishing with 2 days in-person, it covers full foundations of all the aspects and skills that a trainer needs to master.
It’s a highly personalised program with 6 attendees only, where you keep switching between the roles of trainer and participant through active tasks, gaining rich feedback and continuously practicing while integrating new tools and models into your skillset with each step module.
It ensures you fill in any gaps in your practice, avoid common mistakes and traps that trainers do, and round-up your skills as a trainer.
On the other hand, Advanced Trainings for Trainers are 2 days in-person immersive learning experiences where we dive deep into one narrow and specific skill related to training - for example, facilitation, storytelling or training design.
Discover more about Train the Trainer at https://www.trainers-toolbox.com/train-the-trainer-course/
Unsure which of these learning experiences is the best fit for you?
At Trainers Toolbox, we currently offer 4 live & 1 online advanced trainings for trainers.
In live 2-days format, you can join us for
- Advanced Facilitation Training
- Advanced Storytelling Training
- Advanced Presentation Skills Training
Advanced Training Design Training
In online format, join the course on Optimal Emotions for Learning to bring your workshops to a whole new level of depth.
Explore the full range of the advanced courses at https://www.trainers-toolbox.com/courses/
What is Trainers’ Conversations and how does it connect to the Advanced Trainings?
Trainers’ Conversations is a year-long online peer community that brings together 22 experienced trainers for monthly conversations that are deep, energizing, and honest. You’ll explore new tools, share challenges, and receive real feedback – on everything from facilitation and learning design to business development.
It’s more than professional development. It’s creative spark, meaningful connection, and a supportive circle that evolves with you. It is a perfect community to join after attending Train the Trainer or one of the Advanced Trainings to keep practicing those skills throughout the whole year.
Ready to elevate your training design?
Join a diverse group of trainers committed to creating impactful, engaging, and effective learning experiences.