As trainers we know that teaching an effective class takes tremendous energy and is hard work.  However no amount of energy or effort will make a class successful if you have not prepared properly to teach the class.  Whats involved in class preparation?  I believe that there are 6 significant components.

1. Know your audience.
Know who your students are, what they hope to learn and how they are going to use the software you are training.  Obviously if your class is comprised of partners at the law firm, you dont need to spend time teaching how to reset tabs.  Identify the tools that will be of greatest interest and use to your students and build your class outline around those tools.

2. Know your software inside and out! 
Make sure that you are an expert on your products.  Whether you are teaching a software program that youve used for years or something that is new to you take the time to fully explore and learn the software.  You cannot know too much about any application you are training. 

3. Arrive early! 
Allow enough time to check all login IDs you will be using in class and each machine you will be using.  Make sure that any audiovisual equipment you will be using is working and ready for class.  If you are new to a facility come in a day ahead of the training to check everything and familiarize yourself with the clients setup.  If applications such as the firms word processor or document management have been customized spend the needed time to learn all of the nuances.

4. Have all documentation photocopied, sorted and ready for distribution to your students. 
Do not waste valuable class time searching for the appropriate handout, or rushing out to copy something.  If you are using practice files in your training, make sure that the files have been loaded and students have access to the files.

5. Plan the pacing of your class. 
Know how long your topics should take to teach and when you want to take your breaks during class.  If your class is a full day session, teach your more difficult topics during the morning when your students are fresh and save a fun easy topic for your post-lunch session.  Have both guided and self-guided exercises prepared for the class topics. 

6. Be well rested mentally and physically. 
As I stated earlier, classroom training is hard work.  Make sure that you do all those things your mother used to tell you to do when you were growing up.  Get a good nights sleep and eat a healthy breakfast.  If your class is a full day class, make sure that you get outside of the classroom on your lunch hour to refresh yourself. 

You will find that teaching a class you are well prepared to teach is far more enjoyable than struggling through a session you have not properly prepared for.  Your efforts will show to your students and they will appreciate all of your hard work.  Best of luck!