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The prime directive in dog training is opening communication channels by teaching your dog ESL (English as a Second Language). Lure/Reward Training is the quickest way to teach your dog the meaning words, so you may use them as instructions, so your dog understands exactly how you would like them to act, and as instructive verbal guidance to get them back on track when they err. Which would you prefer if your souffle fell flat, or your golf swing sliced the ball into the Nineteenth Hole? Screamed criticism? A leash correction? Or clear, precise, understandable instructions, advice, and guidance for how to resolve your chef/golfer glitches? 

• Learn how to determine how well your dog understands your verbal instructions by calculating Response-Reliability Percentages. You'll find these will vary considerably depending on who is training, where you test and what's going on: in the kitchen at mealtimes, other rooms, yard/garden, or dog parks, close or at a distance, on-leash or off-leash.
• Learn how to teach your dog to respond reliably and promptly on verbal cue, at a distance, when distracted, and without the continued use of any training tool.
• Learn how to phase out food lures so they don't become bribes and so, make sure your dog's reliability does not become contingent on whether you have food in your hand.
• Learn how to reduce your reliance on food rewards. By decreasing their number, you increase their reinforcing power, and ensure your dog's responsiveness does not become contingent on you having food in your pocket.
• Learn how to use much more powerful life rewards, such as, 'go play', 'go sniff', 'let's go', tug, tag, fetch, find, hide-n-seek, etc. to motivate your dog to the max, so that your dog becomes self-motivated and internally reinforced, i.e., 'just doing it' is sufficient reward.
• Learn how to use much more powerful reinforcement schedules, such as Random Reinforcement and Differentially Reinforcing the Ineffable.

Many reward-trainers are at a loss for what to do when dogs are non-compliant or misbehave. However, once you've taught your dog a well-rounded vocabulary, you'll discover how easy and effective, how relieving, relaxing, and fulfilling for you, and how blindingly obvious it is to deal with non-compliance and misbehavior by simply using your voice and without even having to raise it. 

To give just one example: When your dog jumps-up on visitors, or on you, do you?

a) Squirt the dog with water, or lemon juice, throw a chain, or shake a can of pennies?

b) Turn your back and ignore your dog to 'extinguish' the behavior? 

c) Differentially reinforce a DRO or DRI? (???), or...

d) Simply Instruct your dog to "Sit" in a soft, calm, controlled, but insistent tone. Wow! The power of communication: Instructing the dog exactly how you would like it to greet people. And if your dog doesn't sit because they are beside themselves with the boundless joy of greeting visitors, or upon your return from taking out the garbage just 93 seconds ago, we troubleshoot proofing the response-reliability of Sit in that specific scenario. So obvious, so easy, and so much fun. The magic of our words. 

Indeed, unlike aversive stimuli, a single word conveys two (and sometimes three) pieces of information: a) Stop what you're doing, b) Do this instead, and occasionally, c) This instruction is reeeeally important right now. 

And there are so many other words you can use: Find your Chewtoy, Go to your Bed, Settle, Shush, Hustle & Steady (speed up and slow down when walking), and of course, Goooood Dog.

Other topics will include: tracking progress by monitoring Response-Reliability Percentages and Response:Reward Ratios to test whether training worked, how well it worked, and how quickly it worked; the notion of progressive comprehension;  the use of formal instructions for on-demand ultra-reliability; random reinforcement, (yes, you may be inconsistent when administering rewards, in fact being inconsistent increases reinforcing power; turning praise, kibble, and toys into mega-secondary reinforcers; The Jolly Routine; putting problem behaviors on cue to facilitate teaching their offset, e.g., teaching Speak on cue facilitates teaching Shush on cue, at your convenience; a variety of other non-aversive techniques for resolving misbehavior and non-compliance; plus Wait & Reward Training, specifically designed for teaching hyperactive, inattentive, rambunctious and rumbustious, adolescent dogs, (who blow off their owners instructions and food treats), to calm down, focus, and reengage, so you may resume Lure/Reward Training.