First, owners must realize that cats don't understand punishment the way we do. If you yell at your cat, most likely he will only learn to do whatever bad thing he was doing when you're not around. That cereal bowl from breakfast sitting on the counter will only encourage your cat to jump up and look for treats. Before any training can begin, get all the goodies out of reach. Next, get a squirt gun.
Squirt guns are the premier cat-training tool.
Because you can shoot from a distance, most cats won't associate this sort of punishment with an owner. When you catch your cat on the table, give her a squirt on two with the water gun. She should quickly learn to stay down on the ground. If the squirt gun isn't enough to keep your cat grounded, try booby-trapping your counter. There are a few ways to go about doing this.