I love the variety in my work. But occasionally I get to do the same thing more than once. It allows me to road test a workshop or polish a keynote — it definitely ups my game.
Last week I taught Facilitation Skills for the tenth time at Conrad Grebel University College, and this week I teach Planning Retreats and Complex Meetings at Western University for perhaps the sixth time. I’ve been paying attention to what gets updated and what stays the same each time, alongside what participants highlight as the most relevant pieces for them.
There are a few phrases that continue to feel very true each time I say them aloud in those courses, so I thought I’d share them with you here. Next week, I’ll explore a few that still feel a bit wobbly.
- What is my best contribution as a facilitator? To maintain the “golden thread” of why we’re doing what we’re doing together. To make explicit to the whole group what’s normally invisible inside each of the participants’ heads. And to create “conversational containers” of the right size and in the right order to help a group make progress toward their goals.
- Lead with purpose, not method.
- Have a plan, then hold it loosely.
- Pay attention to how you behave under pressure, because that is likely how you’ll show up.
- The content and the experience both matter — attend to both, and you can win in more than one way.
- Best tip to help a group make a decision? “Decide how to decide before deciding.”
I realize not all of you are facilitators. But I suspect most of you run meetings, plan gatherings, experience conflict in groups. I hope these tips help!