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Facilitation: how to, tips and reminder

Categories
  • facilitation
  • how-to
Tags
  • how to
  • ice-breaker
  • ideation

Before kick-off

Depending on the event logistics, consider mixing with the audience beforehand and meet and greet as many people as possible. This is a great way to start building rapport so you're not a stranger when you start the event, plus the group isn't full of strangers to you. If you're one of those people that subconsciously feels that the group is full of judging, bored or mean people, meeting them first and reassuring yourself that they are kind people who are on your side can really help.

Opening

This is a useful template for opening an event or workshop

  1. I like to start with a greeting to honour the mana whenua (people of the land). e.g. Tena koutou katoa. 
  2. Welcome the group, introduce yourself. You may want to add a little about your background, but remember the point of this is to reassure them they are safe in your hands and you're qualified to lead them, not to give a long list of accomplishments or your CV. It may be a brief story that shows you understand their challenges. e.g. Hi, I'm Kit and I'll be your host for today.
  3. Offer some kind of gratitude or acknowledgement in advance for paying attention and being respectful. e.g. Thanks for your time and energy
  4. The purpose of this workshop is [overall purpose and outcomes]
  5. Today we’ll be [overall mission ] by doing [activity] and then [activity] and after lunch, we’ll [activity]. This gives the group the  opportunity to manage their energy and expectations for the duration of the event.
  6. You might want to include what kind of things you'll be doing and what is expected of them. Reassuring them hat they will have time for talk and activities. e.g. There will be some teamwork, some individual writing and some group sharing. We’ve got a lot of exciting activities to do today. So when we’re doing individual writing, it’s important you focus on that.
  7. By the end of the day, you’ll have [overall outcomes with tools].
  8. Explain your role and what they can expect from you. e.g. My role today will be as host and facilitator. I’ll be giving instructions and keeping time. So I’m asking for your permission now to potentially interrupt your conversation or raise my voice in order to keep us on task. Can I get a show of hands that you give me permission?
  9. Set the tone. e.g. This is a space for you to feel free to be experimental and creative. There are no stupid questions here, so ask anything!
  10. Some facilitators worry that their audience already knows the content they are about to share. A great way around this is to preframe it by saying "I’d like to acknowledge the wisdom in the room. You may already be familiar with [insert topic], but I’d like to suggest the way to make the most out of today is to practice what the Zen Buddhists call beginner’s mind. To taste each morsel as though for the first time. And notice the different textures, flavours and sensations." This way you're giving those who may be familiar with the topic a challenge and opportunity to go deeper, rather than to disengage because they think they know it already.
  11. Housekeeping. Let them know about toilets, exits and break times
  12. Finally engage them in an interactive conversation. This ends the one-way presentation and starts the flow between you. It also helps keep them awake and engaged. e.g. Show of hands, how many of you…? or Turn to the person next to you and tell them....

Basic workshop outline

   1. What, why, purpose and outcomes

2. How to, Explainers, Frameworks, Stories

  3. Exercises, group work, conversations and action

4. Reflection, recap and closing

Facilitating activities 

Ensure participants understand:

  1. How long they have for the activity
  2. Exactly what is expected of them
  3. Clear steps for each stage of the activity
  4. Examples of what an outcome might look like

It’s easy to forget that what is obvious to you is brand new to them, so adopt a beginners mindset and make sure all your explanations can be easily grasped by participants from at all levels.

Ensure particpants feel

  • Encouraged and supported
  • They have time and space to do the work without too much input or commentary from you
  • You are available for questions and aware of who might need support

Closing activities

  • Allow time for questions. 
  • Ask the groups to reflect on and share anything they've learned at the end of the session.

Retention rates from workshop methods

    • Teaching others90%
    • Practice by doing75%
    • Discussion groups50%
    • Demonstration 20%30%
    • Audio Visual20%
    • Reading10%
    • Lecture5%

      Source: National Training Laboratories, Bethel Maine
1

Walk-through

Show the group how to do something.
2

Individual exercise

Have them practice or reflect on their own. You can wander around and help people one on one.
3

Group exercise

Have them discuss and then practice together
4

Reflection

Lead a reflection discussion with all participants. Ask what the learned, where they got stuck, what was surprising or difficult. Highlight participants comments to reflect insights or circle back to the learning outcomes. This will encourage others to share.

Ideas Generated by Brainstorming Groups

Ideas generated by the same number of people who work alone and later pool their ideas

Brainstorming and Group Work

Decades of research has consistently shown that brainstorming groups think of far fewer ideas than the same number of people who work alone and later pool their ideas

See Teamwork Exercises

Kit Hindin
Kit Hindin
Activator, facilitator, entrepreneur, futurist, designer and strategic thinking partner.

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kit@kithindin.com