What facilitation principles or guidelines do you live by and why? Here are an initial three for consideration.
embrace emergence
There is an inherent tension between structure and freedom, focus and flexibility, and all are needed for emergence. Helping the group surface and unlock what is true and real for them is one of the key roles we play as facilitators. As facilitators, we must design to keep a group focused yet allow for emergence and embrace what is revealed. Being overly rigid and/or over-designing sessions will inhibit emergence and leave the group with a feeling that something was missing.
listen beyond
Listening is probably the most important facilitation skill. On the surface we listen for context and content, we listen and invite all the voices in the room, that’s just the first level. As we deepen our facilitation listening skills we listen for patterns, themes, and connections. We listen for what is shifting in the group and what can be reframed. Deeper again we listen for what is unsaid but yet what has energy, we listen for the small inflections, changes in breath, hesitant pauses and silent participants that suggest something is wanting to be said and surfaced. And even deeper we listen for higher meaning, where the core, the truth, the heart is revealed.
design connection
It’s easy to just “dive in”, meetings always have packed agendas, there is lots to be done in workshops and everyone is eager to get to the objectives. But the quality of work we do depends on how well we treat each other, and how well we treat each other depends on our depth of connection. As facilitators, we need to be intentional about designing connection into our session and working towards balancing the tension between relating and producing.
Written by Tricia Conyers, Founder Island Inspirations Ltd., INIFAC Certified Master Facilitator, and Certified Virtual Facilitator
