Haiku Reflection of Applied Improv Conference
27 October 2008(Language alert) So I’ve just spent four hours on a plane between Chicago and LA. When there’s no service and no entertainment (except for my trusty iPod, of course) what’s a girl to do? Haiku, of course. I’ve always wanted to use Haiku in a workshop for reflection, but haven’t yet found the right group.…
I love this time of year
24 September 2008We’re coming out of winter. The days are getting longer (bring on daylight saving) and it’s often sunny and warm. For a few minutes, anyway. It can also still be quite cold, windy, wet and stormy. The birds are building nests and the blue wrens are in the full breeding colours. And many of the…
Benefits of blogging
24 September 2008A friend of mine recently signed up to Twitter (hi Kim!). We had this email conversation about what it means to be on Twitter, and about blogging. This got me reflecting on what a difference these web tools have made to my business and to my facilitation practice. Contactable in many ways Less than two…
Why is the default position a crappy presentation? And why is it OK?
16 September 2008I sit through a LOT of presentations. Not because I want to, usually because they are a part of a workshop I’m facilitating. The people giving these presentations have good things to say, interesting things. They are often passionate about their topic. So why is it OK to give a crappy presentation? Since I discovered…
Evaluating Facilitation
11 July 2008I was listening to comedian Rod Quantock on the radio today talking about reviews. He said he never reads reviews because if he reads the good ones, then he’d have to read the bad ones too – and they can hurt. Got me thinking about a couple of things: the similarity between reviews and evaluation, and…
Pushing boundaries
3 July 2008I’ve been searching for ways to encourage training participants to write their own manual, in real time, while taking part in a training program that they will later deliver to others. I can hear a whole lot of people out there thinking, ‘oh, that’s train-the-trainer’ stuff. For some reason the term ‘train-the-trainer’ leaves me cold…
Amazing people
26 May 2008One of the joys of my work is the opportunity to meet so many amazing people. One of them is photographer Tristan Clements. Check out his pics on flickr.
Who needs facilitators?
23 April 2008While there’s been a flurry of posts on the Australasian Facilitators’ Network list about the processes used at last weekend’s 2020 summit (where 1000 of Australia’s ‘best and brightest’ – not my words – gathered in Canberra to discuss 10 topics with a Chair and co-Chair for each topic and an array of facilitators) there’s…
Taking chances
18 April 2008Anne Pattillo and I have started a new business together. It’s called Facilitating with Confidence and we have a web site. I haven’t linked to it because there’s been a few stumbles in getting it up. This experience of adding to our already existing individual businesses with a new joint venture is exciting, nerve wracking,…
Words into action
14 April 2008I’ve been pondering this question for a while and would like your thoughts. Here’s some scenarios: #1: There’s a lot of commentry around regarding the forthcoming 2020 Summit and how the ideas will translate into action #2: Comment heard on the radio: ‘It’s all very well to talk, but what are we going to do…