workshops work

Curation is far more than an artistic act – it is a political one! It’s what’s to leave in, what to take out, what to filter and what to frame. And through this sense-making assembly, it becomes an invitation: to pay attention, to expand our minds, and to stumble into serendipitous encounters.

And nothing masters this quite like TED. Curator of ideas, and a 20-year shaper of the TED conferences, Bruno Giussani helped make the cultural institution what it is today – he joins me to dissect the art and science of facilitation’s dear cousin, and why now, more than ever, curation is so necessary.

Hear the creative workings of the Ted stage, the evolution of TedX, and why Bruno believes ‘content’ is a wrecking ball to culture. This is a conversation you won’t want to miss!

Find out about:

The cultural responsibility of curation in our desensitised age of information
The polarities of algorithmic filters, and real-life, intimate, theatrical curation
How to curate engagement with care, while gently bursting the filter bubble
How the TED stage was built to blend intimacy with visual impact
The use of music to primes new moods, neutralise tastebuds and signal art as part of the conversation

Don’t miss the next episode: subscribe to the show with your favourite podcast player.

Links:

Watch the video recording of this episode on YouTube.

Connect to Bruno Giussani:

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048 - Workshop Facilitation Through The Lens Of Photography with Markus Püttmann

workshops work

02/19/20 • 48 min

No two facilitators are the same in the way they run their workshops – or in who they are outside of being a facilitator. For Markus Püttmann, the interplay of his other interests and skills have helped to develop an effective and unique approach to workshops.

What if you used your skills and interests to create a better workshop experience for your participants?

That’s what Markus has achieved by integrating photography and facilitation.

His fascinating approach to workshop facilitation has inspired me to analyse where I could introduce unique elements of myself into my workshops in a way that is non-intrusive and organic to the process we are working through.

If you would like to explore how you might introduce your skills and interests to your workshops or are simply interested to learn how Markus integrates photography and facilitation in his, this episode will leave you with lots to reflect on.

Markus shares his thoughts on:

How photography and facilitation are both tied to the art of translation
How to combine photography and facilitation in workshops
What he does to help his groups relinquish control and tension
When and why he will change his plans according to each group
The things photography and facilitation have in common
How photography shows us things and helps us tell stories we cannot articulate

Click here to download the free 1-page summary
Don’t miss the next show: Subscribe to the show with your favourite podcast player.
A huge thank you must go to SessionLab, the sponsor of Workshops Work. Claim your free two months of SessionLab Pro now – this deal is exclusive to Workshops Work listeners!

Questions and Answers

[01:30] When did you start calling yourself a facilitator?

[03:47] How do you see the role of a facilitator stopping projects from failing?

[05:06] How do you understand the role of photography in facilitation?

[08:43] What is the role of photography in your workshops?

[11:09] Do you use photography before, during, or after the workshop?

[13:21] What are the pros and cons of using photography in workshops?

[15:24] Is there a difference between using photography and other visual prompts (like image cards, abstract art, emoticons)?

[16:28] What is an example of a question you would ask along with using a picture?

[18:03] How do you know when to change your approach when you meet a group?

[20:07] How do you help a group become more relaxed and open-minded?

[23:30] What have you learned about facilitation through being a photographer?

[29:17] What have you learned about photography through being a facilitator?

[31:35] If you had a hashtag, what would it be?

[32:59] Do you ever interview or survey your participants before a workshop?

[36:55] What is your favourite exercise?

[39:01] Have you ever asked participants to bring their own photographs to the work

Your perspective matters! Click to send me a message.

168 - How to Build your Real-Time Community Space with Daniel Liebeskind (Part 2)

workshops work

06/08/22 • 39 min

Community is on the rise. It was just a few episodes ago that I spoke with Anamaria Dorgo about facilitating communities, but in this episode I’m looking further into the future.

What do communities look like in the metaverse? Can we connect in digital spaces? What needs to change or emerge for us to find community in virtual or augmented reality?

Daniel Liebeskind is just the person to address this question, as the co-founder and CEO of Topia. In such a nascent industry, Daniel is as experienced as anybody. Topia launched in 2020 and is at the forefront of world-building and virtual communities.

Join us for a conversation that touches everything from facilitation and design to NFTs and decentralisation.

Find out about:

Why every community builder is a facilitator, even if they don’t realise it
How prioritising accessibility helps us build stronger communities
How Topia combines play, co-creation, and purpose to create communities in the metaverse
Why your members need to bond with your platform as well as each other
Why the best virtual worlds prioritise form and function ahead of visual beauty
What tutorials and onboarding look like in a metaverse space - and why they’re so important

Don’t miss the next episode: subscribe to the show with your favourite podcast player.

And download the free 1-page summary, so you can always have the key points of this episode to hand.

Questions and Answers

Part two
[01:13] What's the perfect size for a space? Is there such a thing?
[04:28] What are the tech obstacles - especially around bandwidth - to platforms like Topia
[07:31] How far away do you think we are from your initial vision of virtual reality worlds
[11:13] How do you handle issues of overwhelm - as the builder of the tool and a user, too
[15:21] Can non-visual thinkers build worlds, too?
[23:12] Would a world without constraints be a world that fails?
[29:09] Do you have a favourite exercise on Topia?
[31:29] Where do you see the opportunity with NFTs within online community building?

Links

Topia’s website

Connect to Daniel:

On Twitter

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178 - Facilitating Transformation: A Conversation between Utopia and Reality with Douglas Breitbart

workshops work

08/16/22 • 71 min

When you think of business transformation, what do you picture?

Expensive consultants armed with long presentations and a briefcase of jargon? Or a voluntary grassroots movement of trust, equity, and contractual safety within an organisation?

Douglas Breitbart sees it one way and one way only. You may be able to guess which method gets his vote.

This episode was hugely refreshing and inspiring. Douglas’ conviction and confidence in the power of internally led transformation projects — and the methods required to facilitate them effectively — are a blueprint for the agile and empathetic businesses of the future.

Find out about:

How sharing, not enforcing, power creates change
Why Douglas believes organisations can (and shall) change without new resources or inputs
Why many leaders end up ignoring the most powerful energetic potential in their organisation
Why an attachment to outcomes causes harm to the facilitator and their workshop participants
What changes when a voluntary team leads a transformation process
How to use values audits in business transformation
Why workshop participants are waiting for ‘enrolment’ — and how you can provide it

Don’t miss the next episode: subscribe to the show with your favourite podcast player.

And download the free 1-page summary, so you can always have the key points of this episode to hand.

Links

2BElemental, Douglas’ coaching, insights, and collaboration business

Being In Systems, Douglas’ emergence facilitation business

The Values Foundation, Douglas’ value-alignment business

Connect to Douglas:

287 - Here & Now is the Future of Learning with Simon Edwards and Ian Byrne

workshops work

09/17/24 • 76 min

https://www.linkedin.com/company/mindblown-adventures/

Corporate training doesn’t have to be boring. In fact, it can be playful, curious, a little bit magical, and dare I say it - fun. And this week I am joined by the creative magic of not one, but two brilliant guests who are here to tell you how: Simon Edwards and Ian Byrne.

Hailing from the worlds of game design and facilitation, we delve deep into the wondrous realm of learning in all of its curious, human forms. Together, they share the eureka moments of their immersive experiences, the evolution of leadership in L&D, why ancient Vipassana meditation has the power to overcome ego, and the art of giving radical candor.

Tune in and get ready to learn!

Find out about:

The two halves of an organisation: the informal and the formal
The role and limitations of AI in organizational change, learning and facilitation
Recognising the cultural differences of engagement
Action learning: how to turn theoretical learning into reality
What we can learn from neurodivergent thinking
The power of pausing to listen to your body

Don’t miss the next episode: subscribe to the show with your favourite podcast player.

Links:

Watch the video recording of this episode on YouTube.

Connect to Simon and Ian:

https://mindblown.io/

https://www.facebook.com/MindBlown.io

https://www.instagram.com/mindblown.io/

https://www.linkedin.com/in/simon-edwards-93312318/
https://living-systems.com/
https://www.linkedin.com/in/icbyrne/

187 - The Seasons of Facilitation with Barbara Pedersen (Part 2)

workshops work

10/19/22 • 56 min

Some of you who listen to this episode will not have been alive for 30 years, which gives Barb Pedersen the wonderful claim that she’s been facilitating since before you were born!

Not that she would boast in such a way; Barb’s approach is informed by humility, curiosity, and positivity (as you will quickly come to learn in this episode).

Those tenets have served her brilliantly in her three decades of facilitation and, you may not be surprised to hear, she has seen a lot of change in that time. This episode was our opportunity to zoom out and look at the macro changes in facilitation over the course of a working life — as well as the constants and evergreen skills.

Find out about:

How facilitation has changed over the three decades of Barb’s practice
The ever-increasing awareness of facilitation within organisations
What online facilitation has changed about our work — and which parts remain the same
How to empower groups to solve individual issues in a workshop
Why great recording and note-taking is an art of synthesis, not verbatim writing
Why prioritising your values and beliefs serves you better than perfecting a facilitation method

Don’t miss the next episode: subscribe to the show with your favourite podcast player.

And download the free 1-page summary, so you can always have the key points of this episode to hand.

Links

Watch the video recording of this episode on YouTube.

Barb’s website

Connect to Barbara:

On Twitter

On Instagram

321 - Resting in Complexity: The Inner Work of Modern Leadership with Marco Valente

workshops work

05/13/25 • 72 min

How do we host ourselves as facilitators – and how do we host others? How do we grow bigger minds to meet the complexity out there, and then rest in it without needing to know the answers?

Marco Valente joins me for a big, juicy and mind-opening conversation as we navigate the inner workings of the growing self – and the leader – to better understand the messy, unpredictable complexities of our world. It’s about walking up to our mind’s balcony in search of self-awareness and inner presence, it’s about getting vulnerable in our wrongness, and getting comfortable with the unknown.

Marco shares his thoughts, leadership advice and hosting tips with beautiful eloquence and I invite every leader, facilitator and sense-maker to press play to this wonderful episode.

Find out about:

The mind trap of identity, ego and feedback
The evolutionary pulls of fear - how much helps or hinders us?
Why KPIs can harm the collective, rather than help with long-term growth
The paradox of learning more facilitation methods, in order to detach ourselves from them
The balancing act of structure and emergence to accurately address group needs

Don’t miss the next episode: subscribe to the show with your favourite podcast player.

Links:

Watch the video recording of this episode on YouTube.

Connect to Marco Valente:

Website

Your perspective matters! Click to send me a message.

163 - What do we facilitate for? A philosophical conversation with Dov Tsal (Part 2)

workshops work

05/04/22 • 28 min

Why do we facilitate? Who are we, as facilitators? Is shared understanding a goal?

Dov Tsal - Tao-inspired coach, mentor, and facilitator - is not one to shy away from the deep and challenging philosophical questions of our craft.

In fact, he’s usually the one asking them!

This was certainly the case in this episode - which is more of a conversation than an interview. We examine the role, purpose, and objectives of facilitators and explore the boundaries of our work and being.

An unmissable, unique episode for enquiring minds of facilitation.

Find out about:

Why acceptance of all outcomes grants us space to facilitate as the group requires
How a workshop’s success or failure is predetermined by our expectations of its purpose
What it means to be a passive facilitator
Facilitating the group as an ecosystem, not individuals
Why avoiding interference is the hallmark of great facilitation
How to train your brain to see multiple perspectives on the same object

Don’t miss the next episode: subscribe to the show with your favourite podcast player.

And download the free 1-page summary, so you can always have the key points of this episode to hand.

And if the idea of NeverDoneBefore 2021, the community of facilitators, caught your attention; click here to explore it in more detail!

Thanks to our sponsor Deckhive. Click here to find out more about the new platform for using card decks in online facilitation. Use the code workshopswork to get the first month for free.

Questions and Answers

Part two
[00:57] Where are you now? What's present for you?
[03:48] What would change about the world if we all believed in our insignificance?
[07:40] Human beings having spiritual experiences or spiritual beings having human experiences?
[10:29] What's the difference between a choice and a decision?
[12:55] Books - from Brenee Brown to Robert Sapolsky - and what they're teaching us about our state of being.
[17:54] Negotiating our evolutionary triggers in the world of modern humans.
[23:18] Can we control our reactions or simply take ownership?

Links

Connect to Dov:

Your perspective matters! Click to send me a message.

161 - Workshops are the Conflict Playground for Real Life with Ez Bridgman (Part 2)

workshops work

04/20/22 • 26 min

Intersectionality is a fundamental part of facilitation - and a common topic on this podcast - but, usually, we discuss it in relation to other professional disciplines.

It’s high time we looked at how facilitation can influence our personal lives, in our deepest and dearest relationships.

Ez Bridgman, creative experience designer and playful vitality proponent, joins this episode to discuss playfulness, vulnerability, and conflict. And, of course, how facilitation can be a guiding light through all those complexities in our relationships.

Find out about:

How Ez has curated a “garden of life” and how it’s helped him and those around him
Why play isn’t always laughing, exuberance, and high energy
Why sticking with your plan and ignoring the energy in the room can be disastrous
How to use conflict to strengthen your relationships, not harm them
What it means to make an agreement and why it’s critical to prove you’ll stick to it
How to use ‘Theoretical Speed Dating’ to prepare a group for collaboration

Don’t miss the next episode: subscribe to the show with your favourite podcast player.

And download the free 1-page summary, so you can always have the key points of this episode to hand.

And if the idea of NeverDoneBefore 2021, the community of facilitators, caught your attention; click here to explore it in more detail!

Thanks to our sponsor Deckhive. Click here to find out more about the new platform for using card decks in online facilitation. Use the code workshopswork to get the first month for free.

Questions and Answers

Part two
[02:05] The value of practicing conflict 'out loud', just as much as we practice agreement. [04:02] What's your advice for remembering our facilitative powers when in moments of conflict?
[06:55] So how can we create a sense of safety for ourselves, so that we can tap into our empathy?
[08:55] Is it safe or sensible to use play to resolve conflict?
[11:38] Can you share an example of an exercise?
[15:08] What impact does it have to focus on a point of distinct disagreement and opposition? [18:13] How do you structure the 'closing circle'?
[21:23] Was there anything you wanted to share that we haven't discussed yet?
[22:43] How would you handle someone who doesn't play by the rules?

Links

Connect to Ez:

020 - Create Experiences for Your Audience to Achieve Results with Rein Sevenstern

workshops work

07/17/19 • 57 min

In this episode, I talk to Rein Sevenstern, a facilitator, coach and managing partner of Experiential Learning, a consulting firm that designs and facilitates experiences for people to leave their comfort zone in a safe environment, to unleash learning.

Since Rein has lived and worked in many different countries, such as India, Malaysia, US, Belgium and the Netherlands, we talk about the impact of cultural differences on workshop preparation and facilitation.

The core of our conversation is the question of how we can create experiences in various workshop contexts and how we can take participants out of their comfort zone while protecting the safe space. We also speak about ego and about trust and what it takes to transform groups of colleagues into teams.

Don’t miss the part when Rein guides us through the beautiful workshop experience “The valuable object” that gave me goose bombs from just listening.

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Subscribe to our newsletter for a free 1-page summary of each upcoming episode directly to your inbox, or explore our eBooks featuring 50-episode compilations for even more facilitation insights. Find out more: https://workshops.work/podcast

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Questions and Answers

[1:31] If you were a hashtag, what would it be?

[3:58] What have you learned from the cultural differences while living and working aboard?

[5:32] Would you adjust your facilitation style to the different cultures where you conduct workshops?

[9:25] What would be your warm-up exercises depending on cultural differences?

[13:47] What is “experiential learning”?

[18:40] What makes the difference between a group of colleagues and a team?

[21:40] How important is it for the team building that each person discloses their own agenda?

[25:16] Do you build a ritual around the exchange of the “valuable object”?

[31:23] How do you bridge the gap between taking participants out of their comfort zone while still creating the safe space in which they can connect?

[41:58] In our briefing you shared about a leadership program of yours where you bring team members to a developing country to collaborate with NGOs. Can you tell us more about that?
[49:58] How do you assure the sustainability of the experience once managers come back to daily work?

[52:57] What makes workshops fail?

[54:30] What shall the listener remember from the show?

Related links you may want to check out:

Rein’s business page: https://experientiallearning.biz/
The “trust equation” by David Maister
Our sponsor Session Lab (affiliate link)

Connect to Rein on: