Lauren Tenney – Ten Directions

What does it mean to ‘own’ your facilitator voice?

Lauren Tenney — Fri, 29 Mar 2024 20:30:39 +0000

Recently we led a learning session in our community entitled “Owning your Facilitator Voice”. In this rich and fruitful inquiry we explored our own values about facilitator neutrality, and how they shape the way we bring in our voice and experience while facilitating. We also invited the group to consider ways we might bring more […]

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Want to Change? Go Further Upstream

Lauren Tenney — Wed, 10 May 2017 18:59:36 +0000

Recently I was hired to work with an intact team whose presenting issue was poor communication, with associated breakdowns in collaboration and decision-making. They knew they “needed to communicate better,” and by all accounts, they were absolutely right. As I met with each member individually and facilitated a series of meetings, I learned about some […]

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Next Stage for Self-Management: Skilled Facilitator Training

Lauren Tenney — Wed, 22 Feb 2017 03:14:39 +0000

A big ah-ha from the field: Successful self-management depends on this. Many teams and organizations, especially in the last few years since the rise of Holacracy and the popularity of Reinventing Organizations, are transitioning to self-management—or at least sniffing around the possibility. There isn’t one recipe for successful self-management, but there are essential principles that […]

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We’ve Flattened the Hierarchy—Now What?

Lauren Tenney — Wed, 27 Apr 2016 19:40:18 +0000

Increase transparency. Share power. Create self-managing teams. Become a learning organization. If you’re an evolutionarily-minded leader and you want to embrace the future of work along these lines, how do you do it? Are all self-managing systems of governance more or less the same, or are some better suited for your existing culture? Is your […]

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How to Leverage Creative Tension for Good

Lauren Tenney — Sat, 05 Mar 2016 01:02:05 +0000

If there were a word for our chapter in history, it might be “interconnected.” Organizations, teams, movements, individuals, economies, ecosystems. Is there any part of our lives untouched by accelerating connectivity? Our curiosity and imagination—aka, advance into novelty—is weaving us together. And as we get closer, we can’t avoid experiencing the uncomfortable and exciting paradox […]

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Facilitation can set you free

Lauren Tenney — Sat, 16 May 2015 01:27:11 +0000

When I facilitate, I’m usually scared. Excited, curious, engaged. But definitely also scared. Scared of being obtuse and failing to deliver what the group needs. Scared I’ll offend someone. Scared something will happen that I can’t handle and I’ll freeze, revealing my incompetence. In short, I’m scared I’ll get booed right off the stage. Standing […]

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This idea should die

Lauren Tenney — Sat, 21 Mar 2015 13:32:07 +0000

Is there an idea that you think should be taken out of circulation? A commonly held notion that’s holding us back, that’s outdated, or that you wish would just fade out of use, to be replaced by a more helpful idea? I’m asking (sincerely) because of a podcast I recently enjoyed that was focused on […]

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Availability—Inviting the “bigness” of you

Lauren Tenney — Sat, 10 Jan 2015 01:41:36 +0000

“When you can relate to the present moment, make choices and distinctions, and bring those into the collective—that is where the facilitative and the leadership role really meet. When that happens, you’re able to help a group have the capacity to relate to presence and be available to what is emerging. That’s the interface that […]

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