Discovering the Power of Depth In a world increasingly dominated by fleeting interactions, the art of facilitating depth in conversations is not only uncommon but immensely powerful. At a recent workshop, a leader asked me, “How can I have my group connect more deeply with what matters in our conversations?” It’s a sentiment many of
The world is facing a growing leadership talent gap. More than ever, organizations need sophisticated, self-managing leaders able to thrive in complex and rapidly-changing professional environments. But demand for this type of talent vastly outpaces the supply. Several factors contribute to this gap, including the retirement of baby boomers, the rapid pace of technological advancements,
Your facilitative leadership is perfectly positioned to make a difference, to help make your groups flourish, but knowing what to do when the culture itself is under performing is another matter altogether. “I get this feeling that my group could be better, but I am at a loss about how to reach higher levels of
As CEOs, business leaders, consultants, coaches, entrepreneurs – we have lots of ideas about relevant “topics” to bring up in our group meetings. However, HOW you introduce and talk about topics is often a powerful determinant of whether the experience is an engaging one – or falls flat.
The large multipurpose room in the community college was full – chairs clustered around tables, and it buzzed with the hum of about 100 people saying hello to each other. And, there was an electricity in the room that felt exciting, unpredictable, and somewhat volatile. I was midway through a series of open dialogue meetings
As you find yourself standing before a group of senior leaders, you relax into a well-earned sense of confidence. It is during these moments that you truly come alive, effortlessly navigating through the realm of issues and ideas, stuck points and possibilities to grow your groups’ passion and make pursuit of their purpose even more
What is the difference between team coaching and facilitation? A little background….
The rise of hybrid work has created significant upheaval within organizations, challenging established norms and inspiring the adoption of new practices. This shift creates a prime opportunity to consciously create more human-centered practices that foster learning and growth.
The ability to support teams and groups to make sense of their worlds and coordinate around goals and projects has always been particularly important for organizations. And, with increasing levels of burnout and overwhelm influencing our capacity to be productive and agile, this kind of concern is being escalated into the C-suite. Facilitative leadership has
Today, I’d like to share some feedback on an interesting dilemma that’s come across my desk. As you read this, see if you can find in your own experience a moment when this might have been true for you. You might also engage in thinking about your immediate response and whether you’re “listening to fix
Recently we sent out an invitation to you to share a challenging topic or dilemma that you were working with in your facilitation practice. We loved what came back to us – here’s one we felt moved to respond to: “My dilemma is around addressing an overbearing, demanding person who’s not receptive to feedback. Others are
I was speaking to a friend the other day about a facilitative experience they were having with a group of leaders. I can relate to their experience – perhaps you can too? My friend said the session had been “a little rocky”. The story unfolded like this. This learning program is in its early days
I’d love to share an experience from a few years ago that illuminates how facilitative leadership was used to weave alignment and transform culture and relationships. I was consulting with a large corporation where conflict and tensions were brewing among senior management in three main areas of the organization. Their teams were feeling pressures from
As culture and society continue to evolve, our approach to collaboration must also evolve.
Recently I have been facilitating a group of 22 leaders that is about to begin a major transformative process. A newly configured team, they are coming together via a recent integration of three different organizations to collaborate on an organizational renewal strategy to move into the next era. When we first met, what immediately struck
An excerpt from “Will the Next Buddha be a Sangha? Responding to the Call to Influence the Future of Collaboration” published in Integral Leadership Review, January-February 2015 In the early 2000s I was retained to lead a cross-border merger integration project for a major utility. This was an extremely challenging and emotionally intense experience for the
“The opposite of Love is not Hate; it’s indifference.” – Elie Wiesel Last month, I wrote about The Awakened Takeover. Which is another way of saying I *dared* to articulate my deep intention and publish it for the world to see. And now…it has me by it’s teeth. In it, I included this call to
If what you do every day is somehow trying to close the gap between the human condition and human potential, then you are already participating. We are so aware of the many complex challenges unfolding on a global scale—rifts in how we get along, as well as disturbing patterns in how we are treating each
Last night I learned something I didn’t expect to learn about leadership from watching The Lost World: Jurassic Park. This lesson comes from an old adage: “Never bring home an injured baby Tyrannosaurus Rex.” First, replay this gripping scene in your mind’s eye: It was a dark and stormy night. Scientist Julianne Moore warned activist
Like most kids, when I was a little girl I eagerly anticipated the transition from school to the freedom of summer. But the real highlight for me was the opportunity to travel up the hill to the public library (much more mysterious and shadowy than our protestant elementary school library) once a week to select
As an experienced leadership developer, I thought myself quite the expert at developing capacity in groups and helping leaders master new competencies, and over decades of work, I felt I’d learned the most effective ways to do that. The learning culture I had long subscribed to is characterized by its emphasis on valuable information and
How can we become more capable of working with whatever comes up in our lives in a way that actually supports the growth and evolution of all human beings? When we cultivate presence, we are more able to work with the here and now, take more perspectives, and embrace more of our experience—including dissonance and
Our work life today depends on our ability to effortlessly collaborate with others while executing our goals with precision and ease. And every one of us—regardless of whether we are a leader, manager, coach, or consultant—needs to develop the awareness and skills of a facilitator in order to influence the successful outcomes of our endeavors.
