Anyone can use Lego Serious Play in their workshops (and here’s how you do it) with Michael Fearne (Episode 149)

In the First Time Facilitator podcast, host Leanne Hughes introduces guest Sally Prosser, a voice and confidence coach.

We riff on the concept of 'breveloquence', a portmanteau of brevity and eloquence, and how they aim to develop and use this tool in verbal and written forms.

We also take you behind the scenes of our new workshop called Get to the Point, which we're co-hosting in Brisbane on 16 April 2024.

Find out more about the Brisbane workshop and grab your ticket here.

Conversation time-stamps

• 00:31 The Importance of Brevity in Communication
• 02:17 The Power of Storytelling and Brevity
• 02:59 The Art of Asking Questions
• 03:43 The Value of Silence and Pausing
• 04:14 The Power of Personal Stories
• 04:40 The Role of Confidence in Communication
• 05:07 The Importance of Setting Rules in Communication
• 05:27 The Excitement of Co-Facilitating
• 06:05 What to Expect in the 'Get to the Point' Workshop
• 07:35 Closing Remarks and Workshop Details

About today's guest: Sally Prosser

Sally helps you fire-up your voice so you can share your light with the world.
Her background as a TV reporter, company spokesperson and speech & drama teacher gives her the ideal skill set to work with professionals, biz owners and corporate teams on -
⭐ Building confidence
🥊 Combating a fear of public speaking
❤ Producing a warm, trustworthy voice
🎤 Speaking with clarity and impact
🎥 Media Awareness and Spokesperson Training

In today's conversation, Phil Woods from Catalyst Strategy shares his journey from a legal career to becoming an independent strategy and team development consultant.

Watch our conversation on YouTube.

Phil outlines how he uses frameworks to guide organisations through transformation, draws on his command and activator strengths for maximum impact, and explains the importance of managing energy in workshops. 

From strategic ideation to facilitating self-realisations, Phil offers valuable insights into his facilitation style and how he prioritises the participant experience. 

Phil delivers impactful strategy and positive, strengths-orientated team transformation for a diverse mix of clients in Australia and abroad.  He has a practical, no-nonsense style leveraging decades of real-world experience, and brings contagious energy and authentic passion to his client collaborations.

Conversation prompts:

• Introduction and Welcome
• Phil Woods: A Journey Through Career Phases
• The Power of Engaging Teams and Co-Creating Strategy
•  The Art of Making Workshops Engaging
• Balancing Facilitation and Self-Discovery
•  The Role of Powerful Questions in Facilitation
• Bringing the X Factor into Workshops
• Leveraging Strengths in Facilitation
•  Maintaining Energy and Engagement in Workshops
•  Final Thoughts and Advice for First-Time Facilitators

Connect with Phil Woods

• Connect with Phil Woods on LinkedIn
• Visit his website: Catalyst Strategy

Other things mentioned:

• 2024 State of Facilitation report from Session Lab

Tune in to discover how to design fast and deliver strong without the stress...using Chat GPT!

In this episode, host Leanne Hughes discusses five ways she uses chat GPT to improve and enhance her workshop experiences and delivery.

She shares examples of how she uses Chat GPT for image creation, generating questions, creating case studies, generating frameworks, and coming up with attractive titles for her workshops. You'll also hear some personal updates and experiences related to her work.

How are you using it to supercharge your workshop design?

Let us know in The Flipchart
Want Leanne's support for 30 days? Join Leanne on Demand
Grab her book, The 2-Hour Workshop Blueprint: Design Fast. Deliver Strong. Without Stress.

Leanne Hughes’ 2023 Annual Report podcast/video episode, where I share my favourite UNOFFICIAL business metrics, and quarter by quarter highlights/lessons learnt.

Some of my unofficial metrics include:

• 📈 # of countries visited
• 📈 Clients I loved partnering with
• 📈 New topics explored
• 📈 Messages about the book and its impact 
• 📈 How often did I wake up, look at my calendar and get excited about the day?

What unofficial metrics do you like to report on at the end of the year?

Offers launched:

• Book: The 2-Hour Workshop Blueprint
• Sentient Strategy
• Leanne Hughes’ Red Carpet Experience
• Leanne on Demand

 Watch our conversation on YouTube!

My experience with luck has been, you can actually optimize for luck. So, what is this got to do with workshops and facilitation and hosting group events?

I think it has a lot to do with it. If your goal is next year to create more workshops, to work with really great clients, to be more aligned with the work that you do-- yhere's an element of intentionality around that and making a decision and making a choice. And I'm currently going through that at the moment.

Today, we’re joined by Dr. Christian Busch, the author of the book “The Serendipity Mindset: The Art and Science of Creating Good Luck”. He’s the Director of Global Economy Program at New York University’s Center for Global Affairs where he teaches on purpose-driven leadership, impact, entrepreneurship, innovation, and emerging markets. 

He’s been featured on many TEDx Talks. I recently watched one of the TEDx Talks he was in, and it was so fantastic; I’ve decided to invite him here. Join me as we learn from what Christian has to share today.

  In this conversation, you’ll hear Dr. Christian discuss:

• What it actually means to cultivate a serendipity mindset
• The difference between blind luck and smart luck
• The fear of missing out
• The contrast between planning and being open to opportunities
• The dynamics between being an introvert and an extrovert
• How introverts can cultivate more serendipity in their life
• Rapid Round

 Conversation moments:

• The difference between blind luck and smart luck
•  How to balance FOMO while cultivating serendipity in your life -- the hook strategy
•  It’s great to have a milestone but why would you limit yourself to that?
• How to bring serendipity as a mindset in your day-to-day
• Cultivating serendipity when you’re an introvert

Connect with Dr. Christian Busch here:

• Dr. Christian’s website
• Dr. Christian on LinkedIn
• Dr. Christian on Twitter

 Rapid Round Recommendations:

• Book: “Man’s Search for Meaning” by Viktor E. Frankl
• Tool: Headspace
• Song: “Beautiful Day” by U2
• Quote: “We cannot always control the situation we’re in, but we can always control our response to it.” – Viktor E. Frankl

Connect with Leanne Hughes on all the platforms:
LinkedIn
Instagram
Twitter

For suggestions, collaborations and queries, email me hello@leannehughes.com. Support this podcast by subscribing and leaving a review, it would mean a lot!
Thanks for being here. See you next week.

How do you personally POWER YOURSELF UP to host a workshop when you're sleep deprived? That's the topic Leanne riffs off in this solo episode, where she shares ideas on:

* * Insights from her personal story on powering up after facing challenges like jet lag and disrupted routines.
* How personal energy significantly impacts workshop facilitation and the need to show up as your best self.
* Exploring various power-up routines, including environment shifts, the magic of music, and tailored playlists for different workshop vibes.
* Quick strategies for resetting and refocusing, such as gratitude practices, journaling, and the benefits of movement.

Join Leanne's free community on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/firsttimefacilitator
Grab her book, The 2-Hour Workshop Blueprint: https://2hourwork.shop

Welcome back to another episode with your host, Leanne Hughes. I received a listener question from my friend, Juraj Holub and thought I'd share my thoughts on the show.

Here's the question:
I'm thinking about the flow of a session.

Let me share more details. 

Goal: I'd like the workshop participants to practice and learn "how to open a presentation."

Option A:
- Participants go first and deliver their opening to their current best capabilities. 
- We debrief each opening (What went well? What could be improved?)
- After that, I'll share and add additional tips on how to best open a presentation.

Option B:
- We start with a group brainstorming about the best ways to open a presentation.
- Only then do participants get the chance to step on stage and deliver their opening.
- We debrief each opening

What are your thoughts?
What factors would you consider in your response?

Resources Mentioned:

• The Two Hour Workshop Blueprint (Leanne Hughes)
• Slido (Polling App)
• Remote People (Juraj's  New Business)
• Connect with Juraj

Connect with Leanne:

• Instagram: @LeanneHughes
• LinkedIn: [Leanne Hughes's LinkedIn]
• Email: hello@leannehughes.com

Closing Thoughts:

Leanne encourages listeners to stay subscribed for upcoming episodes, and welcomes feedback and questions through her social media and email.

What does it mean to truly have the character of a leader? Is culture really something we can influence in an organisation?

 Watch our conversation on YouTube!

Shane Hatton is an author, trainer, coach, and speaker who is passionate about developing remarkable leaders and cultures. He works with organizations to close the leadership gap between mid and senior level leaders.

 Aside from being the author of the books “Let’s Talk Culture – The Conversations You Need to Create the Team You Want” and “Lead The Room – Communicate a Message That Counts in Moments That Matter”, Shane is also a Gallup Certified Strengths Coach, a member of the Forbes Global Coaches Council, and is the Founder of the People Leaders Network.

 I met Shane on the Clubhouse app, where we had various conversations around various topics, but it was when I attended his book launch earlier this year in Sydney that we finally got to meet in real life.

 In this conversation, you’ll hear Shane discuss:

• His book, “Let’s Talk Culture – The Conversations You Need to Create the Team You Want”
• The insights of culture
• Practical things leaders can do to build and reinforce their culture
• His personal insights on how he handles his energy
• How he manages the contrast of being the person in front of the room and while also thriving behind the scenes
• Rapid Round

 Connect with Shane Hatton here:

• Shane’s website
• Shane on Instagram
• Shane on Facebook
• Shane on Twitter
• Shane on LinkedIn
• Shane on YouTube

Rapid Round Recommendations:

• Book: The Moment of Lift by Melinda Gates
• Tool/App: ClickUp
• Song: Bohemian Rhapsody by Queen
• Quote: “The moment we begin to think we have all the answers, we forget all the questions.” – Madeleine L’Engle
• Quote: “You can tell whether a man is clever by his answers. You can tell whether a man is wise by his questions.” – Naguib Mahfouz

Connect with Leanne Hughes on all the platforms:
LinkedIn
Instagram
Twitter

For suggestions, collaborations and queries, email me hello@leannehughes.com. Support this podcast by subscribing and leaving a review, it would mean a lot!
Thanks for being here. See you next week.

Welcome to another episode of the First Time Facilitator podcast, where your host, Leanne Hughes, goes solo, diving deep into the Keep section of the SPARK framework, a crucial element of her book, "The Two Hour Workshop Blueprint," now available on Audible.

Key Takeaways:

• Continuous Improvement: Learn about the importance of reflecting on what worked well in your past workshops and what didn't, to continuously improve and design more effectively for future sessions.
• Personal Organisation: Leanne shares her personal system of organising facilitator materials
• Leveraging the Keep Method: Understand the intricacies of the Keep method in workshop desig
• Smart Resource Management: Learn about innovative ways to manage your resources, including using cloud services, books, and Post-it notes, to bookmark and quickly access your favorite workshop activities.
• Efficient Post-Workshop Practices: Find out why sending workshop show notes within 24 hours is crucial, and learn a practical approach to preparing and disseminating these resources promptly.
• Building a Resource Bank: Learn how to proactively compile and categorize a variety of resources, from books and podcasts to videos and articles, for easy access and reference.

Can you use space to create contrast, even in a virtual call? Today’s guest proves that you can!

We have an absolute world-leader in the field of nonverbal communication joining us on the show this week, Michael Grinder.

Michael has over 40 years of experience training thousands of groups. Known as the pioneer of nonverbal communication, Michael helps executives and educators assess people more accurately, connect with others more deeply, and build their charisma.

We explore how to use his famous model, the House of Communication in our workshops.

During this conversation, I picked up so many incredibly nuanced things you can do to boost the clarity of my communication in both virtual and face-to-face workshop environments.

The beauty of this conversation is how Michael talks about the large and the small, the micro and the macro, the philosophy around what you do, and then the micro: what type of chair you need, in order to do that.

We also delve into using space, and how to segment space within our environments.

About today’s guest: Michael Grinder

Michael Grinder has over 40 years of experience training thousands of groups. Known as the pioneer of nonverbal communication, Michael helps executives and educators assess people more accurately, connect with others more deeply, and build their charisma.

Two well-known experts personally trained Michael in the field of communication: Carl Rogers, the father of humanistic psychology, and Michael’s brother, Dr. John Grinder, co-founder of Neuro-Linguistic Programming. 

Over his career, Michael has written 14 books, which have been translated into seven languages. He’s a sought-after speaker for national and international events and has presented on seven continents. Some of Michael’s additional achievements include:

• National Director of NLP for Education
• Teacher of the year at three different schools in California, Washington, and Oregon.
• Recipient of the 2019 DACH “Mediator of the Year.”

Today, Michael continues to train individuals and companies, and volunteers with community organizations. He lives in Washington State with Gail, the love of his life.

In this episode you will learn:

• Importance of non-verbal elements in virtual workshop
• Tips to better utilise our voice in a workshop
• How you can “block/anchor” elements of the room during face-to-face and virtual workshops
• How to be confident during in-person and online workshops 
• How to use your hands effectively, anytime you communicate
• The difference between Intellectual safety vs. Emotional safety 
• ABC's of conveying a message for in-person or virtual facilitation

Resources mentioned in the show:

• Learn more about Michael Grinder on his website
• 5 Circles of Humanness
• Learn more about non-verbal communications tips by Michael Grinder on House of Communications
• Connect with Michael Grinder on LinkedIn
• Watch more non-verbal communications tips on Michael’s YouTube channel

Watch the video!