7 Learnings from 15 Workshops

This week I am facilitating my final in-person workshop in 2024. 15 workshops over five months!

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That’s a lot. And it’s been four years since I’ve done a workshop tour. I relearned some old lessons, and also incorporated some new ones. Here are seven things I’m taking with me from these five months on the road:

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• Circulating the room is a goldmine of information. I love being with people in person and I learn so much as I circulate around the room, listen in to conversations, and observe the body language and facial reactions when I say things.
• People love learning with other people. This is true when we convene virtually and in person. When we learn together, we can practice and apply the strategies we’re exploring. 
• It’s really ok to give people 90 minutes for lunch. In fact, learners relished the time, needed it and engaged in important conversations with each other…or just recharged their batteries. In fact, I think this is why at the end of the day, learners weren’t exhausted (as they were when I only gave 45 minutes for lunch).
• What people want more than anything is an opportunity to slow down, think about who they are and who they want to be, and acknowledge that they are human, and therefore that they have emotions. During the portions of the workshop where I speak about emotions and attending to emotions, every single ear in the room perks up and the attention is so focused and I can see, by the expressions on their faces, that there’s deep reflection going on. Many participants commented that these portions about attending to emotions and coaching them were the most impactful.
• The more I refine my skills at facilitating PD, the less tired I am by the experience. In fact, I’m often left energized now after two days of presenting! (Maybe I’m not as introverted as I once thought I was? Maybe it was just about not having the skills?). Facilitating PD is a massive skill set that you can learn!
• I’m so grateful for my job. My core human need for purpose is more than met, as is my need for connection. 
• I love my bed.

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Keep Learning:

• Subscribe to my Weekly Wisdom Newsletter to receive content like this in your email inbox!
• Join The Art of Coaching Emotions workshop to deep dive into the benefits (and satisfaction) of coaching client emotions.
• Join The PD Workshop to expand your PD design and facilitation skillsets.