Sharing knowledge

Imagine you are looking for a mentor. Good mentors are wise and trusted advisers. They pass-on knowledge in a way that helps the mentee to achieve their personal or professional goals.

Mentors are now used by many people in organisations. Why? Despite being successful, individuals sometimes like to take time-out to reflect, get an overview of their situation and make good quality decisions. They also like to draw on the mentor’s knowledge so they can be even more effective in their work.

Mentoring plays a key role in organisations that wish to nurture talent. So let’s explore how you might choose a good mentor.

1) You can clarify the qualities you want in a mentor.

Choose somebody who has similar values. Look for a mentor who expresses the values you believe in – and seems able to do so successfully at a high level. When working with young people in the 1960s, for example, I sought out several ‘grandees’ who ran famous therapeutic communities.

Travelling to sit at their feet, listen and learn provided remarkable insights. Each one had a common characteristic; they wanted me to ‘take the best and leave the rest’. They encouraged me to make my own decisions – they did not want followers. Values-fit is vital.

So what are the qualities you want in a mentor? Different people will, of course, look for different things. One person said:

“Credibility is crucial – they must know their onions. They must be a good listener and respect my views but, at the same time, I don’t want them to pull any punches.

"They need to be somebody who has lived – who has had ups and downs – but still has a positive spirit. It’s great if they can understand the way I think—which is in pictures—and provide practical ideas I can use in working life. Do you know any such perfect people?”

Try tackling the exercise on this theme. Describe the qualities you want in such a person.

My Ideal Mentor

The qualities I want in my ideal mentor are somebody who:

*

*

*

2) You can find a mentor – or mentors – with these qualities.

Some organisations have formal schemes that provide a list of potential mentors. They then invite mentees to choose from this faculty. Several things are worth bearing in mind if this is the case. It is important:

* For the mentee to choose the mentor – rather than have one assigned.

* For the mentee to, if possible, choose a mentor who is ‘outside the line’ – not the mentee’s manager or manager’s manager.

* For the sessions to be confidential and focused on the mentee’s agenda – not acting as another form of management.

What if your organisation does not have a formal mentoring programme? Start by clearing it with your manager and HR department that it will be okay to have a mentor. They will normally be supportive.

You can then do what many people have done before – approach somebody to ask if they would be your mentor. Surprisingly, this often works. (You can have different mentors for different topics – for example, a technical mentor and a career mentor.) If you decide to approach a potential mentor – inside or outside an organisation – take the following steps.

First, do your research thoroughly. Get to know about the person, their values and how they are regarded. Do this by asking around – blind dates seldom work.

Second, clarify what you do and don’t want from the mentor.

Finally, clarify how to approach the person.

You will need to position the mentoring in a way that works for them. They are probably busy people – so you must do all the leg-work and fit in with their diary.

3) You can make clear contracts with the mentor about what you would like to cover in the mentoring sessions.

Start by having an informal meeting with the potential mentor. Explain the topics you want to cover during the mentoring sessions.

For example: how to manage difficult customer situations, how to take the next step in your career, how to manage your life-work balance. You will obviously discuss these topics with your manager – but would also like an outside view.

Explain how often you would like to meet and how you will prepare for the sessions. You may want to start, for example, by having 3 sessions – then reviewing the contract. If the chemistry works – and both parties agree – set a date for the first formal meeting.

Good mentoring is often based on clear contracting. So try tackling the following exercise. This invites you to do three things.

First, describe what you want from the mentoring relationship.

Second, describe what you see as your responsibilities in working to achieve these goals.

Third, describe the specific help you want from the mentor.

Share these ideas with them and make clear working contracts. Then enjoy the sessions. Try completing the following sentences.

Sometimes I am asked: “How do you know if a person, team or organisation is serious about achieving success?” The answer is simple.

People who are serious move from
the philosophical to the physical

Changing the physical things often leads to changing the psychological things. People feel more alive and see things are happening on the road towards achieving success.

This rule also holds true when working with teams and organisations. Great organisations, for example, are clear on their story, strategy and road to success. They then often get some early wins to translate these words into action.

Why? People believe what they see, not what they hear. Poor organisations get lost in intellectual talk. Great leaders look at their philosophy and ask:

“How can we make this physical?”

Let’s explore how you can use this approach when working with individuals, teams and organisations.

1) You can help individuals to move from the philosophical to the physical.

People can often change how they feel by changing their behaviour. There may be many reasons why a person feels bad, but they can do things that make them feel good.

Imagine you have experienced a serious setback. You can spend time in a sanctuary – because you need time to reflect – but then move towards shaping your future life.

Focusing on what you can control, you can set specific goals and work hard to achieve success. Changing your behaviour – rather than just talking – can change how you feel.

Certainly this was the case with the young people in Lancaster House, a therapeutic community I ran for troubled teenagers. The youngsters had many labels: such as delinquent, maladjusted, schizophrenic, neurotic, OCD or whatever.

This philosophy of the community was simple. We could help them to work towards their life goals, but they must be prepared to follow the community’s guidelines. The youngsters had got into trouble because they had adopted irresponsible ways of trying to satisfy their needs.

They could choose to take responsibility for their behaviour – no medical or other drugs were allowed – encourage others and spend each day working towards their goals. A key aspect was to expect the youngsters to take positive roles. So they were expected:

To speak at Universities and conferences about how social workers could best help teenagers.

To regularly host visiting social workers and psychologists, show them around the therapeutic community and explain the philosophy for helping teenagers.

To continually act as positive models for newcomers to the therapeutic community. Youngsters often copy people they admire, so it was vital that the more experienced residents behaved in a positive way.

Sounds tough, but it seemed to work. It called for the youngsters changing their physical behaviour.

Many had got into trouble because, when suffering setbacks, they had chosen to become depressed, take drugs, resort to violence or lapse into other self-defeating patterns.

Certainly we could have talked for years about the reasons why they felt bad. But acting in a responsible way – and getting rewarded for it – reaped more positive results.

(You can find some old-footage from the community on YouTube. Skip the first few minutes, which are mainly positioning my role, and move to seeing the youngsters in action. There are four parts to the programme, but you will get a flavour in the first installment.)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3hC3MeNKiTI

People can talk forever, but development often calls for moving from words to action. If you want to be healthier, for example, you may choose:

* To exercise more.

* To eat healthier food.

* To get enough sleep.

* To spend more time with encouraging people.

* To follow your passions – be these writing, painting, music, gardening, creating or whatever.

* To appreciate your assets.

* To pursue your overall life-purpose.

These sound big things, but you will break them down into small actions. This calls for moving from the philosophical to the physical.

Try tackling the exercise on this theme. Imagine a person has asked you to help them work towards their life goals.

Certainly you will need to spend time clarifying their picture of success, but then move from words to action. How can you help them to take these steps? Try completing the following sentence.

2) You can help teams to move from the philosophical to the physical.

Several years ago I worked with a football manager – let’s call him Dave – who took over a prominent but under-achieving club. He inherited a culture of excuses.

Players arrived late for training, blaming it on the traffic. They gambled heavily in card games when travelling to away matches. This became the main aspect of the trips, rather than preparing for the match.

Players argued with the referee, with each other and with the coaching staff. They ruled the roost, even though the club slipped down the table and narrowly missed relegation.

Dave immediately did several physical things. He brought in four experienced professionals: a goalkeeper, two centre backs and a central midfield player. The two centre backs were appointed captain and vice-captain.

Before taking the squad on a pre-season tour to Spain, Dave outlined his goal for the season and the guidelines he expected the players to follow to reach this target.

The Team’s Dos included:

* Do have a positive attitude.

* Do take responsibility.

* Do be model professionals.

* Do be good ambassadors for the club.

* Do keep yourself healthy.

* Do be on time for all sessions.

* Do follow the team’s strategy during matches.

* Do encourage each other, especially during difficult times; do show respect to referees.

* Do give 100% in every training session.

The Don’ts included: Don’t behave in a way that embarrasses the club; don’t argue with referees; don’t waste your talent.

Dave immediately met resistance from three ‘old-pros’ who had previously ruled the dressing room. Twenty-four hours after arriving at the training complex in Spain they chose to test the rules.

Staying out late, they behaved badly in front of the locals, drinking until the early hours. Arriving late for training the next day, they were confronted by Dave. All three were sent back to Britain that afternoon and never played for the club again.

“The players did me a favour,” said Dave.

“They gave me the opportunity to lay down a marker. Anticipating such behaviour, I had already lined-up replacements. During a practice match another player started arguing with the referee, so I substituted him immediately.

“That afternoon I invited our four most promising youth players to fly over and join the training. They were met at the airport by our new captain and vice-captain, who took them under their wings.

“The whole team rallied and, within three years, we qualified for Europe. The errant players gave me the chance to signal we meant business.”

Try tackling the exercise on this theme. Imagine a leader has asked you to help the team to achieve success. You will probably invite the leader:

a) To outline the goals.

b) To outline the guidelines they want the team to follow to reach the goals.

c) To outline how they plan to encourage, educate and equip the team to do great work to reach the goals.

What suggestions would you make for helping people to move from words to actions? How could the leader give some positive messages?

How could they ‘reward the behaviour they want repeated’? How could they also communicate and act on tough messages? Try completing the following sentence.

    3) You can help organisations to move from the philosophical to the physical.    

Several years ago I worked with a superb high-tech company. The whole company set about co-ordinating its strengths to achieve its picture of success. How did this happen?

The leadership team set the tone, but realised they would be judged by their people’s performance. Bearing this in mind, they guided people through the following philosophical and physical steps.

Philosophical steps

* They clarified the company’s strengths and opportunities.

They started by focusing on the company’s positive history and the principles it had followed to perform brilliantly. They then moved onto clarifying its strengths and potential opportunities in the future.

* They clarified the possible strategic routes the company could follow in the future.

They clarified the pluses and minuses of each route.

* They settled on the company’s future strategy.

They clarified the specific things they could do: a) To build on the pluses; b) To minimise the potential minuses.

* They clarified whether they were really serious about implementing the strategy.

They rated this on a scale 0-10. They concluded they were serious, even though this would involve taking some tough decisions.

They saw their chosen strategy as the best way to improve the company’s future chances of success.

* They clarified the company’s story, strategy and road to success – the ‘What, Why, How, Who and When’.

They clarified how to communicate this story, give people a sense of ownership and get some quick successes. They also clarified how to maintain the momentum.

* They revisited the strengths in the company – the organisational, team and individual strengths – and how they could harness these talents to achieve success.

* They clarified their own strengths as leaders and how to be a good a leadership team.

They were aware that, as leaders, they were always ‘on stage’. So it was vital they acted as positive models for the business.

* They clarified the structure that would enable people to deliver the strategy and how to implement this structure successfully.

* They revisited the overall story and practiced it thoroughly before communicating it to their people.

They also explored the various tough questions they would be asked and how to answer these questions in an adult and fair way.

Physical steps

* They shared the provisional story and strategy with key managers across the business.

They did this in small groups and one-to-one sessions. They gave people the chance to provide input, ask questions and make suggestions regarding the way forwards.

These inputs helped to both enrich the story and provide a reality check. They then finalised the story.

* They gathered the whole company together to share the story, strategy and road to success.

They began by explaining the possible strategic ways forward for the company, together with the pluses and minuses of each option.

They outlined their chosen way forward and the reasons behind this decision. They explained how they would get some quick successes and the events people could expect in the future.

* They explained that each team would get the opportunity to attend a day workshop where they would be able:

a) To become more familiar with the strategy.

b) To clarify their team’s road map towards achieving the picture of success.

c) To start clarifying their individual contributions towards achieving their company’s goals.

* They explained the workshops would be followed by each team completing their road maps and putting these on the ‘Share Point’.

Everybody would then be able to see how each team was contributing towards achieving the company’s picture of success.

* They explained that each team member would be asked to clarify their best contribution to the team goals.

They would then meet with their manager to make clear contracts about their goals for the next year.

* They began to introduce a common language.

This was based around the themes of the story; super teams; strengths; customer service meaning helping the customer to succeed; choices and consequences; clear contracting; and managing by outcomes, rather than managing by task.

Language is vital. Winston Churchill maintained that first we shape our buildings, then our buildings shape us.

When working with people, it is good to remember that: “First we shape our language, then our language shapes us.”

So it was important to build a common language.

* They gave every person a copy of the company story, strategy and road to success.

The leaders attended each team workshop and gave everybody the opportunity to talk about:

a) The things they liked about the plan.

b) The concerns they had and any other questions.

c) The support they needed to deliver the picture of success.

* They translated their intentions into actions.

Each team attended a day workshop; each team made their road map; each person focused on their best contribution towards achieving the goals.

Each manager was given extra support in developing their leadership skills and building super teams.

Each team also made extra efforts to get closer to their customers, clarify the customers’ agendas and help the customers to succeed.

* They kept revisiting the story during the regular company meetings.

They updated people on the progress made and the road ahead towards achieving the picture of success.

* They explained ‘The Deal’ to people.

The company’s responsibility was to communicate the story, strategy and road to success. It was also to give people the support they needed to make their best contribution towards achieving the goals.

The colleague’s responsibility was to choose to opt-into the future culture, make clear contracts about their best contribution and do their best to achieve the picture of success. Most people chose to opt-in, some chose to move on.

* They promoted people who embodied the spirit required in the future culture.

They also implemented other structural changes that were required to deliver the picture of success.

* They made many physical changes to the office, making it more colourful and alive.

* They announced that, within four weeks, each team would be invited to present a video showing:

a) The specific things they had delivered on the road towards achieving the picture of success.

b) The specific things they planned to deliver in the next 3 months.

The videos could be in any form. People were asked, however, to use their creativity and make the videos memorable. A date was set for a whole company event at which the videos would be shown. There would be a prize for the best video.

* They spent more quality time – in one-to-ones and in groups – with the key managers and focused on how they, as a leadership team, could help the managers and their teams to deliver success.

* They published many success stories about the great work done by their people, both inside the organisation and when serving their customers.

These stories reinforced the spirit and specific actions that would be required to deliver future success.

* They invited outside speakers who had been through this process before to address the company. These speakers described:

a) The specific things that had gone well with the approach – and the efforts required to make these happen.

b) The more challenging things that people might need to tackle – and how.

c) The specific outcomes of the approach.

* They held the video event in which each team presented their videos.

This proved extremely successful. The positive energy and creativity it generated reinforced the feeling that people were on the right road.

* They continue to hold quarterly feedback events where each team is invited to present their successes and plans for the future.

Each event takes a different form and invites people to be even more creative. At the same time, they ask people to submit their suggestions for: “How we can keep the momentum going.”

They implement many of these ideas, keep updating people on the story and give them a share in the fruits of success.

The high-tech company still has a long way to go, but it continues to be on track. One key element was producing some quick visible successes after sharing the story.

Why? They realised that it is vital: “To change the physical things to change the psychological things to change the philosophical things.” People believe what they see, not what they hear.

There are many ways to help individuals, teams and organisations to move towards their goals. Certainly it is vital to clarify the overall strategy, but also to create momentum.

One way to do this is to move from the philosophical to the physical. People then feel something is happening. They begin to generate the energy required to achieve the picture of success.

Try tackling the exercise on this theme. Imagine a leadership team has asked you to help them to work towards the organisation’s picture of success.

How could you help them to translate their words to actions? Try completing the following sentence.

There are many ways to help people to learn. One approach is the '1-2-3' model for running an educational session.

This is a basic model but it can be both enjoyable and effective. Let's explore how it works in action.

Imagine you have been asked to run a seminar on great leadership. You will obviously prepare properly before the session. For example, you will settle on the themes you want to cover, such as:

Great leaders – give an overview of what great leaders do right.

Great leadership in people's own experiences – give exercises in which the participants can learn from their own experiences of leadership.

Great leadership at work – give practical tools the participants can use in their back home work places.

Looking at how to bring these themes to life, you ask yourself:

“What do I want people to learn? How can I help them to learn this in an enjoyable and effective way? When do I want to cover the various themes during the session?”

Collecting these ideas together, you will clarify the map for the session. Let’s move onto the actual session.

Welcome people, establish credibility and inspire people in your own way. Describe the topics you will cover and what the participants will ‘take away’ from the session. Ensure this fits their agenda. Ask if there are any other topics they want to cover.

Then follow the 1-2-3 model for running the session. You will, of course, apply this in your way.

1) You can introduce the first theme.

Give an introduction to the first theme. Give colourful examples that relate to people’s daily work. If appropriate, you may then want to widen the topic.

For example, invite people to identify what great leaders do right; share models about great leadership; show a clip of a great leader’s speech or whatever.

Good educators move from the concept to the concrete, so link any models to daily work. Show that you know your stuff.

Begin giving some practical tools on the topic. Show the benefits of using these tools. Then move onto the next step.

2) You can give an activity on the theme.

Good educators know that people must ‘own’ the knowledge. So they often follow the 3I model – Inspiration, Implementation, Integration. They create an inspiring environment, provide implementation tools that work and help people to integrate the learning into their lives and work.

You can do this on a mini-scale during the session. Give people a relevant activity on the first theme. This may involve some learning by doing, such as an exercise or other learning experience. Make sure it is relevant and provides real take away value.

People obviously learn in different ways, so use different media. These might include giving in-put, using flip charts, using Power Points and giving the participants chance to clarify their own experiences.

When giving people group work, make sure they must produce a finished product, such as a presentation. Then move onto the next step.

3) You can sum-up the theme and link to the next theme.

Summarise the key points. If appropriate, give more in-put, such as practical tools, models and know-how. Show how these can be applied in people’s lives and work. Keep moving from the concept to the concrete.

Answer any questions and conclude your in-put on the theme. Then link to the next theme.

Repeat the ‘1-2-3’ model until you have covered all the themes. Finish the session by inviting people to clarify what they have learned or relearned.

If appropriate, ask people to share these, either in pairs or with the whole group. This helps to develop a feeling of success.

Great educators believe in constant improvement. So after the session clarify what you did well and what you can do better next time. You can then continue to develop as an educator.

“People learn from what we do, not from what we say,” is the motto. We cannot all be a Mahatma Gandhi, Nelson Mandela or Mother Teresa, but we can try to set a good example. As Gandhi said, we can try to make our lives our message. Here is a much told story about his belief in being a positive model.

Be The Change You Want To See In This World

During 1930’s, a young boy had become obsessed with eating sugar. His mother was very upset with this. But no matter how much she scolded him and tried to break his habit, he continued to satisfy his sweet tooth. Totally frustrated, she decided to take her son to see his idol – Mahatma Gandhi; perhaps her son would listen to him.

She walked miles, for hours under scorching sun to finally reach Gandhi’s ashram. There, she shared with Gandhi her predicament.

“Bapu, my son eats too much sugar. It is not good for his health. Would you please advise him to stop eating it?”

Gandhi listened to the woman carefully, thought for a while and replied:

“Please come back after two weeks. I will talk to your son.”

The woman looked perplexed and wondered why had he not asked the boy to stop eating sugar right away. She took the boy by the hand and went home.

Two weeks later they revisited Gandhi. Gandhi looked directly at the boy and said:

“Boy, you should stop eating sugar. It is not good for your health.”

The boy nodded and promised he would not continue this habit any longer. The boy’s mother was puzzled. She turned to Gandhi and asked:

“Bapu, Why didn’t you tell him that two weeks ago when I brought him here to see you?”

Gandhi smiled:

“Mother, two weeks ago I was eating a lot of sugar myself.”

———–

Let’s explore the importance of modelling.

1) You can recognise the power of positive modelling.

Looking back in your life, who have been your positive models? What did you learn from these people? How can you be a good model in your life and work?

Children learn from their parents; employees take their cue from the tone set by their leader. One picture of positive modelling is worth a thousand words. Sometime this is good; sometimes it is bad.

“Twenty years ago I saw the damage done by setting a bad example,” said Paul, the chief executive of a hospital group. “The staff in the hospital where I worked spent months preparing for an important visit from a Health Minister.

"He arrived half-an-hour late, but still sat in his car smoking. He then rushed through the hospital in 15 minutes, only stopping to grab a photo opportunity with a patient.

"The staff knew about the Minister’s foibles. They knew he was considerably overweight and could be rude, but were still crestfallen. They questioned the value of their work when somebody so disinterested was deciding the health service’s future.

"We returned to the job in-hand, taking care of our patients. But the experience taught me about the distress caused by setting a bad example.

“Now I aim to act as a good model,” said Paul. “Visiting the hospitals, I plan it like a military operation. I build-in time to talk with the security guards, receptionists, patients in reception, cleaners, nurses, doctors, admin staff and anybody else I can meet.

"Why? Our job is about providing the right medical care and the ‘personal touch’. I am paid to make decisions, which sometimes involve life and death, but I love visiting the hospitals.

"Our staff and patients are human beings with feelings and each person wants to feel valued. So it makes sense for me to set a good example.”

Let’s return to your life and work. What is the area in which you would like to act as a positive model? Try completing the following sentence.

2) You can clarify the specific things you can do to be a positive model.

This is a life-time task for most of us – because we all make mistakes. Yet it is something we aspire to achieve – whether it is by being a good parent, teacher, manager or whatever.

“I used to fly off the handle when things went wrong,” said one manager, “but then one day I got a shock. Somebody said: ‘Do you realise that you act like a bully?’ That was the last thing I intended, so I immediately changed my behaviour.

"Nowadays I count to 10 when faced by a crisis. This seems to have rubbed-off on my team members who have also become calmer in difficult situations.”

Let’s return to the activity in which you want to be a good model. Do two things. First, describe the specific things you can do to behave as a good model. Second, describe the benefits – both for yourself and other people. Try completing the following sentences.

3) You can be a positive model – and sometimes see the benefits.

Go out and do your best; because that is all you can ever do. Sometimes you will see immediate effects, but sometimes the results may take years.

“The joy of teaching is that you plant many seeds – and sometimes you see them grow,” said one educator. “But the real pleasure is that many students learn and plant seeds in their own way miles away in places you will never visit. That, of course, is nature’s way."

"Human beings are hooked on seeing immediate results in front of their eyes, but they must learn from how nature pollinates. Several times a year I receive letters from old students.

"Each letter usually starts: ‘I am not sure if you remember me, but I learned so much from your classes. I now try to inspire other people in the way that you inspired me.’ This is humbling, but we never forget a good teacher.”

You may have had a similar experience. One day somebody says how much they learned from you in the past. Whatever you do, accept the compliment.

They may have spent years waiting to pass-on their thanks. Everybody learns from parents, teachers, leaders and other models. Many of us owe much to the power of positive modelling.

So how can you turn your intentions into actions? You know ‘what’ you want to do and ‘how’ you want to do it. Now comes the ‘when’. Conclude by making a specific action plan for being a good model. Try completing the following sentence.

Imagine you have been asked to facilitate a team workshop. There are many definitions for the word ‘facilitation’ and it often refers to helping to bring something into being. When facilitating a workshop, however, it calls for enabling people to channel their energies towards achieving a specific goal. So let’s explore how you can employ the art of facilitation with a team.

1) You can clarify what is required from the facilitation.

Whilst the principles of facilitation remain constant, the application can differ from case to case. So it is vital to check with the key sponsors – the people who are hiring you – what they do and don't want from the session.

As ever, you will focus on the ‘what, why, how, who and when’. So you may ask your sponsors questions around some of the following themes. 

* The ‘What’.

What is the goal of the session? What are the real results you want to achieve? What are the specific things you want people to be feeling, thinking and saying after the session? What for you will make it a successful session?

What is the session expected to ‘produce’? For example, does it aim to produce an increased sense of motivation, a common agreement, a clear vision, a road map, a specific action plan or whatever? What will then happen as a result of the session? What is the longer-term picture of success? Bearing these things in mind, let’s agree on the goals for the session.

* The ‘Why’.

What will be the benefits of achieving the goals? What are the potential pluses – for the team, colleagues, customers and other groups? What are the potential minuses?

Can you tell me a bit about the history of the team – and other factors – that have brought you to this point? What are the challenges facing the team? How will the team eventually be measured by its sponsors? What must it do to deliver success? Are there any other factors that I need to know about?

* The ‘How’.

Bearing in mind the team’s characteristics – it’s strengths and weaknesses – and my style, are there are any key principles you want me to follow to ensure we reach the goals? Certainly I will use my expertise, but are there any particular ‘Dos and Don’ts’.

As you know, it is good to build on what people have in common. So what do people already agree on? What might be the differences? Have you any views on:

* How people can build on what they have in common?

* How it may be possible to find solutions to any differences?

* What may be the specific topics where, despite attempts to find agreement, you or other key people may simply need to make a decision?

Is there anything else you want to say about ‘how’ we conduct the session?

* The ‘Who’.

Who are the different people in the team? What are their specific roles? What are their professional goals? What are their individual strengths? What are their weaknesses? What are their individual learning styles? What are their specific interests – business, sports, the arts or whatever? What are they likely to do during the session?

Who is actually accountable for delivering what in the team? Who will make the key decisions regarding the strategies for delivering the team goals? Who will then be following up the work that is done during the session? What will they need to deliver?

* The ‘When’.

When will the actual session be held? What will be the time frame? What is the location like? Can we get all the materials required for the facilitation?

When will people be informed about the session and it’s the goals? Will they be crystal-clear on the agenda? Will they have done any homework? Looking at our success criteria: What are the specific things that will be happening that will show we have achieved the goals for the session?

Summarising The Agreement

You may then summarise the discussion by saying:

Looking at what you want to achieve, here is a potential framework for the day. Is there anything you would like to add or change? Bearing this in mind, I will send an email confirming the goals and timetable. Let me know if you have any further thoughts or want more information. Otherwise I will see you on the day. Is that okay?

Collecting the information, you will clarify several things in your head.

* You will clarify the goals.

* You will clarify the ‘controllables’. During the day you can only build on what you can control and manage what you can’t.

* You will clarify your plan of action for running the session.

This will include, for example, welcoming people, confirming the agreed goals, making clear contracts about your role and their roles, employing exercises and clarifying how you can guide people to success. Rehearsing the day in your head, you will anticipate the potential challenges and find solutions.

Summarising The Dos and Don'ts

Finally you will clarify the ‘Dos and Don’ts’ for running the session. As a reminder, you may complete the exercise below. Feeling you have done what you can, you will relax and look forward to the session.

2) You can do your best to provide superb facilitation.

Before setting out for the day, you will rehearse again the overall ‘what, how and when’ for running the session. So your action plan may look something like the following.

Getting to the venue, do everything possible to create the setting for success. After welcoming people, invite the team leader – or other key sponsor – to set the scene for the day. They will then hand-over to you to run the session.

The Steps To Take During The Session

Here is a brief overview of the steps you may then take to enable people to channel their energies toward achieving the goals. You may find it useful:

* To confirm the goals for the session.

People need to know what the session will and won’t cover. They also need to know what it is and isn’t about.

* To make clear contracts about everybody’s roles.

Explain your own and the participants’ roles and responsibilities for reaching the goals.

* To clarify the ‘rules' for the session.

For example, one person to speak at a time; respecting other’s views; seeking to understand what the person is saying before responding; clarifying the real results to achieve; brainstorming creative solutions; solving conflicts by saying things like: “How can we, as far as possible, get a ‘win-win’?”

* To be a good model as a facilitator by demonstrating these skills in your own behaviour.

This is crucial. People believe what they see, not what they hear.

* To focus on the first topic to explore.

People need context so, if appropriate, show how tackling this topic will help towards achieving the overall goals.

* To facilitate exercises, discussions and models that enable people to use their energies to reach the goals.

For example, you can use approaches like the 5C model for creative problem-solving. This invites people to focus on their challenges, choices, consequences, creative solutions and conclusions.

* To show respect for people’s strengths, styles and contributions.

As the facilitator, your role is to enable people to channel their talents to achieve the goal. Certainly it is okay to provide stimulating input at certain points, such as summaries, models and tools. But your main role is to facilitate their efforts and help them to achieve ongoing success.

(You may also be working with the team in other roles – such as a mentor – but in this situation you are acting as a facilitator. If you want to step out of that role in the session, position this by saying something like: “I am now going to step out of my role as a facilitator for a moment and take the role of ____ then I will go back into the role.”)

* To encourage people to build on their areas of agreement.

For example, to say things like: “So let’s clarify the 80% or so that we agree on. We can then find solutions to the differences.”

* To build on solid ground and develop a sense of success in the session.

For example, by saying things like: “So what have we achieved so far? What have we agreed on?”

* To build on what people have achieved in the session and move the conversation forward.

For example, by saying: “What are the key topics we now need to explore? Which one do you want to tackle first?”

* To keep connecting with the key sponsors.

Ensure they are happy with how things are going and, where necessary, make alterations to ensure the session achieves its goals.

* To, within your role as facilitator, do whatever is necessary to guide the team to success.

Keep asking yourself: "What are the goals to achieve? How can I do my best to help people to achieve that picture of success?"

* To conclude the session by handing over to the key sponsor to outline the next steps.

Facilitating the session calls continually practicing two key skills:

a) To be fully present and ‘hands-on’ – listening carefully to what people are saying and building on their contributions.

b) To be able to ‘helicopter’ above the group to see the patterns and ensure the process is on track towards reaching the goals.

You will then do everything possible to help people to achieve their picture of success. You may wish to remind yourself of the things you can do by completing the following exercise.

3) You can, if appropriate, follow-up the facilitation.

The session will probably result in some kind of ‘outcome’. This could be, for example, a clear vision, a strategic plan, a piece of written work, such as a brochure, an ongoing development programme or whatever.

As part of the facilitation service you can offer to write-up the session’s output or contribute in others ways to the required ‘product’. Creating something tangible after the session makes it more likely that people will also produce tangible results.

Following-up The Facilitation

If appropriate, there may be other ways to follow-up the session. These may include opportunities:

* To facilitate further sessions with the team.

* To run sessions on other topics, such as on leadership, customer service or other skills.

* To have one-to-one follow-up mentoring sessions with the individual team members.

* To produce written materials that provide practical tools that add to people's skills.

* To provide ongoing support on projects that result from the facilitation or other sessions.

Try tackling the exercise on this theme. Describe the specific things that you can do, if appropriate, to follow-up the facilitation.

Great facilitators enable people to channel their energies towards achieving their picture of success. You will obviously follow this path in your own way to help people to reach their goals.

There are also many people who provide excellent facilitation services. David Pilbeam, co-founder of The Talent Network, is one of the best. You can reach David at the link below.

David Pilbeam