Simple
Facilitation Tricks to
Enliven Any Presentation
This
article appeared in Alliance for Nonprofit
Management in March 2004.
You're
the trainer. You're up,
moving around, spouting pearls of wisdom. A
day of training is exhilarating. But
wait. What about those
on the other side of the desk - the trainees? The
chairs are hard, the room is hot, its hard
for anyone to stay focused. What's
a trainer to do to maximize learning?
In Training 101 we all learned
that we must involve the participants. Every
year another dozen books come out with suggestions
of how to do this. Unfortunately,
many sessions are still deadly. In
this article, I will discuss why I think this
is the case. I will also share
some of the techniques I have learned over the
years to keep people engaged so they walk out
with the feeling that not only did they learn
something, but they had fun as well.
What's been wrong with this picture
Involvement is the
key. However, the reason many
trainers who involve their participants still
don't get the results they desire is that they
choose the wrong form of involvement, the wrong
key. There are several ways
in which someone chooses the wrong key.
The first is in failing to
provide enough variety. As
trainers we can choose from simulations, games,
case studies, discussions, skits, computer simulations,
puzzles, peer teaching and more. All
are effective learning techniques in small doses. Its
necessary to alternate between types of activities
to maintain interest. This
is often true even within a single learning unit. Between
television and computers we are used to frequently
changing stimuli and seeing situations summed
up in half-hour blocks. I
am not suggesting that we sacrifice function
for form, but I am suggesting that we plan for
a change of pace every 20 30 minutes. I'm
also suggesting we pay close attention to nonverbal
indicators of a readiness to move on and be flexible
enough to respond to those indicators.
The second way trainers choose
the wrong key is by picking activities that are
fun or have been successful in the past but are
not intrinsically related to the goals of the
day. Participants today do
want to have fun in their training sessions,
but they can have more fun on the golf course,
out in the garden, playing with their children,
or at the theater. If
they are going to be in our session, they want
to get something from the experience that will
help them better do their jobs. This
means making sure that each activity has an evident
tie-in to the organizations mission and/or the
lessons to be learned. Often,
we can take those favorite activities and, with
just a twist, make them relevant to the day.
A tie-in to lessons learned
brings us to probably the most critical way in
which trainers fail to choose the right key;
they fail to process their exercises. We
cannot assume that participants will "get it." We
need to draw the lines between Point A and Points
B, C and D. We need to ask
what the participants learned from each exercise
and how that relates to their responsibilities
within or representing their organization.
All work and no play makes Jack a dull
boy
All this being said, I do
believe we should, as trainers, go for the sizzle
along with our steak. There
is an old saying that the main difference between
men and boys is the cost of their toys. All
of us, regardless of our age or our position
love to play. Even those with
what might be perceived as stodgy day jobs.
So,
how do we build fun into a training day and
engage our participants? I
can only share how I do it. After
I've developed my outline, I start by picking
a theme and then I let my mind go. I
think of all the ways I can incorporate that
theme into the component parts of the day: setting
the climate, sharing housekeeping details, opening
the presentation, imparting the body of learning
and closing in a memorable manner that will ensure
take-home value.
I pour through my activity
books, looking for ideas that I can adapt to
fit my purpose. Some of those
books are listed at the end of this article. Then,
I go shopping. I haunt the
dollar stores. I go online
to see what Oriental Trading Company (www.orientaltrading.com)
and Trainer's Warehouse (www.trainerswarehouse.com)
have that will supplement my plans.
While the examples below have
worked for me, you should use this list like
you would use an activity book to get the creative
juices going. You need to
opt for those things that fit your purpose, your
personality and your training style.
Setting the climate
People walk into my training
room and one look at the tables tells them that
they will have fun. There
is usually confetti, toys and candy.
Confetti, today, comes in
all shapes. If my topic is
cultivation, I might use garden-themed confetti. If
I'm talking about the boards role in a capital
campaign, I might use confetti with a construction
theme. I've also used shapes
related to the clients mission.
I
often have children's binoculars or telescopes
out to remind people to "look beyond
what they see before their eyes," kaleidoscopes
to "see the world in a different way," or cameras
to "take a snapshot of the new experiences." To
illustrate the chance way that many boards recruit
members I've put out board games that rely on
the roll of a die rather than strategy to win
or different games of chance such as raffle tickets,
names in a hat, poker hands, and the short stick. If
the topic is raising funds, I always have toy
money on the table.
When people sit for any period
of time, they want to eat. Because
I'm a chocoholic, I always have Hershey's Gold
or Silver Nuggets, Kisses and Hugs. I
invite people to help themselves, but I also
suggest that if someone presents a good idea,
that others should recognize that idea with a
Nugget. If someone says something
to relieve tension in the room, someone might
throw that person a Kiss. I've
used candy Lifesavers in a similar way. I've
also used candy to supplement my theme. For
example, if I'm discussing money I've loaded
tables with chocolate coins or miners' bags filled
with
gum shaped like miniature gold nuggets.
I also have plenty of appropriate
prizes on hand to award creative answers, game
winners, and volunteers. I
often hand out Kudos granola bars for "a job
well done." Another generic
award that people seem to love is the plastic
hand clapper. And, if you
give one person a sticker, everyone seems to
want a sticker remember the gold star? Maze
puzzles work well to complement someone for working
through a difficult problem. Erasers,
pencils, and pads available in a wide variety
of shapes and patterns, such as money, usually
allow you to stick to the days theme, as well.
Sharing housekeeping details
Personally,
I am concerned with two behaviors in any training
session I do. I want people
to ask questions and challenge assumptions,
but I want them to maintain respect for each
other at the same time. I
encourage questions and challenges to assumptions
by indicating that I expect every participant
to act as a skeptic during the day. I
actually give them a list of questions to which
they can refer. Included
are, "Isn't the trend away from this and toward?" "I
don't understand the part about" "The way I
see the elephant" and, "I'm concerned that"
I do two things to encourage
mutual respect. I ask that
cell phones be turned off using either a modified
copy of a caution sign such as you would find
on the road (available through Trainers Warehouse),
or making an announcement that mimics what one
hears in the theater. I also
put throw toys on each table to be tossed at
those who show disrespect to their colleagues. I
have found dry water bombs to be perfect for
this. They are made of cloth,
wont injure anyone, and come in different shapes. I
use fish and bugs. If I put
out the fish, I tell people to use them when
someone utters a "Fatally Inappropriate Slimy
Hit" such as, "That was a stupid idea." If
I put out the bugs, they are to be used to admonish "Boorish
Ugly Gaffes." This is a fun,
friendly reminder that certain behaviors will
not be tolerated. You can
use anything and make up your own saying.
Opening the presentation
I
always like to begin with an icebreaker,
even when I'm working with
a group where everyone knows each other. I
do this for several reasons. Usually,
I will not know the participants, even if they
know each other. In many
cases, the participants do not know each other
as well as they think they do, and the sooner
that people begin participating, the more likely
they will continue to participate. However,
even the icebreaker should be relevant to the
day or the participants.
One of my favorite
approaches is to ask people to share how they
see themselves contributing to the organizations
mission. I make the exercise
a little more interesting in one of two ways. I
will give people a copy of a blank license
plate and ask them to create a vanity plate
that expresses this in some combination of
seven or fewer letters and numbers. For
instance, as the facilitator, mine might be
PRO SPKR because I have to be articulate, organized
and dynamic if they are to have a beneficial
day. Or, I will use a personalized
version of the icebreaker, describe yourself
as a color. When working
with a science museum I brought in a Periodic
Table of Elements and asked everyone to pick
an element that reflected how each saw him
or herself furthering the mission of the museum. For
a theater group, I asked each person to pick
a character from some play. The
responses are always diverse and revealing. Most
importantly, it awakens everyone in attendance
to the myriad of skills and interests that
can be called upon to further the organizations
mission.
Imparting the body of learning
Earlier in this article I
mentioned the numerous ways that as trainers
we can make the day interesting, fun and involving. Just
a few techniques that I've found particularly
enriching include puzzles, games, science experiments
and magic tricks. Crossword
puzzles, word jumbles and word search, among
others, can all be created on the computer with
puzzle creation software or by going to sites
such as www.puzzlemaker.com. When
given to teams to solve they not only increase
the interaction and fun, they prove an effective
means of peer teaching. Presenting
a take-off on popular game shows such as Jeopardy
or Who Wants to be a Millionaire can do the same.
Books with easy science experiments
aimed at children will give you access to experiments
that have maximum impact with a minimum of muss
or fuss. One of my favorites
is mixing a tablespoon of baking soda with about
1/8 cup of vinegar in a tall glass to create
a very impressive bubbling witches caldron. I
use it to demonstrate that what I'm presenting
is not magic, although it may look like magic. Its
science, meaning the outcome is predictable. If
the group follows my lead it will get the same
results every time. While
I like the science approach, most people are
mesmerized by magic. Simple
magic tricks are available through Trainers Warehouse
and in books designed for young readers.
I'm
known as the "Queen of
Quotes." I love using aphorisms
that teach a lesson in a short, memorable phrase. For
instance, if asked about special event fund raising
I often suggest to people, "Dig where the gold
is unless you just need the exercise." Where
possible, I use a slide to show the aphorism
at the same time as I say it. Otherwise,
it goes by so fast that people often miss it. Besides,
in my experience, everyone wants a copy to use
later. When its on a slide
they can write it down more easily.
While there are many other
activities I employ with groups, there is one
last one I wish to share here. I
often use balloons when I believe a group is
facing barriers to success. I
ask everyone to write their biggest barrier on
a small slip of paper, roll it up, put it in
a balloon, blow up the balloon and tie it off. We
then bat the balloons/barriers around the room
before everyone takes a balloon, breaks it, reads
the barrier and formulates a way of dealing with
it.
Closing in a memorable way
I am a strong believer in
making sure that people leave a training session
with a commitment to action. Therefore,
I usually close my sessions with some sort of
action pledge to which people will be held accountable. One
technique that I use is having people write out
their commitment and place it in a symbolic receptacle
to be pulled out later to verify achievement. When
I say a symbolic receptacle, it should have something
to do with the mission of the organization. For
instance, a school might use a book bag. A
symphony orchestra might use a violin case. This
reminds people why they are committing to the
action they have written down.
Another technique requires
that you bring art supplies and something lasting
to decorate. I like using
plain cotton T-shirts, flowerpots, or picture
frames. The idea is that everyone
decorates their own item in such a way that when
they look at the flowerpot or frame on their
desk, or wear the T-shirt, they will remember
their pledge to the organization.
Conclusion
The
difference between a ho-hum training day and
an exciting one is often whether
we've taken the time to enliven our presentation
with simple facilitation tricks like those I've
outlined here. There is nothing
sacred about these. Again,
if you do employ one of more of them its best
to put your own unique stamp on them.
My desire in writing this
article was that even the most experienced trainer/facilitator
would pick up at least one new idea. Continuing
education must be as much a part of our lives
as we expect it to be for the groups with which
we work. Because I want to
learn from you, too, please send me (terriet@nonprofitmanagementsolutions.com)
your favorite techniques. Identify
yourself and the name of your organization. If
I get enough ideas, Ill write a second article
crediting you.
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