Page 35 - The ART of Facilitation

Be Proactive:
Acknowledge them and what is going on.
Be brave and speak up.
Discuss the situation in general. For example: Ask what a Distracting Duo is talking about and speak in general about how Distracting Duos can throw the person speaking or the group because, even if not, we usually feel the whispers are about us.
The side conversation is often beneficial to the group and often is clarifying information.
It benefits the group to see it addressed and handled publicly. It can make the group feel safer, taken care of, and insure that the distracting behavior doesn’t multiply.
Give them a job.
There are many elements to facilitating. Make it a team effort with jobs assigned to “Bouncing Border Collies” and to the variety of other disruptive types.
Keeps them involved in the process and gives them ownership.
Thread energy throughout the room.
Keep the energy moving throughout the space so that it isn’t centered only around certain participants.
Move away from the speaker with eyes still on them.
Use your full body and voice to fill the space – be brave.
Adjust so not all of the key info is at the front of the room.
Aikido Communication
Enable confrontations to result in new perspectives with Aikido communication. “Yes, and” vs. “But” is one very helpful and simple tool.This replacement changes
the tone of conversations.
Affirm what is happening, let participants know they are heard, and then offer another perspective.
Acknowledge without agreeing – you don’t have to give away your power.
Understand
Sometimes it’s helpful to have a private, one-on-one conversation with a participant exhibiting a disruptive behavior discreetly at a break.
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