Barbara MacKay
Are You “Dropping In” or “Dropping On” Your Group?
I recently passed my 21st anniversary in business and I wanted to share something I’ve been thinking about a long time. This is a concept of dropping in vs. dropping on your client group. This is what I mean by each term: “Dropping on” is the process of creating an agenda and moving from item…
Tips from Trini – What I Learned From an Astrophysicist and More
I know everybody does not get to attend facilitator conferences. Last week I got home from the Trinidad Tobago International Association of Facilitators North America (IAFNA) conference and honestly, my memories are still very soft, precious and almost indescribably delicious. I feel compelled to give you a brief overview of some sessions I attended and…
Get a Group “Inside” a 100+ Page Document in 12+ Minutes
How is that possible you ask? I do this regularly both in my facilitation and training events. I adapted the idea for this technique from an organization called Learning Strategies in Minneapolis. About 18 years ago, they called it “photo-reading”. I added in my own touches based on good facilitator protocols I learned from ICA’s…
Human Rights Show Up in Every Meeting – Are You Honoring Them?
I want to talk to you about a very special place I visited when I was in Winnipeg, Canada last week. See the bottom of this blog for more information about this museum. This place touched my heart so deeply as I think human rights is at the forefront of our work as facilitators, mediators and…
Four Facilitator Lessons From Dancing Under the Moon!
I am giving you permission to NOT read this blog because after all I am just going to share about one of the most powerful experiences of my life and how it makes me understand even more deeply the power of facilitation…. And how we might best offer our essential and urgent services to the…
How to Find Out if You Have Enough Tools
At every course I teach, I hear participants say, “I want more tools for my facilitation toolkit or meetings.” Even if you are an experienced facilitator, you may be surprised at what you learn in this article. Do you know what type of tools you need? Do you have enough of each type of tool?…
Three Ways to Get the Team on the Same Page
Everyone belongs to a group. Sometimes those groups are meant to be long term teams. Other times you are just meeting for a few times but you still could benefit from the feeling of being a team! Ah… What will transform your group into the feeling of a well functioning, high-powered, unstoppable team? Over the…
Values Drive Behavior, So Shouldn’t You Know What They Are?
Values. We use the word all the time, Brene Brown says in her new online course called, Daring Greatly. We says things like: “That’s great value. How much do you value this? What value would you place on this? How dare he not value me. I feel like I’ve been devalued. Our currency just lost…
ToP Moments 2016
Well, I’ve been in Phoenix Arizona for a week. It has been raining, hailing and cold but jam-packed with moments of delight, creativity and inspiration. Since I’ve been so busy, I’m sending you photos of my week just to give you a sense of what great facilitators can do together. The photos will include some…
My Big Facilitator Secret: The Guiding Support of Mentors
I’ve been thinking a lot about something I just love doing – that is mentoring other facilitators. This blog is about helping you as a mentor for anyone you may be supporting in your life. It will also include some tips on what to look for in a mentor if you’re looking for someone to…
