028 - How to supercharge your workshops and teams with Pam Hamilton

In this episode, I talk to Pam Hamilton, the author of “The Workshop Book”, facilitator and managing director of Paraffin. Pam is passionate about collective intelligence and how to unleash collective intelligence in groups so make great things happen.

On the show, Pam and I speak about the various roles and skills facilitators need to make workshops work. Using the analogy of hosting a dinner, Pam explained the different steps facilitators need to keep in mind when planning a workshop. In one of my favourite parts, Pam shares how we can disturb hierarchy in the working space and why it is important.

Don’t miss the part when Pam speaks about her recent passion project, the “Project Bridge” and invites you to get engaged and create a positive impact in your community.

You will find inspiration from her stories on how to replace competition by collaboration through a visioning technique.

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Questions and Answers

[1:44] What's your story? When did your fascination for workshops start?

[4:44] What does it take for a facilitator to unleash a group's potential?

[8:50] How do you include the prep-work in your meeting?

[11:14] What are the capabilities that a facilitator needs?

[15:49] How do you deal with people who cannot commit to attend the full duration of the workshop? 

[19:15] Would you consider workshops as hierarchy-free spaces?

[23:25] To what extent would you consider personality types of the participants and adjust your workshop design accordingly?

[30:50] Can you tell us more about the Project Bridge that you are currently working on?

[36:00] How do you facilitate these 'aha'-moments in a visioning exercise?

[38:43] How do you prepare participants of different power-positions for this hierarchy-free setting?

[41:21] Where do you draw the line for facilitators to be responsible for the follow-up?

[44:26] What did you learn from Project Bridge about teamwork?

[47:36] What makes a team? What's the difference between a team and a group of people working together?

[52:33] Has this exercise ever derailed where teams could not agree on one vision? 

[53:11] If you were a hashtag, what would it be?

[54:13] What shall a listener remember from our conversation?

Related links for you to check out

• Pam's Business page: https://paraffin.ltd/
• Project Bridge Case study https://paraffin.ltd/casestudies/404/
• Free templates and exercises to download, including the visioning templates https://paraffin.ltd/stimulus/
• Register to Pam’s Workshop Training or buy the book or the Power Pack https://paraffin.ltd/shop/
• Our sponsor Session Lab (affiliate link) 

Connect to Pam

on LinkedIn (Please mention the podcast when you reach out to Pam!)

Any thoughts? Share them with us!

Support the show

👉 What happens when being “professional” gets in the way of being human? My new podcast Unprofessionalism explores the rules we’re taught to follow at work, and what happens when we break them. Listen here: https://unprofessionalism.buzzsprout.com/  👈