Working with people we love

My friend Chris Corrigan in Canada has written a fabulous post about the joys of working with friends. Go on- go and read it now. I’ll wait.

Here’s one of his quotes:

While it may be true that one person can make a difference in the world, I believe that the difference one person makes is choosing to work with others.

This post is for all my friends who I have the privilege of working with, and who I hope to work with a lot more. Thanks for being funny, wise, energising, creative, challenging, supportive, pushy, engaging and just being you.

Which version of you shows up?

I like this concept of ‘recalibration’ and recognising that we are made up of a whole lot of different selves. Reminds me of the ritual learned at an improv conference of naming what we’re feeling and discarding the dodgy ones and embracing the useful ones. From zefrank via Dave Pollard. Strong language warning.

Friday links

Here’s a few links for a Friday afternoon:

Simplicity quotes from Commoncraft

A virtual whiteboard application Twiddla from Academhack.  

A great example of visual reflecting by Geoff - and I know it’s accurate, cos I was there!

A podcast from Matt Moore and friends on Blended Facilitation. 

Comic Life enables you to make comics from your photos. 

Geoff Brown is blogging

My friend Geoff Brown has finally started blogging. This is really exciting because he has lots of great things to say. Go read his blog now.

30-day learning journey

I’ve accepted Chris Corrigan’s 30-day learning journey challenge.

Here’s what I’m curious about:

I’m curious about how to bring together the threads of passion, creativity and collaboration in myself and my work as a facilitator, and what’s next?

Wanna join in?

Noticing

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My challenge to myself during April is to notice more - to really be present and notice what’s happening around me.

Hot Links

Thanks to Chris Corrigan for this by Otto Scarmer on the Blind Spot of Leadership

Great design - incredible creativity:

Another great Improv Everywhere performance:

Sadly one of my childhood hero’s has died. I’ve always been a Sci-Fi fan and loved reading just about anything by Arthur C. Clark. Here’s a quote from the great man himself that facilitators could take to heart (via Seth Godin).

Excited

I’m excited! Without doing anything much except being open to possibilities, all sorts of new things are happening.

Here’s some of the things I’m excited about.

1. Geoff and I are about to launch a podcast blog called Winkipod. This is just the BEST NAME EVER - and the reasons why will be revealed when we go live. This is great fun because we’re learning a new skill and have lots of people lined up to create podcasts with. Who would you like to hear in a podcast?

2. Anne and I have started a new business venture called Facilitating with Confidence. We’re offering this in Australia, New Zealand and Singapore for starters. It will include face-to-face training and on-line support.

3. Dave Pollard is visiting. OMG - right here! This will be my first ever blog get-together. I just LOVE being alive right now and the opportunities for collaboration and meeting new people that emerge. What a wonderful opportunity for a rich conversation. I am SO fortunate!

4. I’m going to Cambodia. WooHoo - this has always been a dream of mine and I knew that it would one day come true. I’m working with World Vision helping them design and facilitate a regional forum on disaster preparedness, building resilient communities and the impacts of climate change. And if you don’t believe that the universe listens when you ask, read this post by Patti Digh. I am inspired and challenged by Patti’s amazing writing.

5. I’m on the programming team for the second year in a row for the Applied Improv Conference. This year it will be in Chicago (my very favourite US city). The Improv conferences have inspired and challenged me and introduced me to a whole new world of ideas and people. Some have become good friends.

6. I’m going to this year’s Worldwide Open Space on Open Space in San Francisco where I can hang out with some of the most amazing people in the world - great thinkers, fun people who I’m happy to spend time with and inspiring to boot.

7. I’m taking part in a 2.5 day conversation with others passionate about the role of creativity. Colin Funk and Brian Woodward from the Banff Leadership Lab will be taking part in Conversations that Create in Sydney in May.

8. The Easter break is action packed here at Bells Beach. The Rip Curl Pro is underway with surfers from around the world descending on Torquay. There’s a great buzz around town. It’s also a time to catch up with friends and family - eat food, drink wine and just be.

And I hope I can repay all these amazing people in my life in some small way.

What are you excited about?

Changing habits

Sir Ken Robinson in this podcast - that ranges from the role of education and creativity, weddings in Las Vegas and creativity with the Singapore Government to what it’s like to be knighted - says that ‘habit is the enemy of creativity’.Here’s the relevant quote from the podcast:

Okay, well if you want to boil it down in two minutes, it’s about two things; it’s about habits and habitats. I mean by habit, the routines that we follow during the course of our daily life, the more we do the same thing everyday, the more we think the same way. So, one of the ways of unleashing your creative capacity is to do different things, stimulate your imagination, do things you wouldn’t normally do. If you never go to an Opera, go to one. If there are some books you have never read, go and read them. If there are people in your building you have never spoken to, go and speak to them. If you go the same way to work everyday, go some other way.

Open your mind to new possibilities and new experiences and do things you haven’t done before, because often, being creative is finding a new medium of expression for yourselves, and the people who achieve most I think have found their medium, they are in their element, and they love the thing they do. So, open yourself out to new experiences and question the things you take for granted, so change habits.

Secondly, it’s habitats. Really the environment we live in, the environments we work in, the way we configure the desks, the buildings, who we relate to, has a huge effect on how we think and how well we think. Redesigning your office space, redesigning the physical relationships between you and other people can have a huge liberating effect on your whole creative capacity. 

I’ve changed my habitat - now to work on those habits.

This is why I love improv - ‘Frozen Grand Central’

This Improv Everywhere stunt is great fun. While it’s been replicated in dozens of cities throughout the world, it hasn’t yet been done in Melbourne. This would be great at Southern Cross Station at peak hour. Where do I sign up Melbourne improvisers?

And when you’ve finished watching it go here to find out more about how it was done and some agent reports.