Setting Up Workshops for Success: A Small Reminder
I recently conducted a 4-hour Transformative Leadership Workshop for a client in North Carolina. There were 41 participants in the session from multiple states and a few team members from other countries. After I went over the stated objectives of the workshop, I asked each of the participants to write down one personal objective on a post-it note that, if met, would make this an extraordinary leadership development experience for them. They then took a few minutes to share those objectives at their tables of 5-6 and off we went.
At the end of the workshop, I asked them to put their sticky notes on the wall, only if their objectives had been met. What was the final tally? 39 out of 41 put their sticky note on the wall! Phenomenal, right!? And yet, if training and development sessions are being properly set up for success and conducted the right way, this kind of result should be the norm, not the exception. I have personally found that to indeed be the case. Every single time we do one of these sessions, aside from meeting the workshop objectives, the vast majority of participants have their personal objectives met as well. And you can bet that has an immediate transformative effect on their results at work, not to mention their fulfillment in life in general.
The way I see it, there are three key contributing factors to creating this kind of consistent success in any development session:
Plenty of pre-work with every client – I do this to make sure I understand a client’s unique challenges and opportunities and can customize my examples and instructive anecdotes in a way that makes it real for them.
Have each participant take ownership – I have each participate declare their personal objectives, which focuses them on what they want to get out of the experience so that they are on the lookout for the takeaways that are most useful for them and their situation. This is opposed to the regular approach of just giving participants information, which is like aimlessly drinking from a firehose and having to sift through all their notes to hopefully find something useful. This also encourages participants to take ownership of their objectives being met, and speak up if they have questions or concerns that they feel need to be addressed.
Invite participation – I invite participants to do exactly what they are supposed to be doing: participate! This keeps the conversation real, in order to avoid theoretical conversations that make sense to all of us on paper, but are not actionable on our actual situations. Having observers rather than participants discourages people from taking transformative insights and making them their own, which is the only way they will ever make a difference to anyone.
These are three elements you want to look for next time someone is conducting a training session, to see if participants are being set up for success from the start. Next time you attend a session, take a few minutes up-front to set your intentions on what you personally want to get out of the session. Don’t worry about missing out. Get clear on 1-2 specific problems you would like to find a solution for, or transformative insights you would like to pick up, and listen and participate with the intention to have those objectives met. Next time you conduct a training session, give the participants an opportunity to set their intentions, ask them to be the guardians of making sure they get what they came to get, and be clear that participation is the only way they will be able to make those things happen. You can use the sticky notes method that I mentioned above, a whiteboard, or get creative with your own ideas.
Here are some (verbatim) examples of the objectives that participants set (and met) in the North Carolina Transformative Leader Workshop:
Be a better leader via role model behavior
More open to change, open-minded
To transform how I view leadership in an important way
Impact individuals in a positive way to grow in strength
Personal goal to be more courageous
Understand what holds me back
Become a better leader overall in all aspects that I do
Strategies that will help me not only be a good leader professionally but will help me transform my personal life
Understand what is keeping me from being a better leader
Techniques to avoid saboteurs to personal/professional development
How to better coach and empower my team
Improved discipline/accountability in everything I do
Develop better active listening skills. Be a charismatic/confident leader
Becoming the best I can be
Be more willing to be courageous, assertive, take risks, go outside my comfort zone
I want to lead this organization to greatness -> Be the beacon
Cross-functional leadership tools
Find my David, Take away something useful from today
To develop a better sense of what my leadership skills are and how to use them
Strategy for action with on-going inspiration
Learn what skills I need to instill an improved culture in the facility
Be a better manager and person
How listening will help me lead; How to communicate clearer
Entire group engagement
Be less independent and work as a team member
Tools to help get to the next level of performance and fulfillment – 100% - 0
Enthusiasm
A better understanding of what I do well and what I can do better
Energize myself to act to the goal
Personal connection to leading cultural development within the organization
Better ability to ask for what I need and grow
Be able to go back on Monday and do something great for my employees that day
Discipline to maintain routine habits
Better at making leaders, not followers
Path towards personal transformation of habits and behaviors to improve performance and fulfillment of those around me
A better understanding of which things are most holding me back from being a great leader so that I can focus on them
Explosive drive and commitment to get $&!# done (communication, vision, empowerment); Don’t want to feel overwhelmed
How to get out of my own way
A true connection to embrace the change and apply it daily
Could your organization benefit from your team members getting this kind of head start on their leadership development journey and shifting their mindset in these ways? At The Ghannad Group, this is our specialty, and we are passionate about delivering these kinds of results for clients all over the world. So, if you’re interested, or even just curious, let’s talk about how your team members can experience the same transformation that thousands of others around the world have after attending our speaking engagements and Transformative Leader Workshops.
You can now listen to the new 5-part audio series, “Transforming Your Workplace Experience!" This audio series serves as both a great standalone introduction to culture transformation, as well as a companion to our previously available free culture transformation guide. In the series, I walk you through some applications and examples of the concepts presented in the guide, so that you can more effectively put them into practice and get motivated by the progress you will start making. I know that after learning and applying the concepts and distinctions that I present in the guide and audio series, you will be more qualified than ever to create extraordinary cultures that consistently deliver breakthrough results!
The Transformative Leader Audiobook is available now! I'm so excited to announce that "The Transformative Leader" on audiobook is currently on sale now exclusively on Amazon, Audible, and iTunes! The wait is over for those of you who (like me) prefer to listen to books during their commute or while exercising or simply doing things around the house! If you aren't yet a member of Audible, you can use this link (https://adbl.co/2MZWmaF) and sign up for a free 30-day trial and receive "The Transformative Leader" audiobook for free (plus one credit per month thereafter)!
About the Author: Amir Ghannad is an international keynote speaker, author of The Transformative Leader, leadership consultant, culture transformation champion, and founder of The Ghannad Group. He has made it his life's work to guide leaders and equip them with the tools, skills, and the mindset necessary to create extraordinary workplace cultures that deliver breakthrough results. Download his free e-book, titled 5 Practical Steps to Make Your Culture Transformation Stick by clicking here.
Want to learn more about how The Ghannad Group serve and guide you in your leadership development and culture transformation efforts? Click here
Want to get in touch with Amir? Email amir@theghannadgroup.com
As always, have a great week! May you Boldly Declare, Courageously Pursue, and Abundantly Achieve the Extraordinary!
Copyright © 2019 The Ghannad Group, LLC, All Rights Reserved.