SFN July 14 The business of facilitation - with our dream panel of businesswomen

 

The Business of Facilitation SFN Zoom session on July 14 at 5.30-7.00pm Join HERE   or go here... https://us02web.zoom.us/j/81347050527 Some of you are considering turning your facilitation skills into a consulting business. Are you crazy?   Some of you have already begun this challenging journey. It’s a big decision,  with  extraordinary rewards, but not for the faint of heart.   So we have created a panel of experienced consultants who do facilitation and training, and have built successful businesses as freelance consultants doing this work. See bios below.   This topic is in response to a number of requests from participants over the years.   The panel will make a short presentation on “The Three things I wish I knew before I started this journey”  then be  open to questions.   Our Panel Simone Mauss Antoinette Colbran Suzie Moore   Ian Colley will moderate the panel and, if begged, can speak of his 30 years  of experience running a full time facilitation practice.  His advice would be to go and get a proper job, but he is a pessimist.

About Simone, Suzie and Antoinette

Simone Mauss is the visionary founder of Collective Insight. She is driven by a deep passion for helping businesses and governments create more sustainable ways of working together on our planet. Her vision is to awaken humanity to the powerful resource of collective intelligence, which can be accessed through skilful facilitation and collaborative ways of working. Her mission is to help leaders create environments where individuals freely contribute, harnessing collective insight for dynamic, innovative, and effective teams. See more here Suzie Moore began her business over 25 years ago, with the prosaic aim of making enough money to survive, while doing what she loves, which is facilitation!   She is known for designing and delivering inclusive and engaging learning and development processes for senior leaders, managers and individual contributors throughout Australia and Asia Pacific.  Suzie is a facilitation specialist who works with clients to develop and facilitate processes that capture hearts and minds to facilitate positive individual, team and organisational change.  She has worked across industries and has designed flagship leadership development programs for organisations in the corporate and government sectors.  See more about Suzie here

Antoinette Colbran is an author, facilitator, emcee, business owner and public speaker.  Her business Benchmark Expert Witnesses has been around for 27 years.  Antoinette provides expert witnesses to law firms around the Country.  Her speaking role is about it never being too late at any age to start a business, engage in a new employee role, get fit and healthy and start new activities all through life changing adversity around financial change.  Antoinette tells her very own story of survival having experienced massive lifestyle change. 

 www.antoinettecolbran.com.au

SFN June 16: Slowing down the pace Reflect and Integrate through Journal writing - with Kate Scholl

Monday June 16 at 5.30pm- 7pm

Join on Zoom at: 

 https://us02web.zoom.us/j/87334154301

This workshop will introduce some brief simple journal writing exercises to use in facilitation that assist participants to reflect, slow down, draw on their own experience and knowledge, and/or integrate their learning or perspectives. Helping people connect with their own perspectives and experiences often assists in building community within the group. The time will include actual use of some of the methods. Bring your journal or something to write in. 

The workshop provides some time to reflect on your own experience and gain a deeper appreciation of how journal writing aids in reflection and integration in a facilitation setting. Kate will offer some methods that might be of use in your practice. 

Kate Scholl has a background in theological education, management and administration, adult formation and education, and volunteer engagement. She retired in 2020 after 14 years with the St Vincent de Paul Society working in member engagement, training, and mission & spirituality. In 2022 she was invited back by Vinnies to work part time in their housing company enabling volunteer engagement. 

She has 40 years’ experience as a facilitator and presenter in educational, pastoral and retreat settings and held a range of volunteer roles with the Eremos Institute. This has nurtured her passion for writing, the spiritual search, listening to first nations voices, and community building.

She has a strong interest in how we make meaning and live fully connected to the depth and beauty that we are. Kate is an accredited consultant for the Intensive Journal® workshops developed by Dr Ira Progoff and offers these in Australia. Upcoming workshops are on the Eremos website: https://www.eremos.org.au/events and information about these workshops be found at https://www.eremos.org.au/intensive-journal--workshops 

SFN May 12: From Maze to Meaning with Greg Lourey

 

From Maze to Meaning: Embodied Practices for Powerful Facilitation with Greg Lourey Somatic Learning and Gestalt Principles for Transformative Insight Face to face session | Monday 12 May at 5.30pm (University of Technology, Sydney) UTS Building 15,   622-632 Harris Street, Ultimo  Level 1 Room 10

Discover the hidden layers of group energy, deepen your presence as a facilitator, and gain tools to unlock insight and transformation in any setting. In this dynamic and experiential session, you’ll explore how to read the room differently, engage more deeply, and facilitate from the body, not just the mind.   About Greg Greg has worked with executives and senior teams in the United Kingdom, US and Australia over a period of 30 years. Greg brings a unique blend of applied business theory, practical business expertise and human psychology having held senior strategic leadership positions in a global professional services organisation, on company boards, working as an executive coach and facilitator and in practice as a clinical psychotherapist. Greg’s approach centres on being a thinking partner with his clients. At the heart of this dialogue is presence and authenticity as a powerful place from which to be with the challenges that organisational life brings. His clients have included financial institutions, property development companies, the education sector, Health sector, Mining and related services and professional services firms. Greg completed his degree in Commerce whilst working at PricewaterhouseCoopers. There he specialised in assurance services to multinationals, government instrumentalities and SMEs. Greg worked in London where his clients operated in rail, international shipping, newspaper distribution, telecommunications and banking. On returning to Australia, he became office managing partner for PwC for the Hunter Region. Greg held the position of Chair, Audit, Risk and Compliance Committee for a federal government corporation for 8 years and was a member of the Board for an Independent Grammar responsible for Finance for 5 years. Greg also completed his training as a clinical psychotherapist and has a Masters degree in Creative Music Therapy. As a life-long musician Greg, when not working in the corporate sector, works with special needs individuals and groups in schools, hospitals and facilities as a therapist using music to support physical, cognitive and emotional development through music. Greg plays guitar, piano, cello, saxophone and percussion. Greg’s other interests include recreational flying as a private pilot and the Japanese art of Aikido and Zen. Greg lives in Sydney with his wife and has 1 daughter, 1 grand daughter and 2 step sons.

30 Years of Herding Cats: Tales from the Flipchart - April 14 Viv McWaters

 

30 Years of Herding Cats: Tales from the Flipchart SFN zoom session |  Monday 14 April at 5.30pm (Sydney time) with the vibrant Viv McWaters

14 April at 5:30pm Sydney time (join earlier to test your AV equipment and chat with colleagues)   Zoom Session Click above or go to: https://zoom.uts.edu.au/j/85880392707 Explore the power of words and laughter, spontaneity and play (aka poetry, comedy, improvisation, and games). Join Viv as she shares some of the key moments in her 30+ year career as a facilitator and how they have shaped her Creative Facilitation practice. Through stories both hilarious and profound, discover why working with artists and contrarians has been crucial to her journey, and how embracing absurdity led her to try things she never thought possible—like stand-up comedy. You'll discover the liberating philosophy of beginning before you're ready, the joy of making stuff, the art of connecting people, and the wisdom of letting the group do the work.  About Viv McWaters Viv McWaters is a facilitator, trainer and bird watcher based in Bells Beach, Australia. She mixes science, arts, and a dash of improvisation to transform mundane meetings into dynamic experiences. Viv is at her most inspired when teetering on the edge of the unfamiliar, constantly discovering new ways to engage, connect, and surprise. Or when searching for street art.

Simulation Done Well - Engaging with Fun for Learning - March 10 Elyssebeth Leigh

 

Simulation Done Well - Engaging with Fun for Learning SFN zoom session |  Monday 10 March at 5.30pm (Sydney time) with Dr. Elyssebeth Leigh

10 March at 5:30pm Sydney time (join earlier to test your AV equipment and chat with colleagues)   Zoom Session Click above or go to: https://zoom.uts.edu.au/j/85880392707 Using deceptively simple activities, join Elyssebeth next Monday in exploring the key features of simulation as a powerful learning tool. How do you uncover a client's needs? Play the Bouquet Game and reveal their priorities! Why do you see things the way you do? Play the Circle Game to explore alternative perceptions of what is possible! What do you need to know about others to work well with them? Play a 'Who am I' Game and discover something about yourself and others! Join these original activities and discover the structure, components and methods for creating engaging learning environments. Stick till the end for a review of what makes a good simulation and how to be an effective simulation facilitator. About Dr. Elyssebeth Leigh Dr. Elyssebeth Leigh is a distinguished educator and leader in experiential and simulation-based learning. With over 40 years of experience, she has dedicated her career to creating and managing simulations that replicate real-world conditions, enabling learners to practice and refine their skills. Her recent work includes co-authoring "Facilitating Simulations" with Dr. Laurie Levesque, published in 2024. Dr. Leigh has served on the boards of the International Simulation and Gaming Association (ISAGA) and Simulation Australasia, including a four-year tenure as General Secretary of ISAGA. In recognition of her lifetime contributions to simulation in Australia, she received the Ray Page Award. Her extensive research and publications emphasize the skills required for effective facilitation of simulations, bridging the gap between theoretical knowledge and practical application in educational settings.

The Plentitude of Play or Nonsense to Newsense - February 10 Johanna de Ruyter

 

The Plentitude of Play or Nonsense to Newsense SFN zoom session |  Monday 10 February at 5.30pm (Sydney time) with the joyful Johanna de Ruyter

10 February at 5:30pm Sydney time (join earlier to test your AV equipment and chat with colleagues)   Zoom Session Click above or go to: https://zoom.uts.edu.au/j/85880392707 Play isn't just frivolous fun, and it's never just nonsense. It can be  a delightful tool for problem-solving and generating fresh ideas, for energising groups, for releasing tension, for shifting perspectives on issues. Nonsense to newsense is another way into sense-making that invites us to awaken our ability to listen in different ways and to engage other senses to make sense. In a world that often prioritises logic and structure, we forget that some of the most groundbreaking ideas stem from moments of pure, unfiltered play. This session is an invitation to step outside the ordinary, the rational and the logical and embrace the whimsical, the unconventional and dance with invitations that may seem nonsensical at first glance but could hold seeds of insight if we allow ourselves to play! About Johanna De Ruyter Johanna de Ruyter is a theatre practitioner with 40 years of passion and practice in improvisation, at the core of which is playfulness. She has been a Facilitator and Coach working with a range of organisations to translate and incorporate theatre principles and practices into cultural and communication development. Some of the companies she has worked with are Playback Theatre Sydney, The Ariel Group and Wicked Elephants Coop.

End of Year Celebration - Botany View Hotel, Newtown: 9 December 6pm

 

End of Year Celebration Monday 9 December at 6pm | Botany View Hotel Newtown

9 December at 6pm at Botany View Hotel in Newtown  597 King St, Newtown

Come and gather for our end of year celebration at the Botany View Hotel in Newtown! Let's gather to reflect on the year and meet each other in person. 

Bring a plate of food to share!  (The pub kitchen is closed that night, but they are letting us do our own thing).

After a year of mostly zoom meetings, it will be nice to catch up in person. So if you are in or near Sydney come along (Apologies to our interstate and international participants).

Depending on what the venue allows, we might try and do some wildcard facilitations. 

So if you've got a short activity you'd like to showcase or test out, come and do it. If we cant make it work, we shall just eat and chat.