A handy guide to facilitating small meetings and workshops.

1. Ten Small Meeting
Facilitation Tips
Tim Ferguson
2012

2. Tip #1
It’s not about you.
It’s all about them.
Sure, you’re a star, we know that! It’s why
you’ve been asked to run this meeting in
the first place. But facilitation is about much
more than you and your expertise. Great
facilitators are obsessively focused on the
moods, personalities, quirks, styles,
backgrounds and expectations of their
audience. When you’re giving a keynote, it’s
your show – but if it’s a workshop, you need
to give them the limelight.

3. Tip #2
Prepare to engage,
not to present.
If it’s all about them and not about you, your
147 PowerPoint presentation will get in the
way. Facilitation is about dialogue, discussion,
debate, Q&A, training and testing. What
interactive exercises have you prepared? What
questions will you be asking them? Did you
add buffer time to deal with the unexpected?
Good! Now put down that laser pointer grab a
marker and go!

4. Tip #3
Do your research.
No, not topic research, you’ve done that. I
mean research on your attendees. Who are
they? What are their concerns? Why are they
coming to this particular workshop? What do
they expect? What do they want? What do
they need? How much do they know about the
topic? How much do they care about the
topic? What questions are they likely to have?
Answer even a few of these questions and
you’ll know what approach you should take.

5. Tip #4
Rehearse.
That two minute introduction you have planned?
Guess what, it’s ten minutes. Those five slides
you think will take 30 seconds each? It’s more
like 2 minutes each. And that situation analysis
you think everyone will agree with? It’s a
quagmire. Be the one who stays to time by taking
the time to rehearse. (Besides, it’s the only way
to ensure you’ll have room for all of those
interactive exercises you’ve planned!)

6. Tip #5
Be yourself.
Most people are funny, charming, expressive,
unique, passionate and interesting …until they
stand up to present, that is! Between being a
little nervous and trying to act “professional”
many presenters speak in monotone, look like
they’ve overdosed on Botox, and abandon all
spontaneity and humour. Your topic is serious,
and so is your objective, but that doesn’t mean
you should leave your personality at home.
Think about what makes you, well, you, and
create an approach ideally suited to your
remarkable, individual strengths.

7. Tip #6
Be brief.
Recipe for success:
•No day longer than 6 hours (10 AM
to 4 PM is ideal)
•No didactic presentation longer than
30 minutes
•20 minute breaks
•60 minute lunch
•Start on time, end on time

8. Tip #7
Make room.
We’ve all been there: crowded, poorly
ventilated, poorly lit room with drab walls, bad
sightlines and a projector blowing hot air in
your face. Think air. Think temperature. Think
space. And for true success think catering. If
you have 10 participants get a room big
enough for 20. Set up the seating so everyone
can see each other. Have flipcharts around the
room for interactive exercises. And don’t let
the PowerPoint screen become the centre of
attention – that honour belongs to you!

9. Tip #8
Take notes.
A great workshop goes beyond sharing
information – it generates new ideas, insights,
perspectives and action items. All that newness
is a terrible thing to waste. Assign a scribe, use a
flipchart, photograph the whiteboard, collect
video summaries, and use writing exercises
where participants submit their detailed
thoughts. Whatever you do, don’t let all that
dialogue go down the drain.

10. Tip #9
Take risks.
Nothing ventured, nothing gained. So what if
you haven’t done it before? So what if they
haven’t done it before? Shake up the format,
go for the unexpected, try something new. You
don’t need to “step outside your comfort
zone” – you need to expand your comfort
zone. Make a small variation from your usual
approach, see how it goes, and build from
there. We all crave novelty, and someone
needs to go first…let that someone be you!

11. Tip #10
Get some sleep.
As the facilitator, your job is to carry the team. To
do that you need buckets and buckets and buckets
of energy. Eat right, go to bed on time, do your
workout, arrive early and be ready to keep them
energized all day long.

12. Enjoy!