Dear Reader,

Nothing tests a fresh insight faster than walking through your own front door....

I literally just stepped through the door, coming back from a week-long retreat with Mr Embodiment, Mark Walsh (you might remember him from podcast 282). As I was writing, it struck me: I was doing the exact opposite of what I’d taken away from the retreat, and what I was about to write about 🤯

Instead of arriving properly - making tea, changing into comfortable clothes, maybe just breathing for a moment - I went straight to my laptop to draft this newsletter.

The insight I wanted to write about is that self-care doesn’t have to mean the big things but can be as simple as a 10% increase in comfort in everything I do.

And yet, before even starting, I’d already fallen into the trap, which shows how tricky it is to change habits, especially when the commitment was made away from the desk, the agenda, the everyday routines.

I won’t change everything overnight, which is precisely why I need to be gentler — with myslef and with others. What if we applied that 10% more comfort not only to our own routines, but also to the way we work with teams and groups? A calmer start to a training, a touch more compassion, a slower pace, a longer break. The awareness that no content transforms if people are already exhausted and overwhelmed.

It took me less than five minutes back home to forget my biggest learning and break my new self-care rule. And that becomes my actual take-away: self-care begins with just enough comfort for everyone to bring more of themselves (me included).

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🎙 Meanwhile, on the podcast…

“Advice is theft.” So how then, do you teach facilitators to hold a group, master that crucial first 15-minutes of a workshop, and show them that they already have all the answers, without giving any away?

As a researcher by nature, and a facilitator – at first by accident – Julia Slay learnt everything she knows about the craft by teaching it. She now helps bright, budding facilitators to build confidence, find their voice, and discover their learning edges in Facilitation 101.

We unravel the layers of holding just the right amount of space, as part facilitator, part coach, part trainer and part consultant, all rolled happily into one: from managing difficult characters with curiosity, to trusting yourself to stay present – even when the plan falls apart!

Julia shares lots of practical strategies, tips and anecdotes from her 15-year facilitation journey, from the Mayor of London’s office, to her work today. Enjoy!

Find out about:

• The art of asking a powerful, open question at the right time
• How to navigate power dynamics of seniority in groups
• Why ‘advice is theft’ – and the detriment of offering a solution to the group too soon
• How to approach dominant characters without creating collective tension
• The intersection of facilitation and coaching – and what it means to facilitate like a coach

🎧 Click here to listen to the interview

📥 Check out my 1-page summary

​WW_Episode_336-summary.pdf​

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👀 Watch the unedited interview on Youtube​

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💎 Join Julia's free online taster

Facilitation 101 on Wednesday 10 September, 9.30–11am BST.

It’s a practical, hands-on session designed to help you:

• build your confidence when facilitating groups online

• learn and try out two facilitation methods you can use straight away

• pick up simple, effective tools to make your workshops more engaging

If you lead meetings, run workshops, or support group conversations - this is for you. And if you're considering signing up to some facilitation training with Facilitation 101, it's a great chance to dip your toe in the water and see what the course is like.

You can sign up here: https://www.facilitation101.co.uk/

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That’s it from my side! I hope you enjoy the content and find inspiration in the stories and the podcast. I wish you 10% more comfort in whatever you’re up to this week. I hope to see you here next week!

Myriam

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