Blackstone Training | Other
Blackstone Training
Phone: +61 1300 742 029
Reviews
to load big map
25.01.2022 I'm my no stretch a tech guru, but I know engagement. And participants shouldn't suffer just because they're online. This article outlines 8 simple steps to take if you’d like to avoid a snooze fest.
25.01.2022 We’re ready for another week of learning. Sessions run for 60 or 90 minutes and we’re hosting some 3 hour sessions with breaks. What’s become evident to me after all these months of facilitating online is to have everything you need, at arms length, before you start. ... Some of the items I find that I reach for are markers, blu tac, reference notes and extra flipchart paper. Of course I also have water, hand cream and lip balm.
23.01.2022 I had a full in tray this morning.
22.01.2022 T U N ES If you’re a facilitator who enjoys using music during workshops, why wouldn’t you use music in virtual workshops? I’ve always played music strategically during before, during and after workshops. There are so many benefits of its use. One of which is to alter people’s state.... During virtual workshops I play music when: Participants are making commitments and planning during reflective time People are returning from breakout sessions Introducing a new concept mid session As a warm-up i.e. guess this song The type of music you choose to play is important. So give some thought to what your audience will enjoy. Please let me know any additional ways that you find music helps you in virtual workshops.
21.01.2022 LIGHTING When presenting online, ensure your lighting enhances your professional image. Natural light is best. The light should shine on you front on, not from behind you. If you’re in a windowless room, you’ll probably need to supplement with a small flood light.
21.01.2022 CUSTOMISED LEARNING Everybody’s unique. So your learning needs will be unique too. First decide WHAT you’d like to learn and then decide HOW you’d like to learn. No off-the-shelf courses here. Each workshop is tailored to suit your team’s specific goals and is aligned to your strategic objectives.
20.01.2022 MANAGING YOUR TIME WHEN WORKING FROM HOME Today I worked with two groups in VIC who are still locked down. They were seeking ways to prioritise, relieve stress, manage distractions, balance home and work life and practise self-care. This is a before and after shot of one of our charts that captured the essence of modern time management for those who are working from home.
20.01.2022 VISUAL SUMMARY One of the summaries from our virtual presentation skills workshop this week. Some of what works in F2F presentations still applies AND there’s a whole new world of guidelines to follow that will ensure that your key message hits the mark with a remote audience. I thoroughly enjoyed the last two days. We dedicated 2 hours per day on Zoom with me in which I covered the must knows with slides, breakout rooms, chatting, demos and whiteboards. ... Using a blended approach, the group also learned by watching and taking notes from videos, articles and using a learning peer to review and provide feedback.
19.01.2022 AUDIO If your audience can’t see you well but can hear you, they’re more likely to stay tuned in. If they can see you but cannot hear your, they’ll leave Check your microphone and room acoustics. I recommend @jabra wireless headsets for the best noise cancellation and audio quality. Plus, because they’re wireless, you can stand while presenting.
19.01.2022 We’re all set up and ready for a Lego Serious Play Team Building workshop with @sydneyfriendshipcircle. Facilitators never travel light.
18.01.2022 Honoured to be coaching a young individual for a medical school interview. Highlights are to be prepared and be yourself.
17.01.2022 International Day of the Girl Child Thrilled, humbled and excited to be participating in a panel, hosted by @mtoshahmaghsoudi, organised by the indefatigable @samoreh We’re discussing the plight and also the achievements of girls and women globally. ... We’ve indeed come a long way in some cases but we’re far from equal, even here in Australia. It’s pitiful and distressing what’s happening in parts of the developing world. If we’re really going to move the dial on this, we have to ensure that girls in developing countries are educated. There are a multitude of reasons why girls don’t make it to/through school. Developed nations need to drive and support this change through various initiatives such as sponsoring girls, funding facilities to keep girls safe and seeing them through puberty and adolescence and also educating boys and men. Girls who finish school have a better shot at finding a job to support themselves and their children. We need to keep them safe through their womanhood. Women who have finished school in turn are more likely to educate their children. And so the upward spiral continues. My feelings about this are strong, my message clear- ALL children have the basic human right to be safe and to dream.BIG. You can be whoever you aspire to be. If you want to be a parent, you can choose that when you’re ready. If you want to work as an engineer, teacher, artist, astronaut, rugby player or ballerina, no matter your gender, you should be able to choose that! My fellow panelists bravely and honestly shared their stories and valuable insights. Watch out for the recording link.
17.01.2022 The 4 Cs A great session opener or closer to capture the essential bits of a concept or theme. It’s so adaptable in terms of topic area. For example, you could ask what the components, characters, challenges and characteristics are for leadership, management, project management, training, presentations,etc. It’s also adaptable in its application i.e. participants can complete it individually, in pairs or collaboratively on a whiteboard. Ideally it’s suited to groups of b...etween 4 and 20. Have fun with it. The 4Cs is based on the same-named activity written by Matthew Richter in the March 2004 publication of the Thiagi GameLetter.
14.01.2022 BE REAL When we’re online and mute ourselves and switch off the camera, there’s a noticeable energy dip. This is especially apparent to the speaker at first and eventually the listeners feel it too. If there’s no non-verbal feedback for the speaker, it makes their job tough. If somebody cracks a joke or makes an important point, while participants’ mics and cameras are off, the speaker wouldn’t know how the remark lands. All this negative space creates a vacuum tha...t sucks energy into it and causes participant exhaustion. And when we’re tired we forget things. What a waste. So please keep your camera and microphone on. Of course there are exceptions to this. If you have a very large group or if people work in noisy environments. Also, if you’re working from home with a few people who’d likely make an embarrassing cameo appearance in your background. Switching yourself on and off is also okay if you need to do so.
14.01.2022 I am supporting an incredible organization, @sydneyfriendshipcircle, which promotes inclusion for people of all abilities. Help me spread my purple by donating here https://www.mycause.com.au Support Friendship Circle and spread your purple.
13.01.2022 VIRTUAL ENGAGEMENT Just because we’re online doesn’t mean we can’t keep people talking, voting, thinking, scribing, completing group work or indeed standing up. Keep engagement up with warm ups, engagers and closers by using your creativity and aligning these with the purpose of the session.
13.01.2022 ZOOM BACKGROUNDS As much as I love Zoom and all its functionality, I prefer when people avoid using the virtual backgrounds. It’s tough using your own ‘real’ space when it’s likely the people you live with will make an unplanned cameo appearance. The problem with virtual backgrounds is the static it creates around your features if you move even slightly. And we need movement through your body language. You can get creative with your backgrounds by using a company poster, a... sample of your kids’ art or your own doodles. This is my background for a Leadership Symposium that I was invited to today. I enjoyed making it and I hope those watched enjoyed the message that related to my mini workshop. Thank you @simonsinek
11.01.2022 PRESENTATION SKILLS Can you guess who’s a little excited? Moi. I’m going all out for my all-time favourite workshop this week.
11.01.2022 LEGO SERIOUS PLAY Everybody builds individual models and gives meaning to each artefact. We use a process of cumulative builds and help participants dive into metaphor.
10.01.2022 FLOW THEORY I love this theory and enjoy even more explaining the phenomenon of flow. There are a few things we know about flow from theorist Mihalyi Csikszentmihalyi. 1. We all experience being in and out of flow-the state of total immersion, when time seems to fly and performing tasks feels easy. ... 2. We only know we’ve been in flow after having dropped out of the flow zone. Argh you’ve lost me! What does that mean? Go back a step please! 3. We all pop in and out of flow during meetings, training workshops and our own tasks. It’s impossible to expect people to remain in flow 100% of the time. As facilitators and coaches, we aim to keep people in the upper spectrum of the flow zone. There are various strategies to achieve this that I’ve written about in previous blogs. One tip I can offer is explaining this theory in simple terms at the beginning of workshops and encourage learners to let me know when they’re out of flow so that we can help them jump back in.
08.01.2022 LEGO SUPERSTORY Collaborative efforts result in a landscape of the future. Nobody is left out or left behind; everybody is included and and each idea valued.
08.01.2022 The 5 Dimensions of Emotional Intelligence
07.01.2022 The soothing effect of a long walk in sunshine Nothing beats a 10km power walk after an intense week of online meetings and facilitation. Good for the senses.
05.01.2022 TEAM BUILDING Let your hands do the thinking and trust the process. This is how a typical begins. Let’s call this the warm up.
04.01.2022 DRAWING PEOPLE Stick figures are out. These are way more fun and are so easy to create.
03.01.2022 RESILIENCE It’s not about how you endure. It’s about how you recharge. Some have been led to believe that resilience means tolerance to stress and some even see this capacity through a militaristic lens and call it grit. With this view the expectation is to flourish under fire. We know this is not sustainable and often leads to breakdowns , injury and costs companies millions each year. The capacity to recover quickly or to withstand and bend with pressure is only poss...ible if we take regular breaks and switch off. We don’t expect our cars to run without petrol. So how can we perform without recharging our stores? This can be through nutrition, exercise and sleep (hail Arianna Huffington and her sleep revolution). Rebooting also looks like taking advantage of lunch breaks, weekends and holiday periods, meditating, practising gratitude and taking a broad world view. Resilience means BEND WITHOUT BREAKING. This means we have to know our limits and what works for us to return to our equilibrium or baseline. This means knowing when to push back to avoid breaking point. LEADERS understand this and are able to role model true resilience for their team. If you’re after the best book on this topic, please look at Reivich and Shatte, authors and resilience coaches. They use science and heavily researched Cognitive Behavioral Therapy to provide techniques to strengthen one’s own resilience to handle life’s blows in both short and long-term situations.
02.01.2022 CONTAINERS Some call them headings but I often whack them in the middle of a page and work around them. I like to see them as containers that hold the main thought-the essence of the discussion. These are a few to add to the plain old box. I love the one on the top right hand side. It’s called a burst.
01.01.2022 E-LEARNING If you’re designing and facilitating using key adult learning principles and taking advantage of the latest technologies, you can drop the e.
