Hi Reader,

I’ve just returned from a two-week offline break, and I finally feel like myself again. Isn't it remarkable? We all cognitively understand the importance of taking real breaks from work, yet we struggle to implement them until it feels almost too late. This is a classic example of the knowing-doing gap: the disconnect between what we know we should do and what we actually do in practice.

In my case, this gap forced me to confront a brutal truth: If I don't change my relationship to work, I won't be able to sustain myself. I shared my thoughts on LinkedIn, comparing myself to a hamster on a wheel. The key difference? The hamster knows it can step off!

During my break, two books became catalysts for change. One of these is Cal Newport’s Slow Productivity, which I highly recommend if you, too, find yourself grappling with overwhelm and overwork.

Newport outlines three core principles for embracing slow productivity:

1. Doing Less: Focusing on fewer tasks to increase depth and impact.
2. Working at Your Natural Pace: Slowing down to work in a way that feels sustainable and true to your rhythms.
3. Obsessing over Quality: Prioritising excellence over quantity, which naturally leads to a slower, more deliberate pace.

Today, it struck me how relevant the concept of Slow Productivity is to our work in facilitation, especially in workshop design. We often push ourselves too hard, try to do too much, and cram excessive content or activities into our sessions. Whether driven by our excitement for what we know or a desire to prove our worth (a topic for another newsletter), the outcome is the same: We leave little room for participants to engage at their natural pace, to reflect, discuss, and apply what they’ve learned. The result? Lower-quality outcomes and, therefore, workshops that fail to leave a lasting impact because participants don’t feel ownership or enthusiasm—like serving undercooked vegetables that no one wants to chew on.

Now, I see how essential the concept of Slow Productivity is for professionals who work with groups. Not only do we need to embrace this approach to ensure our groups achieve the best results, but our groups also need us to be present and focused—something we can’t achieve when we’re overwhelmed, stressed, and overworked. By doing less, working at a natural pace, and focusing on quality, we can create more meaningful and impactful experiences for our participants and, importantly, a more fulfilling life for ourselves.

I am committed to stepping off the hamster wheel and giving myself—and my clients and groups—the time and space to truly thrive.

Are you?

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🎙 Meanwhile, on the podcast…

The relationships in our life are a lot like gardens: they need watering, a little pruning here and there, some de-weeding, and a whole lot of love! But what about the people we spend most of our time with?

Our co-workers are often overlooked in the garden of relationships, but it’s one that requires just as much time, care and attention as any other. Enter: the biggest mischief maker, Emily Hinks!

Firm in the belief that the world of work could do with more joy, she helps people to connect, collaborate and create company cultures to be proud of, in playful and energising ways. She generously shares her mischievous ways with us, her experience with the likes of Netflix, and how she facilitates richer human connection in the new era of work.

Press play and spend a joyful hour with Emily!

Find out about:

• The ROI of human connection at work and its role in building company culture
• The importance of connecting teams to company values in contextual ways
• Why the post-pandemic workplace needs facilitation to nurture digital connections
• How to host meetings more effectively as a non-facilitator
• Emily’s small but mighty hacks for elevating every voice in a meeting

🔖 Click here to download my 1-page summary of the show.​

🎧 Click here to listen to the interview​

Or watch it on Youtube:

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Live Learning Opportunities

Leadership through Facilitation

If you want to sharpen your facilitation skills, embrace your leadership potential, and create captivating workshops like never before, the Leadership through Facilitation online course could be for you. It's a 7-weeks course, delivered by a diverse group of master facilitators - each bringing in their unique experience and expertise so that you can find inspiration to grow your own unique way of leveraging your facilitation skills for effective leadership.

​Click here to find out more.

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The 2024 NDB Festival

Are you ready for a one-of-its-kind facilitation community experience? Chose among - or all of our - 22 unique 'never done before' workshops hosted by workshops work podcast guests, stay for networking opportunities with facilitators from around the globe! For the first time in the history of the NDB Festival, there will be NO parallel workshop tracks (and hence no fear of missing out). Instead, the Festival will run over 48 hours...

Early Believer tickets will be on sale next week for only 99 EUR.

​In the meantime, save the date with this link.

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workshops work eBooks

If you enjoy the one-page summaries I have been sending out weekly for over 280 weeks, you might also enjoy the eBooks! Each eBook contains a compilation of 50 summaries for you to find easy access to inspiration and best practices from the workshops work podcast guests.

​Click here ​t​o​ get your digital copy.

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That's it for this week. I hope you enjoy this week's inspiration nuggets.

Myriam

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