Every year I try and take some new courses to remind me of what it feels like to be a participant and also to add fresh energy and perspective in my facilitation practice and being.
I just finished this amazing online course by a dear friend and awesome facilitator - Nikhil Mehta. It was a 3-hour self paced course on how to create and nurture Safe, Caring, Inviting Learning Spaces - SCILS!
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I loved the course design - it was playful and intense at the same time! I was quite hooked to it till the end and here is an attempt to reflect on what made it so -
a) Safety - The whole anchoring of the course on "safety" was a very unique perspective for me. In my own approach, creating a "life nurturing" environment is the anchor and the lens of physical, intellectual and emotional safety widened my thinking around this. Safety as the thread was woven in through the entire course. I now have a deeper understanding of how to look at needs of the learners and consciously weaving these in my designs and presence. It reminded me to understand the position of "power" and the ways I can use or abuse these in a space. It helped me understand when my own safety gets threatened and how it might impact my behaviour.
b) Attractive content - The course structure was quite detailed and broken down quite well - content wise it was very inviting. I was curious about all the different parts. The content came in a variety of forms including a list of suggested movies that also were great examples of what "safety" is perceived, experienced and appreciated. To me what attracted me to the content was the balance of the technical tips, frameworks, principles AND the deeper inner awareness that needs constant self care and nurturing.
c) Brevity - While there were 9 sections in total, each section was a mix of talks, demos, written content, additional resources and reflection exercises. The videos were never more than 4 minutes - so it so happened that I started a section and because the videos were so short I was able to go through them without feeling too much of a "visual and information overload". The articles themselves were also just the right length for me and so were the additional resources. I was able to go through the additional resources also in each section as I covered section by section.
d) Authenticity - Nikhil's own real life experiences and journey as a facilitator and human being came through so beautifully and naturally through the whole course. He gave examples from his own life where he faced certain situations and how he navigated these. The way he also carried me through the course felt very "safe" as if I was experiencing what he was teaching. The "demos" also made it easy to understand what was being talked about. He was very mindful of appreciating and acknowledging all the people/ approaches that influenced him and this course.
e) Engaging - Even though it was in a way not a "live" interaction - the way it was designed, I felt engaged throughout as if he was speaking with me, asking me questions, waiting for me to respond and connecting with what I was sharing. In some videos I could see Nikhil himself, in some I could hear him presenting slides and in some I could see him facilitating. An invitation to connect with my purpose of taking up this course, a mid point check in and again an end point check in was useful to connect the course with my context. Reflection exercises on what safety means to me and metaphors that come up for me were helpful to internalise the inputs.
f) Purposefully practical - I found the content very relevant and applicable that I could use right away. Nikhil took the time to explain the "why" and "how" of the activities while all the time talking about the principles around which these can be seen. This gave me enough room to figure out when I wanted to use what activity and approach. It gave me more ways to look at challenging situations and come up with more innovative ways of showing up. I loved his statement "context based action for the here and now"! Even the final resources document had short explanations about each resource that gave them a lot more meaning.
The course left me with with many practical tips that I will be able to use right away. I practiced all the games with my 10 year old! I already used an energiser with a group of 15 CEOs in an online meeting:) I have a great set of questions to ask when I want to use activities like these in my sessions.
It has also left my spirit a lot more - it deepened my conviction that a mindfully held space can offer an "alternate universe" to the participants where they can feel heard, seen and felt for who they are...where they be valued for all that they bring into the space...that learning and collaboration can happen when we feel "safe" and "relaxed"......where the choice to engage rests with them and all we do is invite them with a whole heart, an open mind and steady feet!
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