Mana Shah - Facilitator

I have always drawn immense energy every time I connect with young people around facilitation - the way their bodies shift from a state of formality to ease, the way their questions and sharing deepens with every activity, the way the silence holds the space for their feelings and thoughts to take shape, the way their eyes open wide with wonder at what all is possible when a space is held in a life nurturing way …..This began with the course I taught in Jamia Milia’s Development Communications Department and in the past couple of years the energetic bunch at India Fellows has been a wonderful community to work with. India Fellows go on a 13-month long journey of discovering their own leadership potential. It includes training, mentor-ship, reflections and hands-on work experience with a grassroots organisation working on social issues.   Every year, a few people write back, some immediately, some after a few months (and even years) at how deeply they experienced the space and were...

This blog is special because it is an attempt to weave two big roles I play in my life - being a mom and a facilitator....its funny, as I write this I realise how the precious word "being" appears and reappears in our lives and yet its depth eludes us.... I was curious to write this as I noticed that in so many of my conversations with peer facilitators I tend to mention how parenting has been such an influence in my facilitation practice and I wanted to really unpack what that meant.... So how has my parenting journey of the last 8 years impacted my facilitation? 1.  It has strengthened my presence  - As anyone playing with a child will tell you, they can smell distraction a mile away! My son can always tell when I am with him and yet not with him. It is very uncanny. Over the last few years especially I try and consciously  transfer out  whatever I was doing and  transfer into  the experience with him - whether it is a chat/ play/ dancing/ fooling ar...

It has been over a month since the lockdown began. In my various identities/ roles I have coped with COVID in different ways. As a parent, it was somewhat easier to do what was needed to maintain rhythm and a life nurturing environment at home and continue supporting Aarambh - my son's learning space. As a wife/ daughter/ sister/ friend, it was a bit harder and I jostled between being superbly grateful and connected to being disconnected sometimes. As a facilitator, it was the hardest - for two weeks I was in a state of freeze - my assignments for the coming months cancelled with no clear view of work coming in - in a way I was relieved to be able to focus on home and family in this time. I stayed away (and still do) from being overwhelmed from constant supply of corona updates. I was not ready to explore - what next?  What jolted me out of this state was my dear friend's  Vibha 's circle on "corona, gratitude and resilience" - she created a beautiful space whe...

The idea for this post has been in my draft for some weeks now. And it just seems so appropriate now to share. So what do "fruits" have to do with facilitation? When you look at or eat fruits, what comes to your mind? How do you feel? Just pause and remember.....  I see colours. I see freshness especially when you can still see drops of water drying on washed fruits. I feel different textures, sizes, shapes - usually no two fruits are exactly alike. When I eat fruits I feel instantly fresh and full but in a light sort of way. And the taste of sweetness and sour lingers on for quite a while. This is just what I can feel or sense right away. Fruits do magic for my whole being which I can experience in the days that follow. They keep me energetic and make me strong.  When I experienced Whole Person Process Facilitation for the first time in April 2013, I was pleasantly introduced to the idea that a person is a "whole" person - not just the "mind...