You’re considering a career in facilitation. What’s the first step you should take?

Find ways to practice and hone your craft. There are lots of courses, books, podcasts, conversations to be had -- but they are no substitute for actually facilitating. (I'd also recommend finding your people -- consider joining the International Association of Facilitators)

I think the first thing is to actually do some facilitation and see whether it interests you. You can also reflect on the sorts of things you enjoy doing, your current skill set, and determine whether there are any shared skills that might point you towards facilitation. It's also about understanding how you are in the moment - do you enjoy the unexpected, the need sometimes for spontaneity, being able to corral people, adapting to the needs of the moment... You can also do a bit of reading around the topic, speaking to others about their experiences. If after all of this, you're not put off, then it might just be worth looking into more deeply and giving it a go.

I would start with speaking skills themselves. Facilitators need to be comfortable in front of an audience and be able to pivot, improv and still keep things on track. Joining Toastmasters can help. Then, you can take some classes on what you want to facilitate, learning best practices….what do you like or dislike that your class facilitators are doing?

Build your toolkit and experience while you find "your people," which may include people who share your interest in facilitation. You may already be stepping in and stepping up to design and lead activities in your team or organization. If not, try find a place to do it. This job-embedded practice is authentic and golden, and may position you for more of that work.

Don't forget that you already have that superpower! You're probably a facilitator already. Group hangouts w/ friends, a parent that coordinates family activities, planning a trip etc. Those are the same baseline skills that every facilitator needs. ⚡️Planning an experience, working with groups to achieve an end result, working with different personality types etc.

You don't need to be an expert to grow your facilitation network. When I was starting out I reached out to seasoned facilitators and compiled their advice into a 'facilitating career advice cheat sheet'. The cheat sheet got lots of attention and propositioned me as a useful connector in the industry.

Ask yourself why it interests you. If it’s because you love speaking you need more. Facilitation is all about meeting your group where they’re at, it’s about them, not about you. If you’re all about helping people grow and learn them facilitation is for you! Believe me audiences know the difference. Authenticity is key.

Explorez activement et pratiquez. Avant de développer un réseau ou de partager des projets, plongez dans divers environnements de facilitation. Assistez à des ateliers, observez différentes techniques en ligne, et engagez-vous dans des initiatives bénévoles. Ces premières expériences sont cruciales pour découvrir ce qui vous passionne et pour affiner votre approche unique. C'est le terrain fertile pour comprendre les nuances de la facilitation et définir la direction de votre parcours professionnel.

When choosing facilitation as a career, the most important thing to consider is " Am I passionate about this role"? Because unless you like what you do, you'll never be able to engage the audience, communicate effectively and bring the desired results. This career is for those who have an affinity for connecting with people, sharing experiences, have good communication and presentation skills and on top of everything have the right attitude to pull it off.

Get professional training. Those that are best at it make it look easy. It isn’t. Be prepared to spend time preparing. Be ready to take cues from your audience and switch things up on the go. Have fun. It’s an awesome job and an awesome responsibility.

I discovered I LOVE facilitation after doing it a lot during grad school. I discovered that I am good at adapting to my audience, getting people to open up naturally, and flexibly changing as we go through. Holding space, designing content - there's so much to love. So, my take is this: if you think you want to be a facilitate, then start facilitating and see if you love it and are good at it. Is it your Ikigai?