One of my first high-stakes facilitation assignments was an engagement outside of Santa Barbara, California. I was facilitating a Leadership Lab, with “My Beautiful Story,” an activity I created, serving as the centerpiece. The client had rented a stunning mansion for the offsite and all of their high-potential leaders were invited.
At the time, ReadySet had a small office in what used to be a mall that had been converted into a coworking space. I was meeting with my CEO about the engagement before I flew out, which I expected to be a formality. The meeting, as it turned out, was not a formality.
She asked me to review my opening remarks and share how I intended to introduce the activity. And not just voice over my plan, she wanted me to stand up and role-play my opening remarks for her as if there was an audience present.
I clicked my heels, hoping to find myself in Kansas, or at least somewhere other than that meeting, but when I opened my eyes again, five excruciating seconds had passed, and I was still very much sitting across from my CEO in Oakland.
I stood up and offered a miserable, stuttering first attempt. Y-Vonne mercifully stopped me and calmly said, “Start over.” I looked down and still didn’t see any sign of a yellow brick road, so I took a breath and tried again.
She interrupted my second attempt by offering better phrasing which I graciously received while feeling confident that I could face a firing squad with more equanimity.
But on we went like this for what felt like an hour, and by the end of the exercise, I felt confident and prepared. I felt better aligned with how the session and the activity fit into the broader arc of the client’s programming, and I felt better prepared to showcase the growing canon of dynamic organizational interventions our firm was developing.
The preparation paid off, and we continued working with the client for five years.
The experience showed me the power of combining the power of preparation the with art of improvisation. Many of us who facilitate, speak, and perform in front of audiences have to adapt to things in the moment, but it’s the practice behind the scenes that makes the performance look effortless.
