Magic isn’t stuck in children’s books and feel-good films, it’s here. It’s among us. It’s in our vulnerability, our connection, and our understanding.

The moment I met Jan Keck, I knew I wanted to speak to him on workshops work.

Jan has spent many years facilitating magical human moments - deep phases of connection and communication between people - and, well, isn’t that what so much of our work as facilitators comes down to?

So, join us as we weave threads between psychological safety, experience design, vulnerability, owning our mistakes and imperfections to find, when we look back, that we’ve inadvertently captured so much of what it truly means to be a facilitator.

It really is magical.

Find out about:

• What it means to make magical human moments and Jan’s ‘campfire formula’ for them
• How to design activities that level the playing field and suit different personalities
• The power of stating out-of-bounds topics (such as small talk!) before an event
• Why vulnerability is a gateway to connection
• How Jan uses ‘cellphone sleeping bags’ to encourage connection in his workshops
• The power of reframing and how it gives us permission to fail
• What happens in the room when the facilitator admits something has gone wrong

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 Questions and Answers

[01:05] When did you start calling yourself a facilitator?

[03:41] What do you mean by “making magical human moments?”

[04:45] And what is it that makes magical human moments?

[10:29] How do you find the right level of vulnerability with which to open a workshop?

[15:09] How can we avoid the trap of falling into small talk?

[20:14] What’s a question you love to start with that isn’t “what do you do for work?”

[22:09] How do you handle the difference between individuals who sign up for a workshop with you and a team whose manager has brought you in for a workshop?

[24:05] How do you come up with creative ideas?

[26:56] What’s the story behind your ‘campfire formula’ for facilitating magical human moments?

[29:42] Explain to us your ‘cell phone sleeping bag’!

[32:30] Can you talk about the three different types of listening?

[36:13] What makes a workshop fail?

[40:44] Do you keep a list of the mistakes you’ve made?

[42:19] What is your favourite in-person exercise?

[47:17] What is your favourite online exercise?

[49:40] Was there anything else you wanted to bring to this conversation?

[51:35] What is the one thing you would like listeners to take away from this episode?

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