I was a toddler when my parents used to take me to ‘Dinga Pull’, a local pond, near my home town of Sultanpur Lodhi in Kapurthala District. The pond was full, of a number of local as well as migratory birds like cranes, black winged stilts, herons and geese etc. Those were the days when air conditioners were a luxury only a few could afford. And most people used to sleep on rooftops during summers. Early in the morning everyday, I used to count number of big flocks of migratory birds. And I didn’t realize when bird watching became my hobby and continues to be the hobby I enjoy the most until today. The only difference is now I capture them in my digital memory as well. What amazes me the most about the birds is the variety of color, sizes and feather styles they exhibit. I love to watch them sing, dance, feed their chicks, eat, fight and sometimes trick human beings. My grandmother had at least two to three stories to tell on each bird I used to tell her about after coming back from my bird watching expeditions. In Greek culture the hell is described as ‘Averno’ a place without birds and I too believe in the same. God has surrounded us with birds and in our culture birds are symbol of our faith and trust on God. In addition to being impressed by the sheer beauty and diversity of the bird kingdom, I am equally amazed by their mannerism and behavior patterns. Over many years, I have learned a number of life lessons from bird watching and in this post I’ll share some of the key ones. 1. Evolution Sixty Six million years ago a ten kilometer wide asteroid collided with Earth; such was the impact of the collision that the dominant animal group at the time, the mighty dinosaurs went extinct, at least most of them. Though the impact was equivalent to a force of millions of nuclear bombs and eventually ushered in a nuclear winter like scenario for Earth’s climate, still one peculiar type of dinosaur made it through the catastrophe and survives today. We know the current descendants of these dinosaurs as ‘Birds’. There have been a countless studies to why did ancestors of modern birds survive while many of their close relatives succumbed. Recent research suggests that prior to the extinction event, a line of the dinosaurs shrank in the size gradually over millions of years as they developed flight capabilities and beaks (instead of teeth). And they were able to sustain themselves eating seeds long enough to survive the climate conditions and emerge as survivors. Evidence also suggests that seeds are usually tough naturally and can withstand catastrophic phenomena. It’s possible that changes in diet actually lead to leaner structure overtime and their bones and muscles evolved become lighter (and therefore the flight). This was possible in part because birds evolved and adapted to the environmental changes. And of course the conditions created by the collision were favorable to their long term survival, so they got lucky as well. In order to grow and to be successful in our lives we also need to change and adapt as per the situation. 2. No One Wins Alone Birds fly in V shape formation and each formation has a leader and each member of the formation follows the leader. When the lead bird flaps its wings it creates uplift for the followers and helps save their energy and they can fly farther. When the leader gets tired another member from the formation takes his place and the leader shifts to another position without any feeling bad about losing his position in the formation. Once they reach their destination their hierarchy ceases to exist and all of them spend time with each other as equals. If they see any danger they shout and also tell others about the danger. A great team beats a great individual any day. When you surround yourself with like minded people with a winning attitude you benefit from fresh ideas, profound insight and positive energy. 3. Know the Route and Travel Together Migratory birds fly thousands of kilometers every year and they follow the same route for generations. As they say, “if you want to go fast, go alone and if you want to go far, go together.” No one understands this phrase better than birds. They fly together as flying together increases their chances of survival. 4. Wake Up Early You will never find a bird sleeping late in its nest. Birds wake up very early and welcome the sun with beautiful songs and start their routine with positive energy. This is one trait found in all successful people world over- they all are early risers and start their day when others are still sleeping in their beds. If you want to develop habit of waking up early click here. 5. Self Care Birds struggle the whole day feeding and taking care of its ever-growing chicks, still you will not find a single bird untidy. Birds take care of themselves and they keep themselves clean and tidy. When we are stressed at work with loads of to do list and overdue tasks, the first thing we do is to skip meals, stop exercise and ignore our social life. Ignoring self care only makes things worse. Self care helps us in preventing the overload burnouts, reducing the negative effects of stress and helps us to refocus. If you can’t take long breaks to rejuvenate your energies even small breaks go a long way to help you perform better. 6. Come Back Home Birds start their day early for the search of food and sometimes they fly to distant places looking for food but when sun sets in they always come back to their nests. A number of people ask where do migratory birds belong to and I always answer that their home is where their families are. Travel… Continue reading Life Lessons from Bird Watching
The Art of Co-Facilitation
I have been a trainer and facilitator for last 11+ years and have conducted a number of training programs successfully. Recently I got an opportunity to co-facilitate a Leadership training program with my colleague Mr. Kunal Chakrabarti wherein he was the lead trainer and I was second in command. This was my first ever co-facilitation program and I was little worried so I requested Mr. Chakrabarti to help and guide me as how can we make it a success. He helped me with various tips which actually helped me to run the program successfully. In this two series blog I’ll share my views on the art of Co-Facilitation, Advantages and Potential Disadvantages and how to master the art of Co-Facilitation. What is Co-Facilitation? Co-Facilitation is defined as, “Meeting or other group process by two or more persons in a cooperative, collegial manner to achieve a given outcome. Each facilitator is capable of assuming the lead role. Those not taking the lead role can support the lead facilitator in various ways.“ In their book, ‘Co-Facilitation’, Joana Knight and Warren Scott has write, “The distinguishing feature of co-facilitation is that it is intended to be a partnership, where two or more facilitators take joint responsibility for filling the facilitator role. The purpose of this partnership is either to enable and maximize group and individual learning, or to help the group to achieve other ends such a making a business decision.” Three models of Co-Facilitation Alternate Leading: In this model each facilitator leads the part of the session. The alternating roles are decided at the time of the planning process. Shared leading: In this model the facilitators are not responsible for a specific session but they can chip in and flow out as per the need of the session. There are times when one facilitator might be in lead role and the other facilitator may chip in to explain a point or clarify any doubt. The key challenge in this model is sometimes the session is hijacked by the other facilitator giving no time to the facilitator to make his point. The Apprentice Model: In this one facilitator is more experienced than the other. The experienced facilitator takes the majority of the session allowing the apprentice (less experienced facilitator) to learn and practice safer activities. It builds the confidence of the less experienced facilitator as he knows there’s someone who can step in if things doesn’t go the way as planned. Co-Facilitation enhances the possibility and outcome of group programs, ensuring the facilitation experience comes from a place where the sum totals more than the parts. While there are a no. of advantages of co-facilitation, there are some potential disadvantages also and if you are going to co-facilitate a session you need to consider both to avoid any dangers of ruining the session. Advantages of Co-Facilitation Synergy: When people work together collaboratively and share their skills, resources and energy a synergetic effect often develops and usually the outcome of the deliberation exceeds the sum of individual contribution. Capitalizing on Strengths: Facilitators may have different styles and strengths and they can divide the session in a way that lets them to capitalize on their individual strengths. Lightens the Load: Co-facilitation eases the pressure of full responsibility. There’s a huge list of things which needs to be done before and during the session such as preparation, design, holding the space for the group, observing what is going on from a process standpoint and dealing with logistical issues. Robust Approach: It brings different approaches, attributes, energies, experiences, skills, styles and perspectives to the program and allow for a more robust approach. Enhanced Creativity: In co-facilitation different skill sets of the facilitators can be used to make the session more interesting by enhancing the creativity. Skill Development: Facilitating is a lonely activity and the opportunities for personal and professional development are less as usually the participants don’t give meaningful feedback on the facilitator competence. In Co-facilitation both the partners get feedback from each other for their work which in turn can help them to sort out the issues and become more proficient. Conserving Energy: It is very difficult to conserve your energy for a daylong session for a lonely facilitator. I remember falling ill during a training program and how hard it was to continue the session. Co-facilitator provides that breather to his peer facilitator where he can recharge himself and shine. Potential Disadvantages of Co-Facilitation Egos: Sometimes the co-facilitators do not lean into the relationship equally and they try to dominate each other and their egos may get in the way of effective co-facilitation. Competition: Sometimes the co-facilitators may become competitive with each other and adopt competitive rather than collaborative approaches. May be stressful: Co-facilitation may be stressful as there may be mismatch of the styles of the co-facilitators. Co-facilitation may be stressful for the participants as they may have to adjust as per the styles of the facilitators. Time consuming: Co-facilitation can be time consuming as it does not only need only joint planning but also evaluation and feedback. Different Styles and Orientations: Co-facilitators may have different styles and different orientations- theoretical, technical and personal- potentially spoiling the effectiveness of each other. Overtraining: With highly energetic two or more facilitators sometimes overtraining is very likely due to too many interventions which stifle both participants and learning. Blind Spots: If Co-facilitators are same in their theory/ technique and approach they are very likely to have mutual blind spots in recognizing different dynamics. There’s a possibility that both the facilitators missing out significant learning opportunities. This is first part of two part series on ‘The Art of Co-Facilitation’. In my next blog I’ll write about the ‘Tips for an awesome Co-Facilitation’. Happy Reading 🙂