How do you cultivate a facilitative mindset and skillset as a creative problem solver?

Beyond what has already been said... facilitation is the art of creating environments in which great things can happen and removing blockers to collaboration. There are many approaches but common methods include visualising discussions or processes to create shared mental models, sequencing and structuring conversations and running exercises which push a group into a creative space, often outside of their day-to-day thought patterns.

Facilitation is the intention to make things easier. It comes from the Spanish word fácil, meaning 'easy.' Having a facilitative mindset means you are more sensitive to the challenges in collaboration, willing to guide the group and promote an inclusive environment.

We and our group have defined facilitation as "process oriented inclusive leadership" for over 30 years. Our colleague Dr. Scott Isaksen who is descended from Alex Osborn who invented Creative Problem Solving, started writing about 'facilitative leadership' in the 1980s and published the approach in "Facilitative Leadership: Making a Difference with Creative Problem Solving" in 2000.

When Alex Osborn invented Creative Problem Solving (CPS) and gave it and Brainstorming to the world, he wrote of the need for a 'facilitator'. Our colleague Dr. Scott Isaksen (descended from the Alex Osborn lineage at the State University of Buffalo) continues Alex's research into CPS and 'facilitative leadership' from the 1970s until the present. Crucially where we diverge from 'many' who talk of facilitation and CPS, is that we start CPS with a Task Appraisal and ensure we are talking to the person/s who 'own' the task. The 'client' is the person/s who can legitimise any changes without asking for permission. This is why facilitation is important for CPS; CPS starts with a facilitator initiated Task Appraisal to find the 'task owner/s'.

Facilitation is, by design, a non-judgmental practice. When involved in problem-solving, there is a tendency for stake-holders to judge ideas "on the fly," which makes it easy to eliminate options while damming the flow of ideas. A facilitator can be a guide, both as a designer of the session or sessions, and as a neutral party who can redirect non-important sidetracks. As a neutral party, the facilitator can be the captain of the process, steering the group to the goal.

Appreciate that you are not in the room as an expert in the content and learn to trust in the creativity and resourcefulness of groups. Learn about complexity and systems-thinking, remind yourself about them often. Remind yourself and the groups you work with that in complex systems a single person is rarely enough to hold all of the context needed, which is why cumulative brain power in group work is so important.

Couple of keys to a facilitative mindset, after doing it for over 2 decades: 1. Keep a Learning Journal. ? Reflect on every session and think about what happened, what went well, what could be improved, and what would I do differently. 2. Practice and learn emotional literacy: Use emotional literacy skills to recognize and manage your own emotions, as well as those of the group members, and foster a positive emotional climate, even in spite of the potential for conflict. ? Even laws of physics dictate that heat is required for transformation - e.g. water to steam.

Always start with the greater goal of the group and the session. How can I as facilitator (formal or informal) help to create the space mentally, psychologically, physically, to help foster the space to allow the dialogue and richness of what they desire to occur? That is always my starting point. One of the best things world class facilitator told me early in my career was - its not about you- its about them and how we help to bring about the conditions for an outstanding discussion that lead to the outcomes they desire for the retreat/session. I've always held that advice dear, and close to the heart each and every time I'm designing and headed into a session.

Based on my experience in both in-person and virtual facilitation, I have identified six areas that contribute to the development of a facilitative mindset. 1. Communication: Active listening, thoughtful questions, and summarization to stimulate progress and help the group stay focused 2. Sensitivity: Creating a Supportive Environment for success by considering time constraints and necessary conditions for facilitation. 3. Presence: Being fully engaged in the moment, mindful of actions and language choices to build rapport. 4. Technology: Embracing digital facilitation to include participant regardless of locations 5. Resilience: Adapting to challenges and problem-solving 6. Growth Mindset: Embracing continuous learning

A facilitative mindset is about having an appropriate mindset to enable you to enact facilitative leadership effectively. With the contemporary version 6 of CPS and facilitative leadership this begins with a Task Appraisal to identify the client/s - the task owner/s who will have the 3Is - Interest, Influence, and Imagination. The facilitative mindset also is clear that there are 3 roles identified for facilitating CPS: 1. the Client (own owns the task, project, problem space) 2. the Resource Group (who provide energy, expertise, diversity) 3. The Facilitator (who provides process oriented inclusive leadership). The concept of facilitative leadership is very connected to Greenleaf's 'servant leadership'.

Start with your mindset and remember our role as a facilitator- its about the group and their greater goals. To that end, I use a set of questions such as what types of questions can be asked that will help the explore roots or outer periphery of the issues at hand? What may help them make transformational leaps in their thinking or new understanding that they may not have achieved to now? How can we structure the day in a way that helps them to 'unpack' the issues and opportunities in greater context and meaningful ways that help them walk away with tangible, excellent next steps? I never underestimate the simple power of the word 'what if'!

Another example is listening skills. Having the ability to be a deep listener is a practice. You must also be engaged in conversations with a sense of curiosity and a genuine interest in others. Listen to what people say and don't say. In all honesty, learning to be a better listener starts with being able to listen to your own truths and feelings.

The contemporary version of CPS v6 and facilitative leadership identified 7 key capabilities. These are all written about in the book "Facilitative Leadership: making a Difference with Creative Problem Solving" by Dr. Scott Isaksen and others. In summary the skillbase of a CPS facilitator is: 1. Has a Facilitative Leadership Approach 2. Has People Management Skills. 3. Can Observe and Manage Groups. 4. Appraises Tasks. 5. Designs Process. 6. Applies CPS and other Processes Productively. 7. Ensures Productive Implementation. There are approximately 28 sub skills that makes up these 7.

If want to be facilitative, Be aware and accept the need and possibilities of space to have divergent views . Begins with creating safe space and establish a ‘collective need’ of solving problem. Capitalise on group wisdom by using some existing tools or create own …. Making ample opportunities to have divergence —-> convergence or vice Versa , have intention to make everyone heard and integrate every individual shared thought. There you go ….. … now you are on the journey of having Facilitative mindset !

Like anything:- learn from a credible source, use the self directed learning model, practice, repeat. But step 1 must be to understand the T of skills and the difference between content and process.