You’re a Large Group Facilitation professional. How can you manage your time more effectively?

1 Plan ahead

One of the key aspects of time management for facilitators is planning ahead. This means having a clear purpose, scope, and agenda for each session, as well as a realistic estimate of how long each activity will take. You should also prepare the materials, tools, and resources you will need, and communicate them to the participants and stakeholders in advance. Planning ahead will help you avoid unnecessary delays, confusion, and stress during the facilitation, and allow you to focus on the most important and relevant issues.

2 Set boundaries

Another essential skill for facilitators is setting boundaries. This means being clear about your role, expectations, and limits as a facilitator, and communicating them to the participants and stakeholders. You should also respect the boundaries of others, and avoid taking on tasks or responsibilities that are not yours. Setting boundaries will help you prevent role confusion, scope creep, and burnout, and enable you to maintain your professional integrity and credibility.

3 Prioritize and delegate

As a facilitator, you may have multiple projects, clients, and deadlines to juggle. To manage your time effectively, you need to prioritize and delegate. This means identifying the most important and urgent tasks, and focusing on them first. You should also delegate or outsource tasks that are not your core competency, or that can be done by someone else more efficiently or cost-effectively. Prioritizing and delegating will help you optimize your resources, reduce your workload, and improve your quality of work.

4 Use technology

Technology can be a great ally for facilitators, if used wisely and appropriately. Technology can help you save time, enhance communication, and increase engagement during the facilitation process. For example, you can use online platforms, apps, or software to create surveys, polls, quizzes, or games, to collect feedback, data, or opinions from the participants. You can also use video conferencing, chat, or email to communicate with the participants and stakeholders before, during, or after the session. Using technology will help you make your facilitation more interactive, dynamic, and fun.

5 Reflect and improve

The final tip for facilitators is to reflect and improve. This means taking time to evaluate your performance, feedback, and outcomes after each session, and identifying what worked well and what can be improved. You should also seek continuous learning and development opportunities, such as reading books, articles, or blogs, taking courses, or joining networks or communities of practice. Reflecting and improving will help you enhance your skills, knowledge, and confidence as a facilitator, and deliver better value to your clients.

6 Here’s what else to consider

This is a space to share examples, stories, or insights that don’t fit into any of the previous sections. What else would you like to add?