Good facilitation does not mean giving someone a fish. Rather, it means teaching them how to fish. Then they can continue to fish on their own.

The temptation is to give a person a fish in one way or another because this makes us feel good or important. We know better how to do something so we just do it for them. We don’t give them a chance to figure it out.

Advice is one form of a fish. We give advice and consider that we are doing them a favor. However, we also inadvertently take away their opportunity for learning by discovering for themselves how to do something. Sometimes, advice is appropriate such as when we are teaching a new person how to do a new job. As soon as they learn it however, we will probably do better to facilitate their finding their own solutions.

To stay with the metaphor, if we are to teach fishing, we need to make sure the person has a fishing pole. That might be the necessary resources to get the job done. What tools do they need? Maybe they need a software program or an understanding of the resources available in particular company departments. Maybe they need an introduction to certain people who can help them. These things will help them to do their own fishing.

Then when they are ready, you may have to let them cast the fishing lure in their own way, not your way. You give them enough leeway to be creative in their own fashion. You can give them encouragement to spark their creativity. Promoting another’s creativity is an art much needed by leaders and some professionals. How can you learn this art?

Much literature teaches leaders how to inspire people. For example, the book Primal Leadership: Realizing the Power of Emotional Intelligence, by Daniel Goleman, et. al., recommends leaders manage their own emotions to create resonance with their teams. Followers who experience resonance with their leaders will tend to expand their talents and develop their creativity.

How to have resonance with others is a consistent part of my Virtual Workshop Series, Leadership Communication™ (http://www.EmotionallyIntelligentLeadership.com) and the corresponding Self-Study Program.