Careers rarely move in straight lines. Mine sure didn’t: journalism, private investigation, public relations, human resources, corporate planning, coaching, innovation and culture transformation.
I also took on a range of side gigs along the way, often out of curiosity (rocking the turntables as a DJ or acting as a standardized patient for evaluating would-be physicians, among other odd-ball ventures), and sometimes out of necessity after unexpectedly finding myself on the job market.
Each role, formal or informal, taught me something about people, systems, expectations and adaptability. They also taught me about embracing uncertainty as a catalyst for opportunity.
At first glance, these puzzle pieces appeared unrelated. In retrospect, however, I can see how they’ve worked together over time, equipping me with a set of skills that travels well across roles, sectors and periods of ambiguity.
Facilitation Skills are the Common Thread
I had been practicing facilitation long before I ever called myself a facilitator. Across corporate planning, culture transformation, innovation, and coaching work, I helped individuals and groups clarify outcomes, surface hidden strengths and uncover blind spots that impeded progress or fulfillment.
These experiences helped me understand that change—especially personal change that challenges deeply held beliefs—is not easy.
Different contexts, different outcomes—but one constant: striving to create environments where people had an equal opportunity to share their perspectives, concerns and ideas.
Learning, Unlearning and Relearning
A quote by Alvin Toffler has become something of a personal mantra for me:
“The illiterate of the 21st century will not be those who cannot read and write, but those who cannot learn, unlearn, and relearn.”
In a world changing rapidly and unpredictably, the ability to predict the future matters less than the ability to respond to it. What matters is preparing ourselves to adapt—often in ways we haven’t yet imagined—when that future becomes the present.
Facilitation skills have been key to adapting to different contexts and preparing for the future. I think it’s because, at its core, facilitating requires a continuous cycle of learning, unlearning, and relearning. When you adopt a facilitator’s mindset, you’re supercharging your curiosity, getting to know new people and observing a wide array of group dynamics. You’re also learning about new subjects and the broad range of perspectives people can share about the same issues.
To be a skilled facilitator you also need to master unlearning: suspending your preconceived notions or personal viewpoints, and challenging both your conscious and unconscious biases in service of a group and its goals. Finally, there is a relearning involved, as you help groups to frame and reframe their realities and their aspirations.
Facilitation Skills Travel with You
In uncertain times, facilitation doesn’t just help organizations do better work. It helps individuals build careers that are flexible, resilient, and personally fulfilling. As professionals face today’s competitive job market, the question to ask isn’t just “what role comes next?” it’s “which skills will continue to open doors across different contexts?”
Facilitation is one of those cross-cutting skillsets. It comprises a collection of highly transferrable competencies that apply across sectors and roles, unlocking opportunities across projects, industries and career paths.
I’ve been fortunate to make facilitation my primary career, but that may not be the right path for you. Either way, developing your facilitation skills can supercharge your career growth – whether staying put or pivoting, by choice or by necessity.
What’s Next for You?
Intersol offers two excellent workshops to develop and hone your facilitation skills: The Facilitator’s Mindset and The Facilitator’s Skills and Tools.
I speak from experience. Before I was an Associate Consultant, Facilitator and Trainer with Intersol, I was a student in both workshops.
The Facilitator’s Mindset sharpened my approach by grounding facilitation in key concepts like neutrality, unconscious bias and the importance of designing inclusive, purpose-driven sessions.
The Facilitator’s Skills and Tools built on that foundation with hands-on techniques for navigating real-world challenges like understanding and navigating group dynamics, managing dysfunction and using purposeful questioning techniques to move conversations effectively toward resolutions and desired outcomes.
Whether you’re looking to become a professional facilitator, better manage meetings, lead discussions with greater focus and purpose, or you’re simply looking to beef up your toolbox with skills that travel well across disciplines, these courses are a powerful and practical investment.
Luc Hebert is an associate Consultant, Facilitator and Trainer with the Intersol Group. Contact info@intersol.ca to work with Luc on your next project.
