The Art of Hosting is a beautiful embodiment of many of the features of facilitation, combined with its own set of unique approaches and concepts. Mary Alice Arthur is an international steward of the Art of Hosting network and a person whose input I value hugely.

Mary Alice joined me for this episode of Workshops Work to talk about the Art of Hosting in general, but also about how we can apply it amid our current circumstances of lockdown and social distancing.

Our conversation was packed with curiosity and “aha” moments, and it felt like we connected a lot of dots together. I hope it will be the same for you. 

In this episode, find out about: 

• The art of hosting yourself and others in normal circumstances, and during crises
• Why our individual and collective stories hold so much power
• How to use challenges and potentially destructive tools to inspire great change
• Why Mary Alice values resonant learning and collective wisdom
• How to direct our energy away from fear and towards excitement

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Questions and Answers

[01:15 ] What makes the mindset of a facilitator?

[05:58 ] How do you balance the two meanings of the word ‘fire’?

[10:40 ] How do balance making the process easy with making the struggle easy?

[17:03 ] How do you bring people to the same point in their shared story in a workshop?

[23:17 ] Why is it so important to hear other perspectives, even if you are an expert?

[26:13 ] Why do some virtual meetings thrive and others struggle?

[28:05 ] How can we create and tell the story?

[31:06 ] What are the opportunities in virtual meetings?

[35:36 ] What makes a workshop fail?

[40:43 ] What is the one point you’d like people to take away from this conversation?

Connect with Mary Alice

• Mary Alice's website
• Mary Alice's Facebook
• Mary Alice's Twitter
• Mary Alice's Instagram
• Mary Alice's LinkedIn

Share your thoughts about our conversation!

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You can now find the podcast on Substack, where your host Dr. Myriam Hadnes is building a club for you to find fellow listeners and peers: https://myriamhadnes.substack.com/