Hmm...Six Feet of Separation
Contemplating my first afternoon of in-person facilitation with physical distance and considering the implications for the process and the outcomes.
“Social distancing is staying away from people not from your purpose.”
― Amit Kalantri
Full transparency. I am feeling a little weird this morning. It is an unexpected and slightly uncomfortable feeling. Edginess with a touch of elevated level of concern. Just enough to trigger a bit of second-guessing.
What is it going to be like to re-engage?
The reason is simple — a change in the routine of the past 4 months as I prepare to venture out this afternoon to facilitate my first in-person group session since February.
From DepositPhotos.com
As I ponder how to create the magic in a room where people are physically distanced, a number of concerns arise. Perhaps the most salient being whether this was a good decision. But time is of the essence and action is necessary, even if it creates a bit of consternation about today’s path.
It occurs to me this degree of candor may feel odd should someone who will be in the room read this before we gather. If that is you, please don’t fret. I am not writing this to freak anyone (including me) out about what it is going to be like to have a talented and capable group in a room dive into a planning process. What I am focused on is how to make the session effective given the realities of the moment.
Let me explain my concerns — perhaps it will help you when you enter your first in-person session as we transition into the next phase of our respective lives.
First and foremost, I am concerned about the ability to create an environment where candid, open, in-depth discussion occurs when physical separation is brought into the equation. There is real value in having small groups of people focus on specific questions and surface ideas.
But the inherent intimacy of a small group with a focused task will be much different with six feet of separation. The energy of a team gathered around a flip chart to capture their ideas will not emerge. Multiple groups in the same room will introduce a crosstalk element usually avoided by proximity within each group and separation between groups.
Will people feel, think, and act differently?
Then there’s the reality of how different everyone in the room is likely to feel being in a face-to-face (perhaps I should say mask-to-mask) situation. I can’t help but think there will be a bit of discomfort and disconnection due to the different ways we’re engaging. Some may be concerned about the safety of even being in the room.
Yet since it is a planning session focused specifically on possible scenarios for the next 12-18 months, the topic of Covid-19 will be something we can’t ignore. It is pretty much the entire focus of the session. So there’s that to deal with as well.
But the thing I am most concerned with is helping everyone balance the need to discuss possible outcomes we hope and pray don’t occur, but might. The things for which we need to create contingency plans and make decisions about before they arise. Things that have personal implications as well as implications for the business.
Those are the areas where thinking will be different. When you explore possible pathways for the future the focus is usually only on what they mean for the business. But the things we are going to discuss today have an inescapable personal component to them. It is difficult to separate what a situation could mean to you from what it could mean for the business.
What does this moment make possible?
For peace of mind, I find myself turning to one of my favorite questions as I frame my vision for the afternoon. I wonder what becomes possible in this situation that is better than in the usual situation. I consider what I am about to learn and become energized by the possibilities. I decide to trust the human spirit and the collective wisdom of the people in the room.
Because if I have learned anything from facilitating these kinds of sessions, it is this —the process works. When people who care about something and believe in it come together to think about the path forward, they figure it out.
The answers we need will emerge from the discussion without regard to physical distance. Perhaps they will be better than we could have discovered if we were spared the realities of this moment.
Today’s Action Advice
If your work involves facilitating group discussions, leading meetings, or participating in such activities, I encourage you to think about how you will feel when you re-engage in person. As a huge believer that prior planning prevents poor performance, I am confident figuring out how you can be comfortable and connected even when physically separated will help you create the best possible result when you next venture out.