Post It Notes
+ Affordable and accessible
+ Captures individual ideas
+ High potential for spatial organizations in lists, clusters, etc.
+ Captures individual ideas
+ Less pressure to draw
- Difficult to photograph/archive
Templates or Models
+ Framework to work within
+ Shared language
+ Can revisit
- Poor matching of template/model to issue is problematic
- Fill-in-the-box mentality can lead to less complex thinking
Mindmapping (more details below)
+ Easy to learn
+ Spatial adaptation of linear outline form
+ Built in hierarchical
- Hub and spoke shape may not be suitable for all issues
Tony Buzan developed the technique of creating MindMaps in the late 1960s. A MindMap harnesses the full range words, images, numbers, logic, rhythm, color and spatial awareness in a single drawing. To learn more about this visual communication technique, I included information in my past newsletter Problem Solving Techniques from March 2003 or go to www.mind-map.com. Mind Mapping as a Problem Solving Techniques or Mindmapping website
Graphic Facilitation
+ One person dedicated to synthesizing group discussion
+ Real-time capture
+ Diagram and model complex ideas
+ Very large scale
- Not suitable for quick conversations
A Look at Graphic Facilitation
Written by Brandy Agerbeck, graphic facilitator, Loosetooth.com, brandy@loosetooth.com, www.loosetooth.com. Find her directly through these links: Brandy's email Brandy's website
When asked, “So, what do you do?” I answer, “I’ve got a very strange job. I map conversation while groups are meeting. It’s called graphic facilitation.”
It is the practice of using words and images to create a conceptual map of a conversation. I am the visual, usually silent partner to the traditional, verbal facilitator. I draw a huge image at the front of the room in real-time with markers on a big sheet of paper (often 4 feet by 8 feet). Here are two concepts that drive me and my work.
Words Fail
Echoing the Lester quote above, we’re an ever more visual culture. The vast mountain of information we face can’t be climbed by text alone anymore. We need visual literacy to see patterns, spot themes, make better decisions. Graphic facilitators create maps that allow us to understand the world around us and find clarity. Sure we still use words, but we combine them our critical thinking, spatial organization and images to synthesize a complex conversation into an integrated image.
Get Out of Your Own Head
Picture yourself in another meeting. You’re half-listening to Mary and half-worrying how you’re going to explain her mandate to your team. You tune out Phil’s comments because Phil is always spouting unproductive Phil-isms. In that meeting you’re simultaneously thinking of your work, goals, deadlines, boss, boss’s bosses, your team, their deadlines, culture, politics and the company’s mission or bottom line.
As a graphic facilitator, I come in as an outsider. With no political involvement or looming deadline, I can listen to everyone equally. Out of the conversation, I build a map. I capture detailed concerns alongside the main themes. Since I don’t know Phil, I can capture the gem within his comment. I pair Mary’s mandate along with your concern on how to communicate it. I facilitate the group by drawing a picture of what’s being said, so everyone can, pardon the overused phrase, be on the same page. This image focuses and facilitates the participants in that moment, and serves as a document of that meeting’s progress.
I've created a non-verbal image (see next page) to illustrate the dynamics between a graphic facilitator, a team and their ideas. You can see how a graphic facilitator distills the conversation into the salient points.
Continued...
