How Are You, Safa, My Friend?

South African based Colin Skelton is a cultural creative. He and the Yuen Yen Tsai are both  trainers, working for the Design Thinkers Academy. 

Colin had the opportunity to come to the Netherlands and the two of them met each other.
  
While Yuen Yen unleashes playful minds, moods and behaviors in her trainings, Colin applies embodiment, story capturing and going-slow to support people learning in a more effective way. 

Two highly-skilled facilitators exchange their experiences, share their views on learning; and making change for people.

Facilitation Seeds for the Carrier Bag

How are you, Sofiène, my friend?

Today we call Abdulaziz Alkhtabi. He is one of the most playful teachers in university I know. I cherish the memory of him singing on the Nile river; celebrating the ending of our Shiraka program. Safa and I call him to learn more about his many loves in life …

How are you, Abdulaziz, my friend?

Salwa is a dear friend of mine. I understood at the end of the training in 2017, that it was her first time to present to a large group. Hooray for girl power and courage. Never have forgotten her kindness, I searched for her phone number. And together with Safa we started exchanging. And … giggling 😊 Listen and enjoy our chat.

How are you, Salwa, my friend?

Some friends have the talent and skill to wiggle a gap-week in their calendar. To free up a space and time to simply emerge in a new adventure. I am talking about Hugo Gonçalves from Portugal. Once in a while he visits his new base, Scheveningen. And simply request for a program. A program with no details to be communicated. Until the very last minute (as a great facilitator 🤭🤭 I can do that).
Observing him experiencing the visits, chats and new friends - allows me to look thru his eyes. What seems to be normal, suddenly becomes special. Meet this Gap-per from Porto.

Looking thru the Eyes of a Gap-per

Being friends Colin Skelton and Yuen Yen continue their conversation on play and physicality in the working contexts. 
A playful mind and the human body are always within our reach.  But our rational thinking forgets or ignores them regularly. 
Both friends think connecting again with our human playfulness and physicality, is an important future skill to cultivate.

Physicality, Our Buddy and Instrument of Intelligence

Yuen Yen Tsai is a serious game facilitor for the Shiraka trainings. By doing so she brings fun into a working business environment. Recently, she travelled to Cairo Egypt to apply her knowledge within a group of judges and directors from the Middle East and Northern Africa. 
In this podcasts she tells the story of this fun and inspiring journey.

Fan of Fun

Dr. Hammouda Salhi works at the University of Tunis El Manar. Ms Yuen Yen Tsai is a serious game facilitator for Shiraka trainings, the Netherlands. They share a conversation about Making Meaning by interpreting, by exploring cultural backgrounds. And at last, by serious gaming. Location of the meeting: Wolvenplein. Once a prison, but today a hotspot for creative, small businesses.

Index of the podcast:

01:50  What play can add to human beings?
08:30  How to face the resistance to play?
14:15  How can play boost soft skills, communication skills?
17:05  The struggle to win the time challenge
19:59  Body language going beyond the fences of languages and culture
23:20  Flow of intuition and preparations
31:00  Understand creativity, queste for meaning
35:00  How to translate yourself to others?
38:57  Trust, trust, trust interpreters and mediators
41:28  (Facilitator and interpreter) Being on different paths
45:39  Play is able to carry the communication process

Crossing the Borders of Meaning

Shirley Lammers and Yuen Yen Tsai met during work at the Design Thinkers Academy, Amsterdam. At this moment Shirly is graduating from International Life Studies. Here Shirley learns how to design lifestyle concepts, that improve quality of life. So people become healthier, more relaxed or self-aware. 
They share a conversation about how individuals express their identity. And how this could play a role in facilitated sessions.

Fitting In and Identities

In this podcast Marieke and Yuen Yen talk about how close or distanced the relationship between a facilitator and her group could or should be.

Their conversation is divided in 5 separate podcasts.

#1 Integrity and Playfulness

In this podcast Marieke and Yuen Yen talk about the process of continuous reflection ánd doubt. Was the facilitation good enough for the participants of the group?

Their conversation is divided in 5 separate podcasts.

#2 The Facilitator Reflects

In this podcast Marieke and Yuen Yen talk about the features of an effective facilitation team.

Their conversation is divided in 5 separate podcasts.

#3 Let Grip Go, Let Trust Grow

In this podcast Marieke and Yuen Yen talk about voids in sessions to be filled thru different roles and by different persons.

Their conversation is divided in 5 separate podcasts.

#4 Filling Voids

In this podcast Marieke and Yuen Yen talk about how the feeling of control and power effects the dynamics in a group.

Their conversation is divided in 5 separate podcasts.

#5 The Power of a Facilitator

Change can be triggered by an idea, a word, a project, a movie, a song or even by a simple game. It all can inspire to unlock one’s hidden creativity.
Mr Sofiène Ouerghi was one of the participants in trainings, facilitated by ms Yuen Yen Tsai. Months later they met again, sharing reflections on the impact of playful learning and creative learning methods for Arabic trainers and facilitators.
This podcast is recorded in both English and Arabic language with help of ms Razan Damlakhi.
Tedtalk: https://youtu.be/N_Z-fW8DhgQ

Unlock Hidden Creativity

من الممكن تحفيز التغيير بفكرة ، أو كلمة ، أو مشروع ، أو فيلم ، أو أغنية ، أو حتى لعبة بسيطة
كل هذا يمكن ان يكون مصدر الهام  لتحرير الإبداع الخفي
 شارك السيد سفيان في التدريبات المنظمة من قبل  المدربه يون يون تساي 
بعد ذلك بعدة أشهر التقيا من جديد، وتبادلا الأفكار حول تأثير التعلم المرح ومدى فعالية طرق التعلم الإبداعي على المدربين والميسرين العرب
تم تسجيل هذا البودكاست باللغتين الإنجليزية والعربية

TedTalk: https://youtu.be/N_Z-fW8DhgQ

تحرير الإبداع الخف

01:00 Daryl explains Stirring S***
8:00 David shares his lessons from Dale Carnegie.
22:25 David's principles in training business
33:00 Design Thinking crreating opportunities for people
43:26 Allowing empathy in trainings
50:00 Design Thinking in Asia
1hr01 Design Thinking facilitating collectivity

This podcast was made after the 2 days of Design Thinking Conference, Looking thru Different Eyes (October 10th&11th 2019)

Empathy in DesignThinking Connects People

In the cosy studio of André I have beautiful conversations with special persons. Apparently a certain insight, perspective or thought was the compelling reason for the rendezvous. Communication, contact and culture often emerge during the conversation. How to facilitate a group, how to involve people, how to make an impact for sustainable change, are not simple to-do-lists. These questions challenge us to explicit our personal beliefs and ways of working.

That is why we have a conversation. Reflections come and reflections go. Thought by thought we help each other to gain insight in one's own work.

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