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When I am hired to do any marketing or positioning work for a client, I almost always start by facilitating a planning or positioning session. The objectives of that session are:

1. Get everyone in the room together, focused on this organization. Talented people are involved with lots of organizations, and at any given time, their attention is divided among a number of them. A planning session directs their attention 100% to the organization in front of them, allowing us to get their most insightful thoughts.

2. Teach me what I need to know about the organization so I can help them. Hearing from a group of people tells me more than if I get the download from just one person, however closely connected that one person may be. It also helps me understand individual passions and group dynamics which can be helpful when developing next steps.
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My husband, who many claim is the funniest man they know, has long had the mantra “Repetition is the Key to Humor.” David Letterman can take a simple word like Spatula – a word he didn’t even intend to say – and make it the funniest part of the show simply by repeating it randomly in awkward moments later on. It’s genius! Naturally, it works particularly well when people are tired and subsequently oxygen deprived, because they are more prone to laugh. (That’s why late-night TV is less funny during the day.)  I digress…

If Repetition is the Key to Humor, perhaps Facilitation is the Key to Positioning.  It is through facilitation that you uncover the true identity of an organization, what it has to offer and how it is unique. Facilitation is a skill and an art. I am the fortunate beneficiary of professional facilitation training from the University of Cincinnati, thanks to an early boss who said it would be good experience.

Facilitation is a core service at Girl on the Roof, because it serves as the starting point for any initiative or project.  So I have decided to post a series of blog postings on the topic.  Stay tuned…

I have always been a fan of Winnie the Pooh stories.  Milne was a genius at Capturing the Beauty of Friendship in its simplest, purest form.  My father used to read Pooh stories to me, and for our first Valentine’s Day as a married couple, my husband gifted me the complete collection in one volume. My grandfather, Mac, was so taken with the stories during one visit to my house that I bought him the same volume, which I later read to him on his deathbed in January of 2008. He would squeeze my hand and chuckle from time to time, and after the last story he faded away.

I say this to explain that I am Intimately Familiar with the original tales of Winnie the Pooh and the characters that comprise them.  In fact, I could even be considered an expert.  Although I have seen the newer versions of Pooh and have peripherally watched with my daughter the Super Sleuths cartoon on Disney, I’m not sure who Darby is or what she did with Christopher Robin. Because I am a Classic Pooh lover.
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