workshops work
Welcome to “workshops work,” the podcast that transforms how professionals engage, inspire, and lead groups. Hosted by Dr Myriam Hadnes, a behavioural economist and facilitation evangelist, each episode dives into facilitation techniques and mindsets that make workshops successful.
Join us every week as we sit down with world-renowned facilitators and uncover their secrets to creating psychological safety, fostering collaboration, and sparking innovation. Whether you’re a Facilitator, L&D professional, HR leader, manager, coach or trainer, you’ll find practical tips, inspiring stories, and actionable insights to elevate your group dynamics.
From navigating conflict to unlocking creativity, “workshops work” blends theory with practice, ensuring you walk away with tools you can immediately apply. Dr Myriam Hadnes doesn’t just interview; she facilitates enriching conversations that shift perspectives and deepen understanding.
Let’s democratise facilitation, one workshop at a time.
Subscribe now and make your workshops work, every time.
Visit https://workshops.work/podcast for a free 1-page summary of each episode.
workshops work
057 - How to Use Elements of Video Game Design for your Workshop Design with Coline Pannier
We can find inspiration for our work as facilitators in the most surprising places. I would have said that game design is one of those surprising sources, but after speaking to Coline Pannier, the similarities and interconnections were abundantly clear.
Game design is the path to mastery in a controlled environment.
While we might look for convenience and facilitate in a way that creates ease, game designers approach tasks from another angle. They create interesting challenges that help players to develop a skill. In a workshop environment these challenges are small frictions or imaginary environments that make it interesting for the group to solve a problem together.
Learn about:
- What video game design and workshop design have in common
- Why humility is essential for facilitators
- The power of frustration and challenges, and why we should embrace them in workshops
- How restriction boosts creativity
- What facilitators are responsible for, what they can control, and what they should leave behind
Click here to download the free 1-page summary
Don’t miss the next show: Subscribe to the show with your favourite podcast player.
Feeling inspired by the conversation in this episode? We can have our own - take a seat at my virtual table as part of a Mastermind Group.
A huge thank you must go to SessionLab, the sponsor of Workshops Work. Claim your free two months of SessionLab Pro now – this deal is exclusive to Workshops Work listeners!
Questions and Answers
[01:28] When did you start calling yourself a facilitator?
[03:03] How do you combine enjoyment of creating with enjoyment of facilitation?
[04:23] What do you think other educators can learn from facilitation?
[06:16] How does humility fit into education?
[08:24] What from game design can we apply to workshop design?
[10:23] Can facilitators purposefully introduce challenges to our workshops?
[15:23] How can we use obstacles that already exist for participants?
[17:17] How do you define, as a game designer, the right amount of challenge?
[19:50] Would you reframe existing challenges in a new way?
[22:58] What would be a nice, meaningful obstacle that you would create in a workshop?
[26:39] Can you give an example of creating a loop between ‘levels’ in a workshop?
[30:28] What can we learn about sprints from game design?
[34:02] How do you know that you ‘went in the wrong direction’ outside the game environment?
[36:42] Do you share with the group if you feel something has gone wrong in a workshop?
[38:04] What would the signs be that a group is getting a process wrong?
[39:18] What is a failed workshop?
[41:43] Can you give an example of taking on a job for the wrong reasons?
[44:08] Is it possible to use game design to structure an orga
**
Click here to navigate through all episodes via this interactive podcast map.
**
If you're inspired by our podcast and crave similar conversations, consider joining Dr Myriam Hadnes' NeverDoneBefore Facilitation Community.
**
If you're keen to master the art of facilitation, discover our expert-led live, online Facilitation Courses at the NDB Academy.
**
If you enjoy the show, consider a one-off donation and contribute to the ongoing costs of running the podcast.