Dancing on Boulders.

Lance is on the road again, but this time doing leadership workshops. Suddenly, he knows exactly where he is going and what he is doing. After two months of being the happy wanderer, it feels great to have a defined purpose, practical value to others, and real expertise again. Lance is in solidly his element at these leadership retreats, striding confidently into the fray with the crystal clear sense of direction, a renewed purpose and measurable productivity which was so absent on his journey. He is also relieved to find his passion is still alive.

Before, he was wading gently into the stream of life, feeling the unseen rocks beneath the surface. Now he is dancing and leaping from boulder to boulder with a human tide boiling around him. He knows the currents, senses the changing temperatures, invites dangerous thinking and navigates by intellect and experience. While each event is unique and the responses of the participants are always blessedly unpredictable, Lance rides each wave with a sure and steady view of the shore he must reach as well as the distant horizon. He is "home" in a very real sense.

Lance is totally without fear in this world and can feel his energy multiply as the interactions of the group expand. This is something he was put on earth to do. And he thinks he has gotten better, not worse, since his previous workshops. Just tonight, he did a small Board Training event for a friend and was told they found his words honest, targeted and insightful. At recent workshop he was complimented for his humor, truthfulness and relevance.

This is what Lance has come to value most about his teaching style. He can make it fun, but the content stays real and practical. He doesn't waste people's time with pretty words or faux complexity that will be forgotten before they even get out the door. The only criteria that matters to Lance is the participant's ability to use the content in their real world...to lead someone somewhere, soon.

So, in the new world of Lance The Facilitator, handouts are down to a bare minimum, usually in outline form. New content is followed immediately by individual and group practice. Lectures are never longer than 15-20 minutes. At least 80% of the time, participants are talking, not Lance. He listens longer, checks for clarity, laughs easily, follows up on ideas, rewards risk and reaches out farther to engage the quiet ones.

This is what he has always wanted to be able to do. Fly low and follow the contours of their landscape, not preach "head in the clouds" stuff. It makes every session more exciting and surprising. Lance uses no script, no elaborate directions, no fancy visuals nor "workshop speak." And in the end, something has changed in everyone...teacher and student.

One of the thesis questions Lance posed for his sabbatical was just how much his workshops can and should be a part of his future life. That test has begun in earnest.