A Tale of Three Flearns

Three is a magic number. 

It’s the maximum number of instructions I’ll give for a workshop activity. 

The ideal pattern for telling jokes, as I learned in my standup comedy course. 

And it keeps your participants, your audience and your readers with you—hi there! 

So, after three Flearn workshops with engagement practitioners, it’s the right time to take stock.  

Before I dive into it, a quick recap.  

Flearn = f&!k up + learn™. It’s a 90-minute workshop where Flearners safely share and explore engagement f&!k ups with peers, without blame, guilt or fear. 

Sixty-seven Flearners in three workshops came up with 88 Flearns on three Flearn walls. There’s that magic number again.  

I instructed ChatGPT to theme them. It needed a considerable amount of guidance from me—‘No, ‘don’t leave your notes in the toilet’ is not about keeping data hygienic and clean’—but that’s a story for another time. 

Here’s the final picture: 

In keeping with my preferred pattern, here are three example Flearns from the top trio: 

Clarity, purpose and assumptions: ‘Don’t beat around the bush.’; ‘Understand scope — what can be influenced’ and ‘Clarifying the impact of negotiable — what’s the option.’ 

Planning and preparation: ‘Timelines—advocate not to be rushed’; ‘Keep preparation time sacred’ and ‘Take earlier flights.’ 

Stakeholders and decision-makers: ‘Set strong boundaries with stakeholders — internal + external’; Don’t be intimidated by internal power’ and ‘Formal agreement + endorsement from decision makers.’ 

No workshop or group is ever the same, and it’s no different with groups of Flearners. Each of their Flearn Walls had a different focus. 

Workshop one was about communication, engagement materials and methods fit for purpose. Participants focused on message clarity and the quality of communication.  

‘Tailoring materials to audience.’ 

‘Put it on paper.’ 

‘Don’t assume people read what you put out.’ 

Planning, engagement methods and stakeholder logistics featured in the Flearns from workshop two. Participants looked at the machinery — planning, coordination and execution.  

‘Ask more probing questions of the team running the event to ensure preparedness for all situations.’ 

‘It takes a lot of time to prep for the unexpected and set expectations.’ 

‘Testing tools before going live — do a soft launch.’’ 

The Flearn wall in workshop three reflected a focus on self-awareness, community connection and boundaries. Participants looked inward, reflecting on themselves and relationships.  

‘It’s ok to have that one person you can’t engage.’ 

‘If gut feeling is that it isn’t right — pause!!’  

‘It’s ok to have a boundary.’ 

I cross checked these themes with Carol Tu, my co-facilitator. She’s been on the community engagement frontline for about 30 years. She confirmed my work with ChatGPT and said that she found the themes ‘relevant and relatable’.  

I hope you do too. Let me know. 

We’ll look into some of these themes in my monthly Friday Flearners. It’s a free monthly community of practice where engagement practitioners can share & learn from our mistakes. The first one is on 28 November at 12.30pm–1.15pm. Ask me for the link to join me and other Flearners online. 

Thanks for reading this far. 

Stay (fl)awesome!