Program Design Coach | Geeking out blending learning design with entrepreneurship to scale impact

I work with consultants, coaches and facilitators to design programs that are easier to market, pitch and deliver. Helping you go from inconsistent referrals to a sustainable business using relationship-based business development habits (without the ick of being sales-y)

I bring together 26 years as a learning designer and facilitator with 15 years of entrepreneurship.

My clients already get results for their clients, but might still:

❌ Find it hard to stand out despite being better than their competitors
❌ Overwhelmed by packaging their expertise into proposals
❌ Frustrated by reinventing the wheel every time 
❌ Annoyed they're not paid what they're worth
❌ Experience imposter syndrome
❌ Feel stretched over-delivering

And they want to:

✅ Feel confident charging more for premium service
✅ Build a more sustainable six-figure business
✅ Have more impact doing work they love

I've gone through frustrations myself.

Since 2011, I've run my own Learning & Development consultancy. And for years, I struggled to package, market and sell the value of what I did.

This is despite being an expert. I had:

• Invested tens of thousands in my professional development. 
• A track record of getting client results on leadership development, team development, organisation change, and service design projects in the tech, finance, public, charity, and education sectors. 
• Designed & delivered thousands of learning experiences, workshops and training as a volunteer, educator, employee, and freelancer since 2001

Turns out: I was an expert at my craft, but not at creating consistent sales opportunities

No one had shown me how to 'commercialise' my learning design expertise. And when I did sell my services, I either subcontracted at lower rates than I knew I was worth. Or I wasted time reinventing my process, making my services less profitable. So there were times I had no work OR burned out because I was saying "yes" to everything that came my way. 

I wanted to put myself 'out there', but I felt stuck 😵‍💫

The turning point was when I started consulting with other L&D companies. I overhauled their learning production processes using my streamlined methods. And during the pandemic, I adapted the process to support 30+ charities through the digital transformation of their learning programmes.

More focus allowed me to market, sell, and deliver my services more easily 📈

Since 2023, I've been working with over 100 self-employed experts to avoid my mistakes.

Join our newsletter: https://www.leverageaccelerator.co/

Pedram Parasmand

You’re not exhausted because you work too much.
You’re exhausted because you rebuild your business from scratch every time a new client signs on.

The real enemy isn’t overwork.
It’s originality.

I learnt that, every time I reinvented a new proposal, I lost:

⚡Energy
🕒 Time
🧠 Focus
🌍 Impact
💸 Revenue

Originality might feel impressive.
But repeatability is what creates freedom.

That’s why I built a 10-step playbook to help you go from overwhelm of ideas to one clear, repeatable program.

I broke it down in a carousel here 👇

Program Design Coach & Facilitator | Geeking out blending learning design with entrepreneurship to have more impact | Sharing lessons on my path to go from 6-figure freelancer to 7-figure business owner

10 Steps Playbook for Packaging  Your Brilliance

If you hear “we don’t have the budget” and your first instinct is to cut your fee, pause.

There are better options that protect your value and keep the conversation alive.

So what’s going on?

A real finance objection isn’t a signal that your work isn’t worth it. It’s a signal that something needs to change. Timing, scope, structure, or expectations.

So take a moment!

What gets people into trouble is treating price as the only lever they have.

Budget options happen ALL the time.

After 15 years of negotiating work across large organisations, charities, and individuals, one pattern shows up again and again:

Budget pushback is normal.
Discounting as a reflex is optional.

You don’t have to:

• Over-justify your value.
• Give away full scope at a reduced price.
• Choose between “say yes cheaply” or “walk away awkwardly”.

This carousel walks through 8 ways to handle genuine budget constraints without shrinking yourself in the process.

Some protect margin.
Some protect relationships.

All protect your integrity.

Because how you handle these moments quietly trains clients how to treat your work.
And that compounds over time.

~~

💬 Which option do you find hardest to hold your ground on?

📩 If you want weekly stories, tips, and resources on holding your value while you grow, join 750 others and subscribe to our newsletter leverageaccelerator.co

8 Ways to Handle Real Budget Objection

You’re not an advanced facilitator if you only design for one type of brain.

Most facilitators call their spaces “inclusive.”
Very few design them that way.

The next level of facilitation isn’t more energy.

It’s better design.

• Different sensory thresholds.
• Design that accounts for different processing speeds.
• Different comfort levels with ambiguity, eye contact, and speaking on the spot.

Most of us were trained to reward 

• Fast thinkers.
• Confident speakers.
• People who can process out loud in real time.

That’s not neutral.
It’s just familiar.

So if you’re serious about maturing your practice, this is the work.

That’s why I’m excited to be back at the Inclusive Facilitation Exchange for coaches, consultants, and facilitators who want to design sessions that work for different brains, not just the dominant ones.

And the line-up of speakers is fan-f*cking-tastic.

See you there!

| The Collaboration Coach | Creator of OOPSI | Jenny With the Blocks |

So it’s just over a month to go until the second-ever Inclusive Facilitation Exchange, and preparations are definitely ramping up…

Jane Livesey and I are entering what can only be described as the slightly hysterical but very excited phase 😅💥

IFE is a not-for-profit gathering dedicated to advancing inclusive facilitation and learning design, championing neuroinclusion and designing for difference, not around it.

It’s for facilitators, trainers and coaches who want the tools, insight and confidence to create spaces where diverse voices are heard, connections flourish, and challenges are met with curiosity and care 🫶

If you’re on the fence, I thought I’d share this little montage from last year. 📹 

Every time I watch it, I feel this huge sense of joy and pride. My cheeks actually ache by the end because I’m grinning so much 😊 ❤️.  I could use a dose every day as part of my well-being routine. 

It really was something special. And the feedback still blows me away:

“Today was the first time I've woken up after a conference and just felt warm and snuggly and happy and fulfilled. I don't think you quite yet realise what a beautiful thing you created, but it was absolutely magnificent!”

“Oh my goodness, what an absolutely fabulous event you created! 5 stars feels too little, you deserve all the stars.”

“A beneficial and insightful day. Fantastic setting, wonderful people and very informative and engaging content.”

“Inclusive, carefully organised, great space for people to inhabit.”

“The calibre of speakers was incredible!”

Huge thanks to our incredible speakers from last year, Jan Keck, Ceri Newton-Sargunar Nathy Ravez Ollie Yates Daniel. Susser Matthew Bellringer Dennie Declercq, Mohsin Memon Tumi Sotire Kate (Catherine) Isichei and our awesome helpers Audrey Thouvenin Pedram Parasmand and of course our incredibly talented graphic recorder Sam Carpenter and event photographer Kate Hollingsworth

and yes, some of them are coming back this year just to mingle, which makes us ridiculously happy 🎉

We would absolutely love you to join us.

For the best possible discount, hop onto our mailing list (link in comments).
Find out more here 👉 https://lnkd.in/gB2iZfnM

Every consultant has lived this moment: 
Sudden urgency. Confused stakeholders. “This wasn’t what we agreed.”

The project didn’t go off the rails.

You just never asked the questions that would have kept it on track.

I started asking 5 uncomfortable kickoff questions so I’d stop mediating messes I didn’t create.

💬 Which of these questions do you wish you’d asked earlier on your last project?

~~

📬If you run projects inside organisations and want fewer surprises, my newsletter covers exactly this kind of work. Join 750+ subscribers at leveverageaccelerator.co

5 Kick-off Questions to Prevent Mid-project Emergencies

What happens when amazing facilitation training meets robust business development habits?

We’re collaborating with Voltage Control for a practical session on building consistent sales opportunities as a facilitator.

Why am I excited about this?

Voltage Control has been on my radar for years as a beacon of high-quality facilitation training. A bunch of our clients have come through their programs and consistently speak highly of the depth, rigour, and care in their work.

And this is where it connects.

The relational skills that make someone a strong facilitator are often the same ones needed to build a thriving business. We’ve now helped 100+ coaches and facilitators translate those strengths into clear offers and consistent opportunities. 

So what will we focus on?

In this session, we use our Clarity-to-Clients roadmap to help you decide which opportunity to focus on next and turn that decision into confident, non-salesy client conversations. Without relying on referrals or constant content creation.

Is this for you?

If you’re experienced, capable, and surrounded by options. But unsure what matters when launching a new offering or strengthening one that isn’t selling as well. Then, you’ll leave with clearer priorities and a more reliable path forward.

When is this happening?

10 March 12pm EST, 4pm GMT

What to join us?

Sign up link in the first comment

Trying to help everyone is why most people don’t know what you do.

Broad feels generous.
It also makes you forgettable.

Most self-employed coaches, consultants, and facilitators stay wide because it feels helpful.

More people served.
More doors open.

In reality, it does the opposite.

Serving fewer people on purpose is how you end up helping more people in practice.

That’s the paradox most self-employed experts learn too late.

Check the slides to find out why

I break down 5 reasons niching creates more demand, not less. And why staying broad makes it harder to be known, trusted, and referred.

~~

💭 Which one hit closest to home for you?

📩 If you want more stories, tips, and practical resources on building demand through clarity, you can join 750 other newsletter subscribers here: leverageaccelerator.co

5 Reasons Niching Creates More Demand

Before: Talk to prove you know your stuff
After: Use silence to prove you know theirs.

Experts don’t dominate the conversation. They direct it.

I see this pattern show up in two very different moments.

First is when you’re just starting out.

You want to look credible. I felt this hard when I started my business in my early 30s and still looked fresh faced. Talking felt like proof that I knew my sh*t.

The second happens with experience.

You now know a lot. I caught myself here trying to explain how I’d integrated learning design, facilitation, design thinking, systems thinking, and Theory U. All true. All too much.

In others, I see the same two drivers.

Early on, it’s imposter syndrome.
Later, it’s the curse of knowledge.

Both lead to the same outcome.

You talk more to convince someone you know your stuff. And that gets in the way of them realising your stuff can help solve their problems.

I learned this later than expected.

In 2021, ten years in business, I finally did proper sales training. What stood out wasn’t a clever script. It was how little the best sales people spoke.

They asked better questions.
They left space.
They let the other person hear themselves think.

And when I tried this

I came across as more expert. As it turns out, the better the questions you ask, the more people believe you understand their problems.

And once they feel understood, your expertise no longer needs explaining.

~~

💬 Where do you notice yourself talking too much?

🎯Want more on asking better questions, building trust, and sounding like an expert without over-explaining? Join 750 newsletter subscribers at leveverageaccelerator.co

The biggest misconception I had about self-employment?
Less structure meant more freedom

You know...

Leisurely mornings.
Doing whatever I felt like each day.
“Seeing how things unfolds” energy.

I went fully solo in 2015, chasing that.

A couple of years in, I realised something important. No boss didn’t mean no pressure.

It meant I became the boss.

And HR.
And operations.
And the person panicking at 10pm, wondering why nothing felt finished.

With no structure...

Every day felt busy and oddly unproductive. Lots of motion. Very little traction.

The fix was structure all along

One clear target market.
One clear core offer.
One way to deliver.

And the days that I design around that

The irony still makes me laugh.

I'd left employment to remove structure and be free. But freedom came from choosing structure

~~

👀 What’s one rule or boundary that actually gave you more freedom?

📬 Join 750+ coaches, consultants, and facilitators getting stories, tips, and resources on building real freedom through structure: leverageaccelerator.co

The more “bespoke” your service is, the harder your business is to grow.

I used to think that was a sign of quality.
It’s usually a business model design flaw.

I just got off a call with someone who emphatically said, "I'm done being a freelancer. I'm a founder", and it made me reflect on two types of coaches.

Coach A: 3 clients.

Digging through old folders to “tweak something similar.”
Switching between designing, delivering, firefighting.
Calendar dictated by ad hoc meetings.
No space for business development.
Underestimating timelines.
Feast or famine on repeat.

Coach B: 3 clients.

Knows the inputs that create the outputs.
Clear client-serving system.
Clear client-getting system.
Can predict capacity.
Can predict time off.

For 9 years, I was Coach A.

Everything was bespoke. I wore it like a badge of honour.

Then, during the pandemic.

While doing digital transformation work for charities, I accidentally started systemising. Not because I was clever. Because I had to.

Now around 95% of what I do is standardised.

And the best bit. Creating something that compounds is still as creative act. AND I get to choose my bespoke work. I just don’t have to build my entire business around it anymore.

~~

👀 If you looked at your calendar for the next two weeks, what would it say about your business model?

Spent time this week with one of the most forward-thinking coaching communities.

The quality of people was obvious.

But what really stood out was how honestly the same challenges came up.

Lucie Coudret, ACC has built something special with Coaching Innovators and is delighted to be a supporting partners.

So we shared our Clarity Roadmap

We ran a workshop on how to design and price offers that actually sell. Shared the approach we’ve used with 100+ coaches and consultants in the last 2.5 years to package up their expertise and create more sales opportunities.

Things got interesting in the reflections.
Two things kept coming up:

1️⃣ Focusing challenge

A lot of these coaches have worked across industries, roles, and contexts. They know they can help a wide range of people. So narrowing in on one market feels like leaving impact on the table.

But in practice, the opposite happens.

When your message is broad, it’s easy to miss.
When it’s focused, it cuts through.

2️⃣ Pricing for value (not time) challenge

Not as simple as it sounds when the outcomes are intangible. Confidence. Clarity. Better decisions. Which makes things harder to measure. And why so many end up charging for time?

Easy to underprice. But not impossible.

When you map the transformation.
You can identify the milestones.

We’ve seen both of these patterns play

This workshop was just another reminder. And it’s exactly why partnerships like this matter. Different perspectives. Shared thinking. Better outcomes for the people in the room.

And more great coaches having an impact!

Grateful to Lucie for bringing together a group like this and trusting us to contribute.

Most partnerships don’t fail because of strategy. 
They fail because nobody talked about the awkward stuff.

People think they can skip the values conversation and “figure it out later.”

This clip shows what to cover early so the relationship survives pressure, money, and emotion.

I don’t think you can skip sales and still call it a business.

And I don’t think you can skip the values conversation and expect a long-term, fulfilling partnership.

The part most people avoid is the part that protects you later:

Exit clause
Remuneration
How money gets managed
What each of you needs to live

Have those conversations early, when emotion is low and honesty is easy.

It saves the relationship when things get stressful.

If you’re building a partnership, what’s the one conversation you’ve been avoiding? 👇Subscribe: https://lnkd.in/ehnd4_Tv

The fastest way to lose trust in a sales conversation is to stay at the surface.

Most people ask about goals, metrics, and strategy.

Almost no one asks what it actually means to the person.

In this clip, I talk about the question that changes everything:

Not “What problems are you facing?”
But “How is that affecting you personally?”

When you ask that, the dynamic shifts.

You stop being the problem-solver trying to impress.
You become the thought partner in their corner.

And especially at senior levels, where business and identity are tightly intertwined, that’s where the real conversation happens.

If you want clients to open up, stop staying safe.

Ask the question that actually matters.

What’s one question you’ve asked that changed a conversation completely? 👇

Subscribe for the full episode: https://lnkd.in/ehnd4_Tv

Just updated the exact 9-step flow we use to keep goodwill in a sales conversations even when someone doesn’t buy. Want it?

Comment FLOW and I’ll DM you the pdf

Refined over 15 years in business and hundreds of sales calls. Perfect for coaches, consultants and facilitators that value relationships rather than sleazy sales tactic.

I didn’t need more strategy. 
I needed someone to notice when I vanished.

Accountability wasn’t about pressure for me.

I used to tell myself I just needed more discipline. Then I got an accountability buddy. Not because I didn’t know what to do. I did.

I just wasn’t doing it consistently.

The value wasn’t pressure or guilt.

It was having someone outside my own head. Someone who’d calmly ask, “Did you do the thing you said you’d do?”

It worked. We’re still mates.

But the bigger shift came when I started building alongside someone else.

There’s a different standard when your decisions affect another person’s livelihood too. You stop negotiating with yourself.

If you’re stuck, it might not be motivation you’re missing. It might be stakes.

What’s one thing you keep dodging right now?

~~

👉 Subscribe to full episode: https://lnkd.in/ehnd4_Tv

Many professionals believe going independent means finally getting paid for their expertise.

But expertise alone rarely builds a sustainable practice.

The real shift is harder:

Learning to create demand for what you know, not just deliver it.

Because you're NOT going from:
↳ 𝗘𝗺𝗽𝗹𝗼𝘆𝗲𝗲 → 𝗦𝗲𝗹𝗳-𝗲𝗺𝗽𝗹𝗼𝘆𝗲𝗱 𝗼𝗿 𝗙𝗼𝘂𝗻𝗱𝗲𝗿.

You're going from:
↳ 𝗘𝘅𝗽𝗲𝗿𝘁 𝗽𝗿𝗮𝗰𝘁𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝗲𝗿 → 𝗕𝗲𝗴𝗶𝗻𝗻𝗲𝗿 𝗮𝘁 𝗯𝘂𝘀𝗶𝗻𝗲𝘀𝘀.

I've seen it time and time again.

A highly respected professional leaves the corporate world to build an independent practice. Six months later, they say some version of:

“𝘐 𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘶𝘨𝘩𝘵 𝘐 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘨𝘰𝘰𝘥 𝘢𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴. 𝘞𝘩𝘺 𝘥𝘰𝘦𝘴 𝘪𝘵 𝘧𝘦𝘦𝘭 𝘭𝘪𝘬𝘦 𝘐’𝘮 𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘧𝘳𝘰𝘮 𝘻𝘦𝘳𝘰?”

Because in some ways, you are.

When I first went fully solo in 2015, I landed a few early clients through my network. £850/day rate. A couple of referrals came in. It felt like I was on a roll

But it was a mirage.

Because the pipeline slows. And a new set of questions appears.

• How do I generate demand for what I do?
• How do I create a flow of opportunities?
• How do I sell without feeling icky?

These are not questions most professionals have ever had to answer inside an organisation.

• The brand carried the credibility.
• The company created the demand.
• The system produced the opportunities.

Independence removes that infrastructure.

Which means growing a practice requires something many experts find confronting.

Being a beginner again.

And that can feel brutal.

• Being sh*t as business development.
• Being sh*t at selling.
• And just feeling a bit sh*t

Even when you pivot, it's the same

That transition is something I've navigated multiple times. And it's what I now help my clients with.

because I've learnt that

Most independent experts don’t fail because they lack expertise. They struggle because they underestimate the shift from expert to business builder.

~~

What surprised you most when you first went independent?

Hey there! 👋 Welcome to my LinkedIn profile!

I'm Mehdi, your go-to Workshop Facilitator and full-on collaboration geek. 🤓

Passionate about what I do, I'm always eager to share this enthusiasm on LinkedIn.

If you're keen on exploring a better way to collaborate with your team and finally reach your ambitions, here are a few ways we can make that happen:

1️⃣ Workshop Design & Facilitation 🟨

Struggling with specific challenges or aligning your team on priorities? I craft tailored workshops that harness collective intelligence, propelling your team toward its goals while creating memorable experiences.

2️⃣ Boosting innovation 🚀

Ever tried a Design Sprint? I'll guide your team through a proven 4-day recipe from Google Ventures, tackling big problems by ideating, prototyping, and testing solutions with real users.

3️⃣ Facilitation, Design Thinking & Innovation Trainings. 🎓

I'm passionate about sharing knowledge! If you're interested in enhancing your team's skills, I offer engaging training sessions on facilitation, design thinking, and innovation. Drop me a message if you want to explore the available training options.

Mehdi En-Naizi

The last 30 minutes before a workshop are sacred. Here’s how I stopped wasting them. 👇

I used to spend them on the wrong thing: distributing Sharpies and sticky notes like I was staging a movie set.

I care a lot about the moment people walk into the room.
I want them to think: “Oh wow… this is going to be a great session.”

So for years, I did the classic facilitator ritual:
🟨 Sharpies perfectly placed.
🟨 Sticky notes in the right colors.
🟨 One set per chair, per table.
🟨 Everything looking intentional.

It looked great…

But it took so much time to dig everything out of my suitcase and place it table by table.

And it was never just the tables, there were also the whiteboards, the walls, the room layout, the chair positioning…

Which meant I was losing the time I actually needed right before people arrived:
✅ checking the flow
✅ getting mentally ready to dive in
✅ planning my opening
✅ welcoming people with full presence


Then I stole a tip from Alexandre Eisenchteter:

Prep one “breakout kit” box per table.

Each box is ready in advance with:

📦 Sticky notes (right colors, right quantities)
📦 Sharpies (including the “extras everyone forget”)
📦 Anything else that table needs

On the day, I just:
1️⃣ Drop one box on each table
2️⃣ Place the materials at each chair
3️⃣ Do a quick “beauty pass”
4️⃣ Done.

Same setup.
Way less chaos.
And I walk into the session calm, not already behind.

PS: I used this for a 150-person workshop… and it saved my life, just that! 😁

On a mission to help teams work better together !

If you’re a leader or consultant, half your job is leading conversations.
The real question is: do you have the foundations to make meetings productive (and not painful)?

𝗟𝗲𝘁 𝗺𝗲 𝘀𝗶𝗺𝗽𝗹𝗶𝗳𝘆 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴𝘀 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝘆𝗼𝘂.

I’m doing something a little crazy: I’m hosting a free 2-hour training on facilitation, something I usually charge for.
And honestly… the last time I offered this for free was more than 2 years ago and I'm not planning to do another one any time soon.

It’s called The Facilitation Starter Kit,  a practical foundation session for leaders and consultants who run important conversations and want more clarity, participation, and outcomes (without needing to become “a facilitator”).

In 2 hours, you’ll get the core theory + ready-to-use tools to:

✅ Define clear outcomes (so meetings don’t drift)
✅ Get everyone involved (without awkward pressure)
✅ Guide groups from ideas → alignment → decisions
✅ Handle common dynamics (dominant voices, silence, going off-track)

You’ll leave with a plug-and-play starter kit you can use in your very next leadership meeting, client workshop, or project session.

Still on the fence? Here’s what someone said after a past session:

« 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘵𝘪𝘱𝘴 𝘴𝘩𝘢𝘳𝘦𝘥 𝘸𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘫𝘶𝘴𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘰𝘳𝘦𝘵𝘪𝘤𝘢𝘭 𝘣𝘶𝘵 𝘣𝘢𝘤𝘬𝘦𝘥 𝘣𝘺 𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘥𝘴-𝘰𝘯 𝘦𝘹𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘤𝘢𝘯 𝘣𝘦 𝘪𝘮𝘮𝘦𝘥𝘪𝘢𝘵𝘦𝘭𝘺 𝘪𝘮𝘱𝘭𝘦𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘦𝘥. 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘥𝘦𝘥𝘪𝘤𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘵𝘰 𝘢𝘯𝘴𝘸𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘢𝘶𝘥𝘪𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘦 𝘲𝘶𝘦𝘴𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘴 𝘴𝘩𝘰𝘸𝘤𝘢𝘴𝘦𝘥 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘦𝘹𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘵𝘪𝘴𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘢𝘥𝘥𝘦𝘥 𝘨𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘵 𝘷𝘢𝘭𝘶𝘦 𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘦𝘹𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘦. 𝘛𝘩𝘦 2 𝘩𝘰𝘶𝘳𝘴 𝘪𝘯𝘷𝘦𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘥 𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘵𝘳𝘢𝘪𝘯𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘸𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘸𝘦𝘭𝘭-𝘴𝘱𝘦𝘯𝘵. 𝘐 𝘩𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘭𝘺 𝘳𝘦𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘧𝘢𝘤𝘪𝘭𝘪𝘵𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘵𝘳𝘢𝘪𝘯𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘰 𝘢𝘯𝘺𝘰𝘯𝘦 𝘭𝘰𝘰𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘰 𝘳𝘦𝘧𝘪𝘯𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘪𝘳 𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘬𝘴𝘩𝘰𝘱 𝘧𝘢𝘤𝘪𝘭𝘪𝘵𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘴𝘬𝘪𝘭𝘭𝘴. »”

If you want the link, comment “KIT” and I’ll send it to you. 👇

PS: Know a team lead, manager, or consultant who runs a lot of meetings? Tag them.

45 visuals. 6 years of facilitation. The biggest lessons I’ve learned all in one carousel.

Over the past few years, I’ve designed and facilitated hundreds of workshops.

Some were huge successes.
Some were ....

let’s just say “great learning experiences.” 😂

And I hope these lessons can do the same for you.

So I distilled the most important insights into one practical carousel.

Inside, you’ll find ideas on:

👉 Designing workshops that truly flow
👉 Managing energy without exhausting the room
👉 Setting the right expectations with clients
👉 What actually matters after the workshop
👉 Running brainstorms that go beyond surface-level ideas
…and a few lessons I wish someone had shared with me earlier

If you’re just starting out, this will save you time and mistakes.
If you’ve been facilitating for years, it might sharpen your edge.

Swipe through and tell me: which slide resonates most with you?

Let’s keep raising the standard for how workshops are designed and delivered.

P.S. Make it to the last slide, comment the final word used in the carousel, and I’ll send you a small gift. 🎁

P.S. 2 There are still 3 spots left in my bootcamp starting this Monday if you want to seriously level up your facilitation game, just send comment on this post or send me a DM.

45 Workshop Facilitation Lessons

Stop introducing yourself as a facilitator. Start naming the problem you solve.

Because most people don’t really know what “facilitation” means 

Yesterday in the first module of  Facilitators' Corner Bootcamp, I shared how I explain what I do now.

I don’t start with my title.

I start with the problems I solve

You know that moment when a team:
👉 can’t align on priorities
👉 needs to make a big decision, but keeps going in circles
👉 has been stuck on the same challenge for weeks (or months)
👉 has too many opinions in the room… and no clear next step

That’s the problems I solve as a workshop facilitator

I design and facilitate session that lead to clarity, alignment, decisions, and next steps so teams can finally move forward.

So teams can stop spinning… and finally move forward.

“𝙄𝙩 𝙬𝙖𝙨 𝙖 𝙗𝙞𝙜 𝙘𝙤𝙣𝙘𝙚𝙥𝙩𝙪𝙖𝙡 𝙟𝙪𝙢𝙥… 𝙛𝙧𝙤𝙢 𝙝𝙚𝙖𝙧𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙨𝙩𝙤𝙧𝙞𝙚𝙨 𝙩𝙤 𝙖𝙘𝙩𝙪𝙖𝙡𝙡𝙮 𝙗𝙚𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙖𝙗𝙡𝙚 𝙩𝙤 𝙛𝙖𝙘𝙞𝙡𝙞𝙩𝙖𝙩𝙚 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙙𝙚𝙨𝙞𝙜𝙣 𝙢𝙮 𝙤𝙬𝙣 𝙬𝙤𝙧𝙠𝙨𝙝𝙤𝙥.” — Silvia Coco 🌈

You can listen to podcast episodes.
Save posts.
Read books.
Collect ideas.

But when it’s time to design your workshop… it often turns into:

“𝘖𝘬𝘢𝘺… 𝘸𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘥𝘰 𝘐 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘯 𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘳𝘵?”

In this short video, Silvia (one of the first participants of The Facilitation Corner Bootcamp) shares what changed for her:

Not more inspiration.
A structure. A path. A way to build sessions that actually flow.

Inside the bootcamp, she learned how to:

✅ Build an agenda with flow + energy
✅ Sequence exercises in the right order
✅ Set the right foundations at the start 

So you can walk away thinking:
“I can actually do this.”

🚀 Next bootcamp starts Monday
⏳ Only 3 spots left

The Facilitation Corner Bootcamp is a 5-week program to help you confidently design and run workshops, for any team and any challenge.

Everything in one place. No hunting for frameworks, tools, or inspiration.

𝗜𝘁’𝘀 𝗮𝗹𝘀𝗼 𝗵𝗶𝗴𝗵𝗹𝘆 𝗽𝗿𝗮𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗰𝗲-𝗼𝗿𝗶𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗱:

You’ll experience a real workshop, design your own session, and practice facilitating in a supportive environment so you can build confidence and get feedback to level up.

📅 𝗗𝗮𝘁𝗲𝘀
Every Monday from March 2 → March 30
3-hour live sessions (recordings included)

🔗 More information here: https://lnkd.in/e3KrbyHw

If you have any questions, feel free to ask in the comments or via DM.

Most facilitators don’t need more tips. They need practice.

Quick reminder: enrollment for The Facilitators’ Corner Bootcamp (Cohort 4) closes this weekend 👇

If you want to design better workshops, facilitate with more confidence, and actually practice (not just watch videos), this is for you.

What you get (in 5 weeks):

✅ Live sessions with a small group (real practice + feedback)
✅ Design a full workshop agenda from a real client brief
✅ Facilitate activities live + get feedback
✅ Weekly calls during the bootcamp + monthly support calls afterward to keep you progressing

Schedule 🗓️
Every Monday from March 2 to March 30
⏰ 11:00–14:00 CET (3-hour live sessions)
✅ All sessions will be recorded + shared, so you can catch up anytime.

We know it’s a big commitment, which is why we’re providing high-quality replays to support your learning, even if you miss a live session.

Only 3 spots left (and newsletter readers get 20% off with code FC20).

Register here: https://lnkd.in/e3KrbyHw

👉 Swipe the carousel for the full breakdown

FC Cohort 4

𝗜’𝗺 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗺𝗶𝘁𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴: 𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝗳𝗮𝗰𝗶𝗹𝗶𝘁𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝘃𝗶𝗱𝗲𝗼 𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘆 𝗧𝘂𝗲𝘀𝗱𝗮𝘆. 𝗡𝗼 𝗵𝗶𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴. 𝗡𝗼 𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴. 𝗝𝘂𝘀𝘁 𝘀𝗵𝗶𝗽𝗽𝗶𝗻𝗴. 🎥

(And yes, doubling down on the Another Day, Another Workshop podcast too 🎙️)

If you’ve been following me here on LinkedIn, you know I already share a lot regularly.
But I wanted a space where I can go deeper, show more, and bring you into the work.

A new YouTube video every Tuesday,  all about facilitation.

What you’ll find on the channel:

🟨 𝗦𝗽𝗲𝗰𝗶𝗳𝗶𝗰 𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗸𝘀𝗵𝗼𝗽 𝘁𝘆𝗽𝗲𝘀 
(team retreats, alignment sessions, strategy workshops, innovation days, retros…)

🟨  𝗣𝗿𝗮𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗰𝗮𝗹 𝘁𝗶𝗽𝘀 𝘁𝗼 𝗿𝘂𝗻 𝗯𝗲𝘁𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗸𝘀𝗵𝗼𝗽𝘀
(energy, group dynamics, decision-making, outcomes that stick)

🟨  𝗕𝗲𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗱-𝘁𝗵𝗲-𝘀𝗰𝗲𝗻𝗲𝘀 𝗰𝗮𝘀𝗲 𝘀𝘁𝘂𝗱𝗶𝗲𝘀 𝗼𝗳 𝗯𝘂𝗶𝗹𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗮 𝗳𝗮𝗰𝗶𝗹𝗶𝘁𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗯𝘂𝘀𝗶𝗻𝗲𝘀𝘀
 (offers, prep, client work, lessons learned)

If you want to support this series, I’ll be super direct:

👉 Subscribe + give the video a thumbs up.

That’s genuinely the only way YouTube knows it should show the content to more people. 🙏

And I’d love your input: what type of content would you like to see from me on YouTube?

A specific workshop format? A facilitation challenge you want solved? More behind-the-scenes?

Drop it in the comments 👇

P.S. I’m 10 subscribers away from hitting 200 on YouTube, if you’re enjoying the series, you’d make my day by helping me cross that line 🙌

https://lnkd.in/eBiEJHva

Open video: 5 Books That Made Me a Way Better Facilitator (2 You’ve Never Heard Of) | #ADAW Ep. 20 on youtu.be

5 Books That Made Me a Way Better Facilitator (2 You’ve Never Heard Of) | #ADAW Ep. 20

𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗯𝗹𝗲𝗺𝘀 𝘄𝗲’𝗿𝗲 𝗳𝗮𝗰𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗮𝘁 𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗸 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝗴𝗲𝘁𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗺𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗽𝗹𝗲𝘅.

And honestly? AI won’t magically fix that.

Because we’re past the time where one human can solve complex challenges alone.
We need each other.

But here’s 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗹 𝗶𝘀𝘀𝘂𝗲:

Most teams were never taught how to work well together.
So “collaboration” becomes long meetings, misalignment, frustration… and slow decisions.

That’s why I believe facilitation is the key.

Facilitation isn’t a buzzword. It’s a skill set.
It’s what turns “a group of smart people in a room” into:

👉 clear conversations
👉 better decisions
👉 real ownership
👉 momentum (without burnout)

In my conversation with Vivian Acquah CDE® on her livestream "let's humanize the workplace", I shared something I deeply believe:

Yes, the outcome matters.
But the way we get to the outcome matters too.

My first goal is always to deliver the client goals.
My second goal is that people leave thinking:
“Wow… we achieved a lot while have a nice moment”

P.S. If you want to learn the fundamentals, I’m offering a free facilitation training, here's the link to register: https://luma.com/e1vilddy

PS2: If you want to watch the full episode with Vivian, here’s the link: https://lnkd.in/eipd_tRG

Your workshop isn’t inclusive because you “invite everyone.”

It’s inclusive when the quietest person in the room feels safe enough to contribute.

The next episode of 𝘼𝙣𝙤𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙧 𝘿𝙖𝙮, 𝘼𝙣𝙤𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙧 𝙒𝙤𝙧𝙠𝙨𝙝𝙤𝙥 is out.

In this episode, I have to chance to welcome Jenny Martin. We unpack what inclusive facilitation really looks like in practice, especially for introverts, juniors, neurodivergent participants, or anyone carrying extra cognitive load.

𝗪𝗲 𝘁𝗮𝗹𝗸 𝗮𝗯𝗼𝘂𝘁:

✅ What inclusive facilitation really means (beyond “introverts vs extroverts”)
✅ Psychological safety that’s “safe enough” (not comfort, not avoiding conflict)
✅ Why kindness isn’t soft, it’s courage
✅ And a surprisingly powerful tool for inclusion: LEGO Serious Play
✅ The Inclusive Facilitation Exchange,  an amazing event on inclusive facilitation that Jenny is preparing with Jane Livesey (March 20 in London)

Yes,we also deep-dive into LEGO Serious Play since Jenny is an expert. We even did a live experiment where Jenny facilitated me, and you can watch it during the episode.

Because when hands are busy, minds open up and participation becomes easier, more equal, and often more honest.

You can watch or listen here:
📺 𝗬𝗼𝘂𝗧𝘂𝗯𝗲: https://lnkd.in/eC6hSrAP
🎤 𝗦𝗽𝗼𝘁𝗶𝗳𝘆: https://lnkd.in/e6-dw8VD
🎙️ 𝗔𝗽𝗽𝗹𝗲 𝗣𝗼𝗱𝗰𝗮𝘀𝘁𝘀: https://lnkd.in/esAMbfC4

PS: If you want to join us in London on March 20 to learn practical ways to make your workshops more inclusive, save your spot here:
https://lnkd.in/eG4XCURz

And you can even get 10% off by using my code MEHDI10.

taplio

The Battle

Pedram Parasmand

Mehdi En-Naizi

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taplio

The Battle

Pedram Parasmand

Mehdi En-Naizi

Followers

Posts

Engagements

Likes

Performance Score.css-goub6s{font-size:var(--chakra-fontSizes-md);font-weight:500;color:var(--chakra-colors-gray-600);display:block;margin-top:var(--chakra-space-1);}Pedram Parasmand's LinkedIn Performance

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Performance ScorePedram Parasmand's LinkedIn Performance