Sound like common sense? Good! Because that is precisely what it is. How often have you sat in on, or perhaps even run, a ‘brainstorming session’ where a reluctant group of bored, unengaged people sit listlessly around a table staring at a blank whiteboard desperately hoping someone will break the silence and come up with an idea, any idea? Or perhaps the other end of the spectrum with an over-animated group of people with everybody talking and nobody listening, desperately trying to push their point of view and trampling over everyone else in the process?
A successful participatory workshop will avoid both these scenarios. It provides the best possible environment to garner opinions and ideas from those present in a creative and collaborative fashion and to capture the outputs. And what is more – it’s great fun!