Whose Information Is It Anyway?
Whose Information Is It Anyway?
Why we should think carefully before sharing about our work.
What happens in workshops stays in workshops. Or so one might think.
I am always surprised by how much some facilitators share about their work, clients, and the content of their facilitated sessions. While I understand the different types of motivation that drive this public display - I am also very active on a particular platform - I find this part particularly sensitive.
Here are a few considerations before sharing the information:
Consent. Are the client and the individuals fine with their names, faces, and results being shared? Have the client cross-check it and give advice per their communication policy. In addition, getting the group's consent is crucial because the client isn’t always the group. Consent is equally required if the client wants to share something about you and your work. This is also important to remind the client of when as an internal consideration.
Sensitive information. It is often not easy to determine what qualifies as sensitive information as a facilitator. We don’t own the information produced in a workshop; the people making it do. Just because something might seem safe to use does not mean it is safe for anyone. A simple drawing that might look nice could result from a highly impactful process with emotional reactions attached to it. This also includes the process you designed. Many facilitators claim to make tailor-made processes. If this is the case, the process is, by default, the client’s information.
Trust. I have been to a workshop once as a participant and was more than annoyed to find my image and rather detailed information about what had happened in the workshop on social media not long after that. This undermined the trust in the facilitator for any future assignment—something hard to restore thoroughly once lost.
Transparency. If you plan to share something on social media, be transparent about it from the get-go. You might get a no, but it is less awkward and uncomfortable than if you ask for it at the end. The latter might be a psychologically effective way because it might be harder for them to reject you. However, whether we should dance the border to negative manipulation is also questionable.
One no is enough. This is one of the topics when not the majority but the minority voices should rule. If just one person in the room does not want the things to be shared, that should be enough, even if everyone else wants it.
Co-creation. If you want to share it, make it a joint task with the group and potentially even an activity that works with the rest of the workshop. Such an approach can help you boost your social media presence, facilitate belonging, stimulate creativity, and be easily tied to many different and potentially relevant topics.
This is not to say that you should not share your achievements, ideas, and experiences with your network. On the contrary, we need to share to improve, grow, and develop.
It is more of a reminder that you should take the time to consider what you share and how you present it before you do so.
Enjoy.