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Secrets of Facilitation reveals the principles and techniques effective facilitators use to produce amazing results through groups. The author identifies 60 secrets that separate great facilitators from good ones. He then puts you right in the room through his case studies and numerous sample dialogues, so you can see and experience the techniques in action!

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The Funneling Technique

By Michael Wilkinson, Managing Director

Have you ever heard a client say something like the following?

* "It did not work very well"
* "It was the best job ever done"
* "I liked it"
* "He's not too smart"

Our term for declarations such as these are "evaluation statements." With evaluation statements, your client is providing you a personal assessment of a person, thing, or situation. While many consultants might accept such a statement at face value, we believe that considerable information can be gained through utilizing a technique we call funneling.

With funneling, anytime you hear an evaluation statement, probe for the observations that support the evaluation to identify the person's underlying values. Below is an example of funneling in action.

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