Every once in awhile I’m going to share a Me2We kind of nugget from someone on my blog roll. See that roll now on the right side of the page, scrolling down through “Recommended Links.”
Today we’ll turn to the Center for Graphic Facilitation where Peter Durand takes Fast Company to 
task. Why? They skipped one vital point in their article, 10 Rules of Effective Brainstorming. The “traffic cop.” That’s an unbiased facilitator. I heartily agree. How else can you keep the conversation from flying off in all directions like balls in a pinball machine?
Durant suggests:
• Bring in an outsider or someone from a different groups inside the organization.
• Find someone who is trained as a facilitator or has skills in group dynamics
(able to read when the team is flagging or when it is hitting on all cylinders).
• See the person has patience, yet is willing to exercise discipline if one person can’t stop talking or is becoming aggressive.
• In advance, let that person observe the group in action, at another meeting.
To really help a group brainstorm or make decisions, get a facilitator who can draw the 
conversation, for all to see, as it unfolds in real time, as David Sibbet does – perhaps you? Dan Roam can show you how to draw. Oh, yes, and be sure to meet on the right side of the brain.
