In this recorded breakout session of the NDB 2021 Creator's Journey residency, facilitator Lee Kim and participants (including Bastian Küntzel, Myriam Hadnes, Kate, Ola, Suzanne, Carmen, Peggy, Roos, Iva, Lucy and others) reflect on their experiences and insights from the residency. The discussion repeatedly circles around four core themes: (1) the hybrid workplace as a shared topic and the need to define the "protagonist" of the learning journey – whether it is the resident themselves, the future residents, or the clients they serve; (2) self‑discovery work that reveals shifting needs, moving from technical facilitation skills toward deeper community belonging; (3) the value of cross‑room exchanges, where participants bounce ideas back and forth, prompting aha moments and non‑linear journeys; and (4) concrete ideas for sustaining the community, including a matchmaking platform, regular feed‑forward or mastermind meetings, and the Fringe Festival as a showcase for resident outcomes. Participants also note practical challenges such as unstable internet connections and the importance of safe spaces for honest sharing. The session ends with a collective enthusiasm to implement these ideas and continue co‑creating the residency experience.
Chapters
So if someone didn't have time to come to the workshop, what were your key inspirations, findings? Please share, nominate someone.
I nominate Ola and Kate from my room.
Thank you, Lee. Oh, it was a very, very insightful room for us. We were in the client workroom. And the first discovery for us was we have a common topic that we are bringing to our clients. So that was a very exciting moment. And it's hybrid workplace from different angles. You know, how do we do hybrid workplaces in the future? We didn't get as far as creating the change. We were discussing a lot the protagonist. And the need, but it was very, very valuable. So I have no regrets whatsoever. I hope my teammates from the room had the same feeling. It was—I mean—we there were so many different insights. It's hard to pick one or two. But one of the things—ah—one of the sensational things that happened to us is actually met through our discussions in our client's room. the ladies who were doing self-discovery work in the other room came to us, and them coming into the room kind of shifted the perspective and kind of got us back a little bit up to rethink what we've discussed so far. So that journey of bouncing back and forth was really, really valuable. So thank you, ladies, for joining us. And that's an aha moment for us to say it's not always just a cycle that goes like this. It might be neat protagonist jumping a bit back and forth, or how you were describing as a bit of a roller coaster. But I will hand over to Kate. Kate, what are your insights as well?
Well, I mean, I think that was a great summary. We also discussed the fact that whether you're on your own journey of self-discovery or ultimately leading clients through a bit of self-discovery, There are layers to it and there are inputs to it. And like Ola said already, you know, those inputs may come, you know, over a length of time. So one of the ideas that— one of the ideas that Sonia brought up was a 12-week transformation journey of, you know, hybrid meetings. But as we all discussed, it's not just about hybrid meetings and techniques for it. It's actually about change management and changing mindsets. So much like our self-discovery colleagues, yeah, we're discussing and helped us frame that. We talked about how, yeah, there are layers to not only, only your own journey, but also the journey that you're trying to facilitate for others. And so we got a bit into how to integrate the needs of your students or the people you're facilitating to, let's say. And to keep an eye on that and to shepherd that journey.
Who would you like to hear from now, Kate?
I would be happy to hear from Suzanne.
Great, thanks. So we were the intruders into the client's work. But we really first had a great discussion about self-discovery. for the NDB and how kind of that discovery phase of your own needs really can shift and change. And also kind of that going back before you go and kind of go the full circle, it kind of can go back. And that was very insightful that it doesn't— that it's not always kind of that linear or circular process from kind of one station to the next, but that you really kind of can back in small steps and then really kind of proceed in the journey. So that was, that was great. And also for the clients as well, that they, that you need sometimes to get that clarification of going back. Is that really the need that participants have, or does the one who kind of signs off the proposal kind of sees a need, but it may not be the exact need that the participants have? So also kind of that going back and forth before you kind of proceed. So it was really insightful. So thanks a lot for And for, of course, for outlining again kind of the creator's journey and getting lost and being found. And I hand it on to Carmen.
Thanks, Suzanne. Yeah, what struck me was this issue of the shift in needs and how you might, because this is the self-discovery discussion, how you might think that you're need is a certain thing. That's where you might feel the pain and think that there's a quick fix. And it might actually be something else. So for NDB, we talked about the shift between learning how to do things, sort of thinking you're going to learn things that'll make you a better facilitator, but then discovering that the community and, and the questions that it it makes you ask yourself about how you are as a facilitator, what you bring as a facilitator is actually of the— that's the real change that you're going through. So that was really interesting to me.
Yeah.
And it's just also a reflection that we had was how it's so nice to be in a workshop where you can enter a room and not have a clear idea on where you want the discussion to go, and also not have anyone in the room who has the answer. And that, that brings such a rich discussion. It's the kind of thing that you have outside of workshops. And we found a way to get that in NDB, which is fantastic.
Thank you. Peggy, I don't know if you want to add anything.
I don't— otherwise, we're very curious about this.
I think that both of you had very good summary, but I think the surprising thing in the room is Suzanne did her own reflection because she joined NDB last year and she decided to join NDB. again this year. And she said that last year she joined, she— the main thing, she probably going to the more facilitation skills. But second year, this year, and she feel, she feel more like in the community. And she just really love to meet people that every week and see familiar faces.
Thank you.
Roos?
Yeah, we talked about the journey in respect about the residence. Well, and my insight is actually a little bit now in the sense that The way that we are reflecting this workshop, I really love it because then it's so— it deepens my thoughts and my understanding and to get to know you better, but also the reflective part of what we need as a community, as a person, as residents. And how we can, yeah, help each other with learning. I think that's, that's also something we discussed. How can we help each other and how can we make it easier for everybody to take the next step or the first step or something like that? And that it's depending on where you are in a community or as a person. But I love the reflection today, so thank you. Bastian and Lee for organizing this. Thank you.
I think Lee has a hard cutoff because she has a work meeting starting now, but I think Miriam and Mimi will still stay.
At least I will.
I don't—
I can't speak for Miriam.
Okay, I think we nominate someone.
Iva.
Sorry. So from my side, yeah, I mean, it's fantastic. I agree with Ruth, and thank you, Bastiaan. We were discussing similar to what Claire? Sorry, Kate. Kate has said it's like, who is the protagonist? So it's us, but in our head it's also everything we, you know, we carry and the needs of whoever we are supporting. And then also discussing the need on why have I engaged, and also when do you close one learning cycle? And we were saying it's not maybe the whole, you know, how different we are. at the end in November, but also that after every interaction today, we're already different because we've had collective wisdom input from other people, made us reflect, and I think that's brilliant. And then we were also discussing on how we can create, how we can identify what people need. And then we were talking a little bit about, you know, first that maybe saying who they are and actually asking them and asking them or creating. And Myriam said she already has something in the pipeline. So that's it. And just from my side, I would like to add now, and maybe for Myriam, I've also realized what for me creates safe spaces, that I know people on a deeper level. So because I have spent several rounds in sessions, I'm more willing to open up. And I think that's something that never done before. offers as opposed to maybe other, other, you know, things, other programs or whatever you want to call them. And for me, this is important. So this is like building little steps on saying, okay, now I'm ready for the Fringe Festival, or no, I'm not. I mean, both are fine. Yeah. So yeah, great, great session. Thank you.
Thank you. So I'm afraid you don't have a huge pool of people you can still nominate because most people have spoken besides, I think, Lucy.
And also Miriam. And Miriam.
Well, as you know, sadly, only a few minutes into the breakout room, my internet connection, which has been unstable all call, decided to completely drop. And it was really It's really sad because when I re-entered, I don't think I managed to really grasp what was going on, and I kept trying to assign it to kind of more practical terms, but it was more high level, and it's a real shame on my part. Next time I'm going to make sure, as Ziggo was saying, working with my internet connection properly. But what I thought was very interesting was just hearing about different people's perspectives of the needs that they come to the interview residency with, and it got us on to the idea of— asking people what they need. And as a designer, you know, this is inherent in the work that I do and designers do, which is really understanding who your audience are and what makes them tick and what their needs are and how you can convince them in an authentic and genuine way. And so I think we discussed quite a few ideas of how NDB can find out more about what their users need. Well, not users, sorry, such a design term, UX design. What the residents need. And I look forward to seeing how those ideas grow in the garden.
Awesome, cool. Myriam.
Yay, I loved it. Thank you for framing it. And maybe before someone, another one has to, one of big applause to Thank you, Sebastian, and to Lee. Absolutely thought-provoking, inspiring session. And thank you for giving us the space to discuss what the— how to apply the learner's journey to the residents. And we spent some time talking about who is the protagonist. So the protagonists are us, the residents, but also the future residents. And when they join, they might think that they need something, maybe they want to learn, but when being in the residence and with being in the workshops, they often realize that actually they also need something else, which is a sense of belonging and community. So thinking of what is it that— how can we create this change to then start again? This would then be the Fringe Festival, so a stage for the residents to show what they've learned in the residence. But for that, we need a safe space, and we need the matching to meet another person with whom we can collaborate and co-create this workshop. So what basically came up, at least that's what my brain makes out of all the ideas we had, is that we would need a kind of a platform where we can share who are we and what do we need. And then to make sure what are we actually searching. Are we searching a co-facilitator, collaborator? Are we searching for specific skills? Are we searching for competence or confidence? And then to have regular meetings like a feedforward that Giulio did, or mastermind, we can actually come together to get to know each other, to give each other support to find what we need. So to facilitate the searching process. to then find it, take it, and present it at the Fringe, so that at the end we can really walk out as facilitators who not only found another collaborator, friend, best friend, buddy, husband or wife, but also as a— on the next stage of a facilitator. So yeah, I'm ready to run with these ideas, and I hope that some of you will.
Join me.
Now, when you were talking, I had a few reflections about like circles in circles, you know, because quite often we have a big circle, but within the big circle, there's a lot of mini circles. And what you were talking to actually is about going down and coming, like going back up. To me, that's just, you come down, you realize something that, oh, that wasn't actually my need. So that's an insight for me. And you take that back and you make a new need. So it's not for me, it's not going back, it's completing a circle within a circle. And so it's like continuously in a circular motion going through a larger journey, a larger circle. Now we can think of our life as one big circle, and within that we have circles, and within those are circles. And so it's a continuous process of discovery, doing something with that discovery, and having a new discovery. And it's a forward rolling motion of continuous insights that sometimes happen unfacilitatedly, and sometimes we can strategize them. But there always needs to be space for someone having an insight and then changing something within that while we are having them in a circle that we've already planned. So we need to be aware about that, that, you know, circles will close that we didn't want to have closed yet. And so we need to work with a new person then suddenly. Right, with someone who's already had that insight. And so we need to readjust who our protagonist is that we are allowed to accompany. Right. Yeah, thank you very much for, you know, taking part of your day.
