7 tips to get started on organising small healthy discussions, conversations, gaff, talkshops..

A couple of people said "we should have more like this'  after a couple of events I organised recently and not so recently . I know that people meet up and talk in different settings. 


Over the years, I have been a great organiser and participant in conversation type events. Quite a few of them were meant to be long term series to revolutionise thinking and discussion in Guyana but they fizzled out after a few sessions. Some things like my book club are enduring. Many things like the mental health gaff did not get beyond the first session.

The things which people liked tended to be those which they were able to learn and or teach and even meet new people. A couple of people have thought of organising different things. There are already Facebook discussion groups,  some public discussion sessions like the Ideas series,  structured religious study groups and rum shop conversations about life , faith, money, love etc  so why bother?

I think face to face interaction is still appealing and useful.

These are some of tips I keep in my mind when organising any discussion/gaff/seminar thing.

1. Just do it
The longer you spend on thinking of whether to get people together to talk, the less likely it will happen.  So, don't waste too much time. Get on and do it. Things will work out as you organise.

2. Venue
Venues can be hard to sort out - some of the more formal places would require payment. I have had one or two meetings in the Botanical Gardens but that would depend on the weather and so, and having something to spread on the ground if necessary. Some cafe owners have been good to allow their space - and you should buy something. Some private schools have donated space for some types of discussions, but then if you want a continuous space, the rooms could be booked up after. Background noise could be disturbing. There might be church spaces and so available , with a donation. It all depends on the number of persons you are expecting.  Venue would also depend on if you want to use audio visual technology.

3. Day/Time
You can never find a day/time to please everyone. Check with a few people. If you want to get fancy, you can use Google Forms or a similar survey/poll to get some feedback. The best  discussion type things I have attended have finished by 7-730pm. People get fatigued after 90 minutes or so.


3. Lead speaker(s)/video/discussant
 Once you have the venue day/time sorted out, you confirm what the stimulus for the discussion would be. You could have one speaker or panel of speakers. You could use a video lecture or so, or listen to some audio recording or read an essay or something. (You know in some religious study groups , everybody reads a part of the text .. so try that)

There should be someone who is facilitating/moderating the discussion so that everyone gets a chance to speak and things do not get out of hand. There could be a contract for good behaviour when interacting and handling disagreements and so. This person should not be the 'lead' speaker or panel.



4. Invite people/publicise
Do up some email notice or flyer. Create the event and spread it around to people who you think would be interested and encourage them to bring other people. Don't worry too much about how many will actually turn up. Put Admission Free on the flyer if you have to. If you plan to have refreshments available, you could put that on the invitation too.

Some of the sessions I have been involved with  have had large turnouts while others have had the speakers alone. Numbers have ranged from two persons to 40, 50 persons. I have also been the only person who turned up in one or two of them. A conversation could be two people. I used to agonise when people did not turn up, but learned to deal with those who did come, if any of course.

The organiser of the local Al-Anon spoke of sitting alone in meeting sometimes, and using the time to read the literature.

You might want to do a press release if you want a larger audience, or if you want to invite the media to cover the event. 

5. Start on time and enjoy the event
Start on time, or as soon as possible after you intended to. Get people to relax , and know each other. If you are the moderator, connect with people as they arrive, especially if there are persons who you do not know. Manage the time, even if it is a relaxed discussion. Enjoy the event. Check in with people afterwards to see how they felt about it, what they learned, etc. Allow some time for one on one networking.

6. Document the discussion, conversation, gaff , whatever
Get some pictures, do a blog post. Let people know that the event happened. I ended up doing a press release for an excellent event I was involved in recently, and two media houses used the press release.  I was a bit annoyed.. thinking that heck, I would rather they publish something nice I was involved in which was open to the public, rather than if I am murdered or killed in an accident or something like that. But the media is the media, and they decide what they publish.

7. Plan the next one, or not
Get on with planning your next discussion event if you feel up to it. If there were some action points, check in with people to follow up on them.  If you intended to plan a next discussion event, go ahead and plan it. Different people might turn up.