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There are lots of people who just want to know how to improve engagement in their workshops. If you want to hold people’s attention better, get more responses when you ask questions, & keep the energy higher in your sessions *and that’s all you want* here are my top three tips: 1/10

1. Ask for engagement more frequently. Attention spans are short, and people will settle into “consumption mode” if they don’t need to do anything but listen. Aim to get them involved every 5 minutes or so. 2/10

Could be asking for a head nod, a thumbs up, a verbal answer, whatever. Add a cue for yourself in your notes or slides with specific questions to ask at certain points if you need to. As you get more comfortable, they’ll come to you more naturally, in the moment. 3/10

2. Mix it up. Don’t always ask them to do the same thing. Vary what YOU do, and what you invite your people to do. Some people aren't comfortable speaking in front of the whole group. Others aren't able to type out answers. Putting numbers or short phrases into the chat gets boring real quick. 4/10

If you keep doing the same few things to try to engage folks, people who can’t/won’t engage in that way might just look for something more interesting and check out of the conversation. [Check out The Workshop Compass for ideas on how to create more variety in your sessions.] 5/10

3. Add more silence. Even when you’re not asking questions! Give people time to make sense of what you say before you move on. If they can process their thoughts and feelings as you go along, they’re more likely to engage when there are chances to. 6/10

You might even get unsolicited questions or comments, when there’s a moment for them to interject. (You can tell them at the very beginning of the session if they should ask questions as they have them, or save them until the designated times). 7/10

Silence can be uncomfortable if you’re not used to it: you can always count out 10 “Mississippis” in your head if you need to. Or take a moment to think about what’s happened so far in the session, and where y’all might go next. Just make sure to NOT talk! 8/10

So, there you have it. If you just want some quick pointers on how to improve low engagement, those three tips are where I’d suggest starting. But honestly, that’s only addressing the second-most superficial “layer” of engagement issues, and I’m a big-picture person. 9/10