VISUAL PRACTICE

Visualizing enables everyone to see the big picture and the details. I help people better understand their ideas, questions, conversations, and decisions by listening for the essence and then using icons, symbols and words to represent their ideas. Visual recording, facilitation, and coaching, with markers and paper or digitally, are my tools for this fascinating and engaging work.

The process of visual thinking can hold our dreams, goals, realities, questions, concerns, conversations, plans, and more! When I engage in visual thinking with clients, I am also creating the container for our work and the path for moving forward.

If you’re new to visual thinking, look at some of the examples I have shared below.

How do you see your world? How do you share your work?

In your meetings, do you partner with a graphic recorder to enable people to see what you mean as you connect with them, and to capture the unfolding conversations? Would your visioning work, strategic planning sessions, or meetings gain focus and clarity if a neutral party was listening, scribing, and drawing—in essence, memorializing what was being said, on paper with markers or digitally on a tablet? Imagine what it would be like to have me capture your thoughts, ideas, questions, and conclusions?

Or, would you like to be an integral part of the deep conversations, and prefer to work with me as the graphic facilitator for your sessions? Planning with me before the session , about the shape of the meeting, drafting ideas for the visuals to be used during the meeting, and partnering to support the conversations, decision-making processes by in the session and harvesting the material generated.

You can see a few samples of my work from conferences here:

Bill's_Happy_Hour_-_Final-1-without_names 2

What do you want to imagine and manifest in your professional and personal lives?

In my work as a visual coach, I create and use templates to complement the coaching experience. Templates support and enhance our work by providing both structure and freedom to explore ideas, questions, challenges, and to create plans, goals, and milestones. The ongoing use of templates creates a history of our work, enabling us to review plans, assess progress, and celebrate successes. Whether templates are prepared in advance for use by my clients and me, or I do live capture, they provide both structure and a space for discovery.

Here are a few examples from my work with clients over the years.

JGreenbaum, How Templates... 4 Strategy Session-DS

Are you ready to bring visual thinking into your work? Are you excited to move beyond simple figures and symbols by taking one or more of the Bikablo training programs?

In each of the Bikablo programs, you develop your skills to “think with the pen,” to create shared understanding of complex or abstract ideas, processes, and more. I am delighted to be the United States member of the Bikablo certified trainer team.

Here’s a brief description of the programs I am currently offering.
Learn the details about each program in the .pdf download links at the bottom of the page.

bikablo Basics 2 Day Training

This is basic training for participants who want to take more time to develop their visualization skills and get deeper into visual thinking. On the first day, the basics and details of the Bikablo visualization technique are systematically developed, supplemented by modules such as handwriting, a pictogram library, or specific layout templates. On the second day complex, visual presentations for own personal topics are developed in extensive application phases.

bikablo Basics Day 1 Training

In the Day 1 program, participants get to know the building blocks of the bikablo visualization technique and then design flip chart posters for the communication of their own content.

- Learn to hold the pen, draw clean lines, and structure your space on the flip chart
- Create graphics and text containers/geometric shapes, objects and symbols
- Discover the easy ways the bikablo® method provides to draw people, roles, groups, and situations
- Use simple and fast options to color elements and spaces to support the graphic structure
- Improve your handwriting—make it more legible and attractive—on flip charts… and more!

“I can speak with firsthand knowledge that the Basics class is a great way to up your game in communicating with your team. Loved the training earlier this month in Madison WI. Jill is a great teacher!” – Beth Swanson

bikablo Basics Day 2 Training

The Day 2 training builds upon the foundational skills of the Day 1 program. We start fast and never look back. Be sure, when you sign up, to have your skills sharp because our first activity is a reminder of lessons learned; an eye-opener about possibilities.

Learn rapid drawing techniques—draw icons, symbols, and figures FAST
Explore emotions
Improve your hand lettering—make it more legible and attractive
Discover and practice a variety of headline styles
Capture live conversations using a simple, elegant technique for creating visually appealing charts
Work and play with mobile elements to create evergreen posters
Develop a complex visual presentation—from idea to draft to revisions to the final product

About bikablo Basic

bikablo e-xtraklasse: a virtual learning trip in small groups

This coaching course is a deep dive—ten 90 minute sessions— into the methods and practices learned in the two day Bikablo Basic Training. It is intense—makes you stretch—and super fun!

The flow of our journey

The first eight sessions take place at a fixed weekly time and each has a specific focus. We repeat visual vocabulary such as containers and pictograms, enhance figures, get to the bottom of the subtleties of our visualization technology, answer questions, and give tips for independent further learning.

The ninth session takes place two weeks after the eighth session, the tenth session again two weeks later. On these two dates, there is the opportunity to discuss practical applications from your own practice with the trainer and group.

Register for e-xtraklasse here

About extraklasse

What Clients Are Saying

“Jill was very patient with those of us who are critical of ourselves. I am not scared of drawing anymore.”

Anu Smalley

“I wanted to thank you so much for the bikablo course you facilitated last Saturday in Austin. It was my first exposure to learning about the art and practice of visual facilitation and I can certainly say it was everything I expected, and more.

As an accomplished facilitator and trainer, I want to compliment on your style, mastery of the material, and most importantly clock mastery. You kept us all focused and productive for the entire day. I sincerely appreciated your feedback to me. My great take away was “Practice, with a purpose.” I’ve been cranking out templates like mad!

I wish you tremendous success in your future classes.”

Bob Dobson