Ever notice how a lot of online workshops feel effective in the moment.
The session leader has valuable content and great examples. People seem to be nodding along. It all feels useful.
But then 24 hours later? You’d be hard-pressed to remember even one takeaway.
Here’s a simple workshop tool I just learned that fixes that.👇
Meet the Self-Assessment Wheel.
I learned this one from seasoned facilitator and trainer Sabryna Alsfasser from Hyper Island, during her workshop “From Attendance to Presence: Creating Connection in the Attention Economy”.
And it’s a total game-changer.
Here’s what made it different.
Sabryna could have just walked us through her content – The 6 Principles of Connection. It’s valuable, practical, and exactly what most live session leaders would do.
But that’s not how she approached it.
Instead of diving right into the content, she started by setting us up with a simple assessment tool so we could score ourselves in real time as she introduced each principle.
Here’s how it worked👇
1/ She gave us 30 seconds to draw the wheel with a pen and paper (a circle divided into 6 segments) like this:
2/ As she introduced each principle, we scored ourselves from 0–5
3/ We added 2–3 best practices we already use to each principle
4/ Then we moved into breakouts and swapped best practices with our peers
And suddenly… the content wasn’t theoretical anymore. It became visual, personal, and anchored in our own experience.
You could literally see where you were strong and where you had room to grow.
Why this works:
✔️ It makes content instantly relevant
✔️ It boosts self-awareness on the spot
✔️ It shifts people from passive listening to active engagement
✔️ It highlights exactly where you need to focus next
✔️ It unlocks the collective wisdom in the room (not just the instructor’s expertise) by sharing best practices
👆And that’s what makes learning stick. ✨
Plus… the wheel becomes a built-in takeaway that participants can revisit after the workshop. Something they created.
I’m already thinking about how to experiment more with this kind of real-time assessment in my live online training sessions.
It’s simple, low-tech, and it suprisingly powerful.
Over to you 🎤
👉 Where could you enhance your teaching or content delivery with “self-assessing” in your next workshop or live session?
Hit reply to this email and let me know!
This week’s Facilitator Finds 💪
In this section, you’ll find curated events, resources, tips, and tools that I’ve found super valuable — and I think you will too!
🛠️ Hyper Island Toolbox. The assessment wheel comes straight from the incredible team at Hyper Island. This has been one of my go-to toolkits for years. If you’re looking for fresh, practical ideas to level up your sessions (like this one), it’s well worth a browse.
📆 IAF Conference of the Americas 2026 April 30 – May 2, (Monterrey, Mexico). Sabryna’s workshop was part of the lead-up to one of the biggest facilitation events of the year. And good news—it’s not too late to join.
🤝 HBFS Community Support. I just joined a new community launched by Circle’s ex-Senior Community Manager, Pedro Hernandes, and I’m excited about it. It’s for people building and growing communities who want practical, real-world support from someone who’s been deep in this work for years. (No affiliate or commission—I’m just a big fan of Pedro’s work:)
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Creatively yours,
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