Moderating Tough Conversations as a Public Participation Facilitator
Why it’s important to maintain control of tough conversations during public events and debates
During this political season, many of us are hosting and facilitating events where we approach touchy subjects particularly around politics and even race gender economic status and lifestyle. With everyone living a very different lifestyle, you have to expect that tensions are going to be high. While watching the first 2020 Presidential Debate between former Vice President Joe Biden and the sitting President, we watched in awe as the moderator, Chris Wallace failed to control the conversation and reach an agreeable solution towards the end of the debate. It was simply put, unhinged. And that’s why it’s important to maintain control during events while allowing people to get their thoughts across and have meaningful conversations while you can learn from one another. Here are three ways you can moderate successfully through tough conversations.
Number one: set the ground rules early.
Have a list of shared agreements that you present at the start of the conversation. This was definitely something that was missing from last night’s debates. Some shared agreements could include: listening, being respectful, celebrating each other’s differences, and laying out tech rules particularly in virtual events.
Number two: moderate in a way that everyone’s voice is heard.
Call on those who you don’t hear from as often. And be sure to uplift their names and put their names in the room. Call on them by name so they’ll know that you want to hear from them. Make sure you listen intentionally for folks who dominate the conversation and for people who seem to be shying away from the microphone or avoiding the conversation altogether.
Number three: always leave space at the end to determine a way forward.
That’s another thing we did not see in last night’s Presidential debate. What we saw was an abrupt ending leaving people rather confused and even listless. Many people don’t even want to see the next two debates because of it. It’s so important to end on a definitive note, whether it be positive or negative.