What Seeds Are You Planting? A Custom Reflection for You!

The seasons are changing.

It feels miraculous every year when we see small shoots of bright green poking up through the soil. 

It also feels like we can see the light at the end of the covid tunnel here in Colorado with more and more folks getting vaccinated.

As things return to more normal, it may feel like the pace of life will pick up (or maybe it already feels fast to you as we’ve adapted to remote work and the new patterns that has brought). 

As we’re shifting seasonally, this can be a moment to think intentionally about what’s next for you. Here’s a visual template to take a few minutes to reflect, which I’ve found to be incredibly powerful as a business owner, especially when things feel like they’re moving quickly.

RIGHT CLICK ON THE IMAGE TO DOWNLOAD

Right click to download and print!

Right click to download and print!

If this doesn’t serve you – that’s okay too! You do you. Here are the questions:

• What seeds do you want to plant now that will sprout and grow this year? 

• What have your roots quietly been up to beneath the soil and frost of the winter? What are things that aren’t visible yet, but are forming who you are and want to be? What keeps you nourished or gives you strength?

• What does it look like to nurture those roots so that as they wake up, you can bloom this year? What do you need to do for yourself?

Together, we have weathered some big storms this year. And you already know, weather patterns in spring are anything but stable – there’s bound to be another snow or cold snap this season. And as more of us are getting vaccinated and feeling more confident to see those we care about, there’s almost certainly something unexpected in our future we’ll need to shift around. 

And we know we can! 

Once again, thank you from my heart and soul for your support, great senses of humor, brilliant minds, collaboration and what you're each doing to make the world a better place.

Cheers, 

If this reflection resonates for you, let’s connect to talk about designing custom processes and visuals for you or your team.

Where in the Virtual World is ConverSketch?

Pacific Northwest Fire Science Symposium: Helping co-design and co-facilitate a 3-day symposium for Burn Bosses and other Fire Science professionals across the US Forest Service and partner organizations. We used Mural to collectively share and reflect resources and ideas throughout the week. 

Community Outreach: With a non-profit client looking to redevelop an outdated building to better serve their own community, and the folks in the neighborhood. We used Jamboards to explore options, concerns, and build consensus around what makes sense as the project moves forward!

Head’s Up: Time Out of the Office in Late April. I’ll be out from April 19-30 spending time in nature on rivers and will not be checking my email or phone regularly during that time. Thanks in advance for your patience on communication!

Have You Seen this Button? How to Create a Custom Background in Jamboard

Have you hosted a virtual meeting and felt like you knew people had really good ideas, they just weren’t speaking up? 

Regardless of whether the meeting is virtual or in person, not everyone feels comfortable speaking in front of a group. Add unmuting, raising hand, distractions, etc. in virtual spaces…and it’s easy to just not say anything.

One of the simplest ways I’ve seen engagement and energy skyrocket in a virtual meeting is to create space for people to add their ideas to the conversation in a virtual whiteboard. ­

Google Jamboard is free and doesn’t require folks to log in to access it, however I was really frustrated with Jamboard because I couldn’t “lock” anything down.

Until I noticed a button and discovered a simple solution.

Now I can create custom visual templates for breakout groups and embed them as the background so participants don’t accidentally move it around and confuse the group:

Here’s how you can embed your own image to create a branded, beautiful, or curated experience in Jamboard:

Step 1: Find the Set Background button.

Step 2: Select your own image. 

It’s. That. Easy! 

Okay, but maybe you’re thinking “Yeah, great Karina, you can draw up a template and embed it. What about someone who doesn’t want to/have that skill?”

I’m so glad you asked! You can embed any image as your background – your logo in the corner or an inspiring scene. It’s easy to do a Google image search right in the Set background tool. Then, once your background image is set, you can create shapes as boxes for text, and add a fill color to make them pop over the image, like this: 

Once you’ve created the shape from the toolbar on the left, click on it so it’s highlighted. Then, this toolbar will appear at the top, and you can choose a fill color, like so:

And, of course, if you DO want a custom visual experience for your next virtual meeting, you know where to find me. 

Once again, thank you from my heart and soul for your support, great senses of humor, brilliant minds, collaboration and what you're each doing to make the world a better place.

Cheers, 

Where in the Virtual World is ConverSketch?

iMasons Global Member Summit: This year the iMasons focused on gender parity in the datacenter field, exploring equity vs. equality, how to foster inclusive spaces, and how having a more diverse workforce is better for your business.

Client Spotlight: Check out how the National Parks Conservation Association leveraged the graphics created during a Zero Landfill Initiative retreat a few weeks ago! Major round of applause to Karen at NPCA for her creative communication for “the best meeting notes I’ve ever seen!” according to one participant. See the entire report here. 

Zoom, obvi: March 20th is International Day of Happiness, and Zoom asked me to illustrate what their employees (they call themselves Zoomies, which I love), said makes them happy. Here’s the image I created, and you can see the time-lapse on Zoom’s Insta and Twitter feeds!

Pacific Northwest Fire Science Symposium: I’m currently in the midst of co-facilitating a three-day workshop with training sessions and building a deeper network in this community working on resilient landscapes across the region.

3 Tips for Getting the Most out of Your Virtual Whiteboard

By now, most of us have experienced more video conferences than we can count (why, in the name of all that is holy, would we ever have the desire to count?). 

Which means over the past year, as a graphic facilitator in the digital sphere, I’ve collaborated with clients to create custom templates for virtual whiteboard platforms for events where participants say things like: 

This was the best zoom meeting I’ve been to!

- Participant at the 2021 Zero Landfill Initiative Retreat

And…

I had the Miro board up throughout the entire 3-day conference!

- Participant at the 2021 Zusman Neuroregeneration Symposium

So, how can we get these same exclamations at your virtual event? 

Let’s go ahead and take some work right off your plate and share what I’ve learned through trial, error, and following discoveries of others experimenting in this space. 

Hot tips: 

• Include important logistics such as the agenda, zoom links, survey links, etc. I create a custom layout with visual elements for specific sessions or for general feedback. In addition, I’ve learned it’s helpful for participants to be able to easily navigate the multiple links, web pages, and documents if they’re all linked into the board you’re using.

• Build time to engage with it into your agenda. This is KEY to successfully using a virtual whiteboard. To make the most of this tool you’ve invested in using, BE SURE to include time(s) each day to engage with the whiteboard. Whether it’s an activity, or just time to network, 10 minute blocks of time can make a huge difference to help participants connect. BONUS: Remind people where to find it – drop the link in to the chat box regularly.

• Add a new element each day. In a multi-day virtual event, once participants start to get the hang of navigating your whiteboard space, create new elements for them to interact with each day. Make them delightful and useful – asking specific questions about content or simply providing a space for a morning/afternoon reflection creates a reason to draw people back in, and more opportunities to connect with each other.

Curious which virtual collaboration platform is right for you? This post contains a brief pros and cons of a few popular ones here. Have a tool you love? Please share it with me, I always enjoy learning from the Brain Trust (all y’all).  

Once again, thank you from my heart and soul for your support, great senses of humor, brilliant minds, collaboration and what you're each doing to make the world a better place.

Cheers, 

Where in the Virtual World is ConverSketch?

Houston Methodist Neuroregeneration Symposium: Capturing key ideas from heady talks about how to repair neural function after spinal cord injury. My favorite thing about this workshop is how focused it is on creating space for collaborations between labs and fields of study!

Friends of Refuges Annual Meeting: For the Suwannee and Cedar Key Friends of Refuges, covid didn’t keep these folks from sharing updates and anthropological research from the area in a virtual setting! Did you know that Swallow-Tailed Kites migrate 5,000 miles over 2 months to get to Brazil each winter? 

Ready to create a unique and engaging virtual whiteboard for your event?

Research to Action: What Any Sector Can Learn from GCSE+Drawdown

Why, yes, you CAN have an interactive and participatory virtual conference with over 3,000 participants from all over the world!

Earlier this month, the Global Council for Science and the Environment (GCSE), and Project Drawdown brought together researchers, leaders, and community members to learn, share, and create solutions for people and planet.  

Some of the most powerful insights can be translated to any sector, so no matter who you are, here are a few snapshots from graphics showing what resonated most with the participants over the course of the week: 

Effective communication is more important than ever. To do so, we need to meet people where they are. 

Listening to and elevating diverse voices we haven’t in the past. At GCSE+Drawdown, there were several Indigenous presenters who openly shared their research and perspectives.

Networks and partnerships are needed do the incredible things we are called to do. Working together we can fill in one another’s gaps, offer new perspectives, and share resources.

Complex challenges require creative solutions, which means looking for systems and across disciplines.

GCSE always does an excellent job leveraging the graphics I create with them. Last year they created a stunning Global Sights and Sounds page to share the graphics and highlights from the conference. This year we collaborated to create visuals for social media posts before, during, and after the conference. I also made a massive Conference Synthesis map created over the course of the five-day conference. Scroll to the right and zoom out to see the entire thing! 

Once again, thank you from my heart and soul for your support, great senses of humor, brilliant minds, collaboration and what you're each doing to make the world a better place.

Cheers, 

Where in the Virtual World is ConverSketch?

Middle School: Facilitating a series of professional development sessions on using Adobe Fresco with their students as a creative thinking tool. 

US Fish and Wildlife Service:  Graphically facilitating a session with regional leaders to analyze how to create an internship system that is inclusive and supports hiring a more diverse and representative workforce. The outcomes will be refined into a strategic illustration which can be used in tandem with the Hiring Barriers and Biases illustration I created last year. 

Strategic Planning:  With a non-profit focused on supporting our democratic process through data-driven approaches. I can’t share the whole graphic, but here’s a snapshot of the title of a session that really elevated the energy levels during a remote retreat. Remember to celebrate accomplishments and share kudos for your team! 

Your WFH Refresh

By now, you’re all WFH (Work From Home) pros, figuring out systems that work for you. Kid/dog busts in during a zoom meeting? You’ve got a virtual background for that. Video call fatigue? You’ve got a stockpile of great questions to reenergize the group in breakout rooms. 

That being said, covid is testing our limits, and it’s challenging. As the northern hemisphere is heading into winter with longer nights and more time indoors, the struggle can most definitely be real. 

Lately, I’ve been digging back into these tips to help myself stay focused when I need to, and remind myself to take breaks to maintain my sanity.

So it’s a Graphic Facilitator’s WFH Tips remix this week! The timer has been especially clutch to help me back away slowly from news websites and drop into a focused space to work on what matters – projects with you all! 

Click through the gallery to see each image larger.

What are your best tips for working from home? If you don’t see yours below, send me a note and it might make it into Part III!

And remember, most of all, no matter what, you’re doing it. You’re a bright and valued person, you are loved, and you are doing the best you can. Thank you for what you do to make this world a better place!

Cheers, 

Where in the Virtual World is ConverSketch?

Alabama-Coushatta Tribe: Mapping out the priorities, needs, and opportunities of the Tribal Council.

Denver Housing Authority: Visually facilitating the first of three virtual retreat meetings focused on creating connections and a shared vision while working remotely. We mapped the team on the Enneagram circle using Google Jamboard to work collaboratively in real-time to reflect and learn about each other!

Studio Reveal: Hiring Barriers and Biases. Over the past few weeks, I collaborated with a team at the US Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) to visually map the challenges to BIPOC in applying for and getting hired at the agency. I’m looking forward to seeing how the shifts this team identified can create a more welcoming and inclusive environment!

Brighten your Day with an Appreciation Map

This time of year in the US many of us think about what we appreciate as the holiday season begins. Even with covid, especially with covid, I have found that cultivating a practice of appreciation boosts my mood and energy.

Appreciation helps me put things into perspective, remember my privilege, and slow down to recognize all the beautiful things happening around us every day. 

To really cement this practice, shockingly, I like to map out visually what I appreciate. 

Even if you’re not “artistic” – there are simple ways to use size, color, and layout to make your notes more visual.

Last week I gave a brief overview of these tips in my Digital Visual Notes workshop as a “watch party” from the session hosted at ShapingEDU’s LearningHuman last summer. 

Here’s the link to the free one-hour session packed with ideas and tips to make your digital and analog notes more visual!

Why take the extra visual step? To boost memory, helping manage overwhelm, create deeper understanding, and for seeing patterns.

So, I encourage you to take 5 minutes and doodle out what you appreciate. Just write or doodle what comes to mind when you ask yourself: 

What do I appreciate today? 

Not keen on grappling with a blank sheet of paper? You can use this template. And if you want to learn to draw a turkey, click right there – both links take you to more resources on appreciation and gratitude.

I APPRECIATE YOU! 

Once again, thank you from my heart and soul for your support, great senses of humor, brilliant minds, collaboration and what you're each doing to make the world a better place.

Cheers, 

Where in the Virtual World is ConverSketch?

Currently in the midst of UNICON 2020: A global Executive MBA conference hosted by Arizona State University’s Thunderbird School of Global Management. Here’s a snapshot of a Miro board I designed for an interactive session for over 400 participants!

Queer Student Panel: This intimate and authentic panel of students in the LGBTQ+ community at Regis University was by students, for students. They curated a space where new connections were made and stories were shared honestly and humbly.  

The Newest Drawing Connections illustrated video is out for the National Park Service! Take a journey through the history of Castillo de San Marcos in Florida and find out how it is affected by climate change.

Windows to the Future of Learning, or, “I Had S’More Fun at Camp with You!”

Did you ever go to summer camp? Remember those late nights filled with laughter, quiet early mornings to reflect, tight friendships, and learning about yourself?

This past week I was Camp Art Director at Learning[hu]Man, aka “Summer camp for weird adults”, aka the best virtual non-conference I’ve ever attended.

Once again, Arizona State University’s ShapingEDU community brought together Dreamers, Doers, and Drivers – “a global community of education changemakers – to push the creative envelope for how we serve students and advance learner success”.

As the Camp Art Director, I had the delightful job of listening and digitally graphic recording more than 20 live sessions over the course of the week. Then, from key ideas submitted by presenters, participants, and what I’d illustrated, I created a Synthesis Map summarizing themes and important ideas from across Learning[hu]Man.

Some of the most salient themes that emerged were recognizing the technology are tools that allow for us to be creative, playful, and curate learning environments which welcome the whole person. To build a space like that, educators can leverage the power of storytelling in learning, which helps build connections and community, even in virtual spaces. These connections become networks capable of creating change at scale, which is imperative to get at the root of challenges EdTech has been fighting for years: power, access, and equity.

Here are some snapshots of a few of the sessions I illustrated. To see the full gallery, check out the LearningArtist page. I also have been posting them on Twitter and Instagram.

If you missed Learning[hu]Man last week, don’t worry! All the sessions were recorded and are being shared on the ShapingEDU YouTube channel, and there are plenty of ways to connect - join us on Slack!

And if you want to read more reflections on Learning[hu]Man, I highly recommend checking out the series of “letters home” from Paul Signorelli and this blog post from Tom Haymes, two of ShapingEDU’s Storytellers in Residence.

Once again, thank you from my heart and soul for your support, great senses of humor, brilliant minds, collaboration and what you're each doing to make the world a better place.

Cheers,

Where in the Virtual World is ConverSketch?

Camp LearningHuman: From morning gatherings Around the Flagpole to evenings by the Campfire, LearningHuman was anything but typical, in the best way possible! Did I mention there was a 3D VIRTUAL CAMPUS with a graphic recording gallery!? Check out the VirBELA platform - it blew my mind!

Children with Medical Complexity: Continuing the series of virtual site visits with universities and health campuses across the country, these graphics capture lessons learned, accomplishments, and where teams can focus in the future to support families and children in their health.

USB Implementers Forum: The annual updates got a visual spin this year – from marketing to compliance to the future of USB connections.

Let’s talk about how to level-up your virtual event with visuals and artistic experiences!

My Favorite Ways to Harvest Ideas

It’s high summer, which means making the most of long days, and heaps of veggies coming from the garden. This weekend we hung garlic to dry, shelled peas, and stemmed gooseberries to freeze for making jam later.

Sometimes I look around and realize I’ve completely missed harvesting something before it’s gotten too old or overripe (How did all the cilantro bolt already?).

The same can happen in meetings or conferences – raise your hand if you’ve ever been on a call which was supposed to be interactive, then with 10 minutes left, the speakers finally relinquish the floor and you only have a few minutes to try to work together?

Without intention, the time can fly by without truly making the most of the opportunity to cross-pollinate ideas together.

Working with my clients as a virtual graphic facilitator, I delight in partnering together to harvest ideas, show systems, and create shared understanding for deeper, more effective, and long-lasting work.

Here are a handful of my favorite ways to harvest ideas in virtual meetings:

• Using the “rename” function to include first name and one-word response to a warm-up question such as “How are you feeling right now?” to “One word we should to carry forward from this meeting”

• Creating a visual template to guide report outs and upload to a shared platform for future use

• A facilitated go-round where each person shares their response to a prompt, giving air time to everyone

• Using a Google Doc template with tables and visuals to work synchronously and include more detailed notes

• Have everyone write down a word or phrase on a sticky note or paper on their desk and hold it up to the camera – then take a screen shot! These images can be incorporated into a report or summary web page

• Working with a graphic recorder or facilitator to synthesize key ideas and energy into a visual summary

What are your favorite ways to harvest ideas in virtual spaces?

Once again, thank you from my heart and soul for your support, great senses of humor, brilliant minds, collaboration and what you're each doing to make the world a better place.

Cheers,

Where in the Virtual World is ConverSketch?

Wild places are a blessing I am privileged to experience and enjoy – our trip on the Middle Fork of the Salmon was one for the books – here’s a watercolor I painted one evening while waiting for dinner.

Preparing for ShapingEDU’s Learning(Hu)Man -- a virtual hands-on summer “camp” for dreamers, doers, and drivers in higher education focusing on best practices in learning design, edtech tools and development, and the art of the possible to support students’ success.

Wrapping up a studio project for my local county department of health and environment I can’t quite reveal yet…stay tuned!

Toward Equity in Meetings: Making Space to Include All Voices

These past weeks have been a time to sink in to the discomfort of learning, listening, reflecting on the systems of oppression that many of us are reexamining and questioning.

As graphic facilitators, we are in a position of power to design a process that helps our groups move toward their goals and work more cohesively as a team. We have an opportunity to design ways of understanding one another and to create spaces in which different ideas are valued and disagreements can happen in a safe and healthy way.

This can be especially complex to do authentically in a virtual space, so here are some strategies to create space for all the voices in (and outside of) the room.

Before designing the process, ask questions like who will be there? Is English a second language for anyone? Are there different cultures (workplace or other) that should be considered when designing? For example, how does staying on time resonate with different groups attending? Is it rude to run over time, or rude to cut off a respected speaker before they’re finished?

Create opportunities for different ways to process information -- time for people to write or sketch ideas before speaking, or working in pairs.

Do a Circle Check In – call on each person so they each have an opportunity to speak.

Co-create Group Agreements to share the air: Three Before Me is a new favorite that indicates everyone should wait until at least 3 others have spoken before they speak again – to create space for others to speak.

Ask yourselves “Who isn’t here that should be?” What might they say? Challenge the group to think outside of who’s present to seek inclusive paths forward.

Once again, thank you from my heart and soul for your support, great senses of humor, brilliant minds, collaboration and what you're each doing to make the world a better place.

Cheers,

Let’s design a process together for your team.

Where in the Virtual World is ConverSketch?

Heads Up! I’ll be on the river June 28-July 7 and will not have access to phone or internet during that time. Thanks for your patience and I’ll look forward to connecting with you before or after.

Children with Medical Complexity: In the first of a series of virtual reflections with universities and health campuses across the country, the graphics will capture lessons learned, accomplishments, and where these teams can focus in the future to support families and children in their health.

New Hand Painted Video: Castillo de San Marcos in St. Augustine, Florida is in danger from sea level rise. The newest Drawing Connections video for the National Park Service will focus on the colorful history and what millions of tiny shells can teach us about resilience. You can see the other videos we’ve created here.

Education NC: Supporting Teachers in North Carolina in the Time of COVID as they move through a design thinking sprint process this summer to think holistically about how to support their students and families in remote learning situations.

Look Like A Pro in Your Next Remote Meeting with This Undercover Tool

You know when you think you’ve got a good hold on a tool? You’re proficient and use it all the time, feeling pretty good, then BAM! Someone shows you a simple trick that makes it WAY better! Like Instagram filters or no-knead bread.

Well, this week I had the pleasure of learning from Brian Tarallo and Lauren Green of Lizard Brain and they showed me with style and wit that I was missing out on the major potential of one little tool and what it can do for online collaboration: Google Docs.

Here’s what I love about Google Docs:

• This tool is free.

• It’s easy to use! If you know how to use Word, you know how to use it.

• With a great workshop or meeting design, Docs supports highly interactive, relationship-building, actionable meetings.

Here are three take-aways I’m putting into action with my Google Docs right away:

Use Format tools to make navigation easy. Using headers for each section so participants can click on the navigation bar on the left and be able to quickly find and jump to any section. Set the background color to make tables and other images pop out.

Use Add-Ons. Not into drawing but into visuals? Check out the Noun Project for icons and Pixabay for stunning photos. Having trouble staying on time? Use the Meeting Timer to herd your cats and keep things moving. Want to quickly pull themes from text? Try Word Cloud Generator – drop it in and ask for reactions from your group.

No Google Account? No Problem! When sharing your Doc with the group, click “Get Sharable Link” and be sure to set access to “Anyone with the link can edit” -- no need to create an account to join!

Bonus tip: Send people the link ahead of time and ask them to spend 15 minutes familiarizing themselves. That way, you can all jump right in during the meeting!

Once again, thank you from my heart and soul for your support, great senses of humor, brilliant minds, collaboration and what you're each doing to make the world a better place.

Cheers,

Where in the Virtual World is ConverSketch?

Graphic recording for ARS and the Water Research vision for agriculture and sustainability. This is the third remote collaboration workshop we’ve held with over 40 researchers tuning in from all over the country to co-create the future!

Visual coaching and vision mapping with a local start-up focused on facilitating access to local, healthy food that supports equity and disrupts the current industrial food system. Front Range locals, ping me to learn more!

You and your team deserve to make the most of your time. Let’s talk about designing a meeting or workshop that leaves you energized and clear on how to continue moving forward!