Deborah Khan -- Creative Inspiration: A lovely day with AKQA

What my clients say about me

John Birch - BA
“I was really impressed with the way Deborah Khan delivered training on the subject of communication skills to us at BA Pensions. She took time to fully research and understand how we worked and what our specific concerns were. She designed a programme that matched not only our collective requirements but was also flexible enough to cover individual development needs. Her methods, being performance based, ensured that even the most introverted of us participated in the programme and our subsequent delivery in formal presentations has improved significantly"
Tom Powell - DLKW
"I participated in a one-day session with Deb Khan last year and would strongly recommend it for both novice speakers and those looking to hone their skills. She (gently) picked apart our strengths and weaknesses and by the end of the day, the results were tremendous. Everyone left with a range of practical skills and it's been a huge benefit for presentations"
Kai Vacher - Specialist Schools Trust
"Deb has incredible foresight, emotional intelligence and a razor sharp focus on specific outcomes to plan programmes/workshops of outstanding quality. Her ability to work with a group of people so that very quickly they feel at ease with each other is unsurpassed in my experience. Deb uses a varied range of interactive strategies to provide the prefect balance of challenge and support for workshop participants. Post event, course participants often contact me to express their overwhelming sense of achievement having worked with Deb, and want more; for themselves and colleagues.”
David Mikhail - RHM
Deborah is fantastic. I’m afraid she had to suffer both of our last pitches – but after her input we just flew, winning really important work from both of them. She is practically our fourth partner now. In spite of all our training (7 years at architecture school) I realise now we were taught nothing about presenting. Deborah helped us to communicate successfully, but she is about much more than communication skills. She goes straight to the heart of what we are trying to say, what are our best ideas, and feels her way into the audience. She works us hard but she’s great fun and our business is booming thanks to her.
Simon Beckett - Five TV
"..this morning was most useful – so often in my experience creative workshops are all enthusiasm and no substance but yours was a refreshing change and I actually had to work at thinking about what you were saying and what I was thinking (I love metacognition)"

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I'm a bit of a purist and as a Peter Brook fan, always subscribed to the concept of theatre as any time, any place, any where. The Empty Space is a lovely exposition on the processes of a great creative individual. I recommend.

But I have to endorse and support Mark's position on the value of Creative Spaces. As ever he writes an invaluable post and highlights a useful new idea that may finally end the tyranny of swirly carpets and duff lighting in "corporate" venues.

Still working out how we define a creative space. What I do know is that natural light, architectural interest, vibrant location and provocative external stimuli have a positive effect on how we feel about ourselves. Working in those spaces gives our ideas value. When we work alongside people whose product excites, provokes or intrigues, it raises our game.

This vague thinking (like most of my cognitive processes) was endorsed yesterday at Sadlers Wells with the lovely people from AKQA. Great to work with; smart, creative, productive and not afraid of taking risks. The result was of course real progression in their development. We looked at how we manage clients. Creative ways to achieve our objectives with an audience. How to design content and how to plan work that has a clear story, supported by rich imagery and sound.

Phew...

There is no doubt in my mind that the wheels were oiled by the stuff around us. Dutch graffiti artists sprayed the foyer, aerosol cans a gogo, blasting hip hop, in preparation for this weekends throbbingly happening hip hop convention. (Have a look at the stuff onstage from last years weekender.I cry with jealousy) Detailed, dynamic, technically stunning animations leapt off walls. A flamenco company stomped (or whatever the technical term is) below and snake-hipped boys practiced their routines on the stairs as they queued for an audition.

We happily watched and felt part of the action. We threw around ideas for charitable organizations, we brainstormed ways to enliven brand perception and we rehearsed stories that flung clients right to the emotional heart of what we felt they were trying to achieve.

Sadlers Wells is always worth exploring, irrespective of what's going on and a place I take many clients to. As a subsidised arts venue they need our money. It is a glass, wood and steel temple of architectural porn, standing on 250 years of theatre history. Fab cafe open to the public. Right near the shops of Upper Street. What's not to like?

All midst a hear stoppingly beautiful London day. Blossom hanging on for dear life, Islington looking as pretty as could be, blue skies and the tow path back to Victoria Park feeling like the best cycle ride ever.

It all felt very special and we felt special to be a part of it. People shift, they were away from their desks, no interruptions and far more ready to learn.They felt valued.

I know they have all gone back to their desks feeling more confident and with things they can do immediately. It's all about action.

We covered loads and I left them in the bar, smiling.

Welcome

A fresh, raw idea is our most precious commodity. I run workshops aimed at developing the inherent ability we all have to be creative. With 20 years personal experience of the arts, education, lateral thinking, coaching and consultancy I create bespoke, practical sessions tailored to my client’s particular needs. I then deliver support and advice to help practice and inspire creativity in the workspace. I achieve this through active learning sessions. Where people really understand what it means to be creative – a unique fusion of the intellectual, physical and emotional. With the emphasis on active. It’s about learning by doing. For me there is no other way. Getting off your chair, rolling up your sleeves and getting stuck in. It’s dynamic, fast-paced and fun. Many workshops on creativity are often more form than content. I hope mine has the balance towards the former but has a great latter. For more information email me and I will send you a full description of what I do.