From Knowing to Seeing

By Martin Johnson on December 12, 2025

Most teams say they want “shared understanding.” Few know what it looks like. The Learning Professional helps them move from knowing to seeing — turning abstract intent into visible alignment. “Once we mapped it, we finally saw what we meant.” Externalise the Thinking She asks one simple question: “What surprised you?” In that small silence, […]

The 5-Minute Debrief

By Martin Johnson on December 12, 2025

In every project, the moment just after the work ends is the one most often lost. A meeting closes. Tabs shut. Everyone moves on. The Learning Professional pauses here — five minutes that turn experience into insight. “That quick reflection saved us weeks next quarter.” Pause to Notice She asks one simple question: “What surprised […]

The Invisible Thread

By Martin Johnson on December 10, 2025

In every hybrid space, rooms lit by screens and voices that echo from afar, there’s an invisible thread holding the work together. It isn’t policy, platform, or process. It’s the quiet act of connection. The Learning Professional sees it, not as something to manage, but to notice. We've had this feedback from BIG PICTURE sessions: […]

Agency via Shared Language

By Martin Johnson on June 12, 2025

From Mind Maps to Movement “You’re in a dirty prison cell with one call. Who do you ring — and why?” If you're on our Newsletter then you'll have seen me introduce the video shared with me from Nick. This question is one of the 'Artful Questions' posed in the video. Since then, I've been […]

To the Tools You Already Know

By Martin Johnson on April 12, 2025

How we've seen BIG PICTURE wrap around other well-established the frameworks you're already using to drive collaboration, and outcomes. In the world of organisational development, tools like KPIs, psychometric profiles, Lean, and NPS are everywhere. They’re helpful. Familiar. Proven. There are lots of books about them. But we've spotted there’s often a catch: they tools […]

Heavy Lifting

By Martin Johnson on December 12, 2024

Comprehension: Exploring Facilitation Methods In facilitation, one of the key challenges is helping people move from complexity to clarity. Recently, I’ve been reflecting on a simple but powerful metaphor: an axis running across the page labelled Comprehension. This line represents the spectrum of approaches used in facilitation, ranging from open-ended creativity to structured clarity. Mapping […]

Joining Dots with Liberating Stuctures

By Martin Johnson on November 12, 2024

Empowering Conversations and Unleashing Innovation. You might be famliar with Liberating Structures (LS)? A collection of simple, powerful facilitation techniques that help groups break away from traditional, often restrictive, ways of interacting- we love them, I hope you you too! Developed to encourage more equitable participation, LS enables teams to tap into their collective intelligence, […]

Your Cheat Sheet!

By Martin Johnson on February 29, 2024

This concise, two-page guide is your introduction to the enagaging the collaborative world of strategic planning and team alignment, crafted to introduce newcomers and seasoned users alike to the foundational elements and functionalities of the BIG PICTURE tool. Download your copy of the BIG PICTURE Cheat Sheet from our shop. Page 1 - Symbols of […]

Your SessionLab Resources

By Martin Johnson on February 26, 2024

We've always made BIG PICTURE available in all shapes and sizes to suit the occasion and accessible to all. Today, we are thrilled to announce a significant enhancement to your strategic toolkit: three comprehensive resources now available on SessionLab, designed to deepen your understanding of BIG PICTURE thinking and its practical application. Why BIG PICTURE […]

A Bus Journey in Stockport

By Martin Johnson on December 14, 2023

I was browsing an intranet and found this story from Peter Scott that I really liked. My reflections are below: It was a nice brisk morning in an otherwise sunny Stockport and I was aboard the early Bus into the Office. With the schools closed for the summer and many on vacation the roads were […]

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