The Art of Powerful Questions with Mary Alice Arthur

Why you should join us for The Art of Powerful Questions

No matter who you are or where you are in your journey, The Art of Powerful Questions can polish a skill you can use for a lifetime.

Most of interpersonal and organisational conflicts we have currently in our world might be traced back to what might be called "question illiteracy", that is the failure to ask a good question that could have created different results.

But it doesn't have to be that way. Anyone can put their question skills into practice to create something vibrant and new for themselves and others.

The two parts of the workshop pack a powerful punch -- learning where to find, how to craft and how to sharpen powerful questions. Then taking those questions into -- a uniquely playful way to find the next solid steps you're seeking around something that really matters to you.

In your question you find direction and focus. In the Flow Game you'll find your action plan.

What does that look like in practice?

During the morning of this workshop, we’re going to be focusing on how to find, craft, and sharpen a compelling question. We will use three specific ways to help us hone in on questions that can be instrumental in your wider work practice. This is the kind of skill that can be used anywhere, supporting your life and work.
After nearly 30 years of working with groups, I can reflect that so many of them did not achieve the results they had hoped to because either there were habitual ways of working and assumptions getting in the way, or they had not learned how to craft a compelling question which could open new doorways and new perspectives for them.
For anyone who wants to get more out of meetings or who knows that participatory practice is the way to go but wonders how to put it to work, the question is actually both core and key to every other methodology that helps groups work at their best.

In the afternoon, we’re going to use the as an integral part of working with our questions. Although it may have a very simple appearance, the game enables us to go deep in working with co-creative intelligence leading to collective wisdom on behalf of every player. This experience should help you to craft a very focused and targeted action plan for yourself in line with your inquiry.

It’s also a very good way to practice being wisdom council for each other, which is a skill that can be taken into many other aspects of working life, where challenge and complexity mean the old ways of working simply don't work anymore.
Especially if you are someone interested in the levels of listening, Theory U, or the IDGs, this is an great experience to take part in. It’s a practical way to practice this level of listening and deep contribution to individuals and the collective.

Your Host:

Mary Alice Arthur

Mary Alice has been facilitating groups for almost 30 years and is an internationally resprected process host and trainer, supporting practicioners around the world as a steward of the Art of Hosting, and is also an active Flow Game steward supporting the international field of almost 500 Flow Game hosts.

Find out more about Mary Alice and her work

Tuesday, 10 November 2026

10 a.m. – 6 p.m.