Facilitation and Complexity: A Starlings Poster(free download)

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Practices for connection, clarity and adaptability

Facing a big, complex problem? Pause, and picture starlings in the sky.

Hundreds fly in perfect sync, swirling and shifting as one. No leader. No fixed plan. It turns out, each bird is adapting to only six or seven others. It works because they’re adaptable, responsive, and open to what emerges.

Hundreds fly in perfect sync, swirling and shifting as one. No leader. No fixed plan. It turns out, each bird is adapting to only six or seven others. It works because they're adaptable, responsive, and open to what emerges.

Free facilitation poster: starlings

Here’s a free download featuring starlings, to illustrate facilitating in complexity. It includes some of the principles I use in my own facilitation:

  • Do the deepest work together
  • Lead with connection before content
  • Make your values visible
  • Try something small and new
  • Share what you learn
  • Seek joy through creativity
  • Stay open to change
  • Communicate where you’re going next

Complex problems can’t be controlled or predicted, but can be shifted – especially when we move like starlings.

Facilitation and Complexity: A free Starlings Poster poster by Drawing Change. Facing a big complex problem? Pause, and picture starlings in the sky. Here are some facilitation principles that support shifting complex problems, inspired by murmurations of starlings.

You’re welcome to download these images for your own non-commercial use, without changing the image and shared with attribution. Drawing Change Consulting starlings facilitation poster © 2025 by Sam Bradd is licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 4.0