Testimonials
Here’s what Leigh’s clients have to say about her work:
“Leigh is a very talented facilitator, she holds space for everyone and also gets right into the hard thinking with us.”
-Participant Evaluation from a Facilitated Women Entrepreneur Peer Group
“Leigh is an amazing facilitator! I appreciate her ability to create space for silence and reflection without it feeling awkward. Her insight and reflection questions are so valuable.”
-Participant Evaluation from a Facilitated Women Entrepreneur Peer Group
“I am incredibly grateful for my time working with Leigh. I went from feeling overwhelmed with a million thoughts (and emotions) in my head about my business to gaining clarity and an actionable strategic high-level, multi-year plan by the end. Leigh is a magical steward – holding space and allowing my reflections to surface and evolve into the light of being heard. I feel less stuck and more inspired to focus on the positive possibilities available with following my purpose.”
Suzi Pond, Founder, Redbird Media Group
“Great format for open discussion. It was structured enough to keep me on track but allowed time for personal contemplation and reflection.”
-Participant Evaluation from a Facilitated Workshop
“Leigh you facilitated the meeting with great deftness. You guided us without becoming a part of the meeting. You stepped in to get us back on track when needed and drove the group to identify actions, steps, and ownership.”
-Participant Evaluation from a Facilitated Meeting
“Working with Leigh was a wonderful experience for our organization and for our program participants. Leigh has a very special skill set - able to connect with people of all backgrounds and help them weave together impactful and meaningful life stories. She was especially focused on advancing our organization's mission by helping participants weave their experiences with the natural world into their stories. I highly recommend Leigh for her storytelling skills or any project that involves working with people and organizing vibrant programs.”
-Meg Boyd, Executive Director, Howard County Conservancy
“Every participant was fully engaged. Very welcoming and supportive. People could participate at their comfort level.”
-Participant Evaluation from a Facilitated Workshop
“Great tone/presentation style, seemed genuinely to be enjoying her work”
“Leigh did a tremendous job of leading the discussion and drawing out the group’s responses. The exercises were enjoyable and the reflections were excellent.”
“[The facilitation] kept everything moving, flowing, and coordinated. Would not have been possible without Leigh.”
-Participant evaluations from a Board Retreat
“More than helpful, it was essential, we could not have possibly done this without a facilitator.”
-Participant Evaluation from a Facilitated Meeting
"Leigh is a long-time trusted collaborator and facilitator with us at the CEI Women’s Business Center. She masterfully leads peer groups for female entrepreneurs, creating space for both personal and professional development. She constantly receives rave reviews from participants and is a pleasure to work with."
Sarah Guerette – Director, CEI Women’s Business Center
“I was impressed with how interactive and lively the training was!”
“It was an incredibly powerful experience to hear about how this program we’ve been running actually impacts people. I felt empowered by learning from our shared untold stories.”
-Participant evaluations of a Telling Impactful Stories Training
“We completed an ambitious agenda – group leaves feeling organized, energized, inspired”
“Moved us forward effectively, with sensitivity, delightfully”
-Participant evaluations from a Board and Staff Retreat
“In the summer of 2014, the Maine County Commissioners Association contracted with Leigh Tillman to facilitate a strategic planning session at a retreat in New Harbor, Maine. Ms. Tillman came highly recommended by one of her peers and exhibited excellent skills at both planning the event and carrying it out. She kept all thirty-or-so participants on task while fostering and leading a very pleasant and respectful participatory process. Leigh came well equipped, asked the necessary questions, and provided the guidance we needed to help us reach a successful conclusion. Participants were complementary and appreciative of her work and the value she added to our planning process. We would most certainly hire her again!”
–Rosemary Kulow, Maine County Commissioners Association, Executive Director
“We were able to reach conclusions on concrete steps to take…kept us on track toward definitive, concrete next steps with timelines.”
“Excellent – keeps focus – moves us along”
“Facilitator kept us on task, little wasted conversation. Organized, methodical approach was excellent.”
-Participant evaluations of a Maine Association of Broadcasters Board of Directors Meeting
“Working with Leigh made such an impact on our organization. She was so professional and knew just how to ask questions and listen to get at the issues that needed to be brought to light. When what arose meant that we had to scrap the entire pre-planned agenda, she went with it and facilitated meetings that enabled us to set clear goals and get on the path to reaching them.
It is now several months since Leigh did her initial meetings with us, and our organization has been transformed. People are happier, more engaged, and more connected with each other and their work. I know that a good part of this is the result of the strength of Leigh’s presence. Thank you Leigh!”
-Kris Vickery, Hridaya Yoga, Mazunte, Mexico
“What impressed me most about Leigh was her natural storytelling ability. Her life experiences give her great fodder. The way she delivers her stories is magnificent and her movements are graceful and beautiful to watch. She has great ideas on how to draw people out, even those who are unwilling to talk about themselves. Her personal warmth does much to loosen them up.”
-Don Spear, Storytelling Workshop participant
“Leigh guided my Board of Directors and staff through the process of re-envisioning our mission, our goals, and our impact with kindness, skill, and encouragement. She made everyone feel equally important and that their voices were heard. Everyone loved working with her and specifically asked for her again to facilitate our next retreat!"
Marla Stelk, Executive Director, National Association of Wetland Managers
“The high point for me was watching people get nervous but somehow bring their stories to life and I appreciated the courageous people in here who shared their personal stories even though it was hard.”
“I learned that in order to make friends and learn about the world around you, you need to open up!”
“Keep this up, you have no idea how many hearts you helped open.”
What have you learned? “To value my voice/story and that others care and will listen.”
-Participant evaluations of a Telling Impactful Stories Workshop for high school students
“Your organizational skills were exemplary.”
-Participant evaluation of Atlantic Partners EMS Strategic Planning Session
“Leigh worked with a group of 25 people at our annual meeting to dicuss some large decisions about the future of our cooperative. She was able to help us move through the process, stay on time, offered an outside perspective and helped us come to major decisions that will have a lasting impact on both our day-to-day work and the future of our organization.”
-Jonah Fertig, Local Sprouts Cooperative, Portland, Maine
“Great energy – professional – collegial.”
“Great idea flow. Leigh kept us moving and organized our thoughts.”
“Good and productive flow to the discussion that was productive in meeting outcomes.”
-Participant evaluations of a meeting of the Community Transformation Grant Oversight Committee of the Downeast District Coordinating Council
“It felt comfortable, each portion of the meeting easily transitioned to the next. There was a good balance of information, discussion, and activities. Very engaging.”
-Participant evaluation of a Conflict Transformation Workshop led by Leigh
“It was so helpful to have someone neutral to move the process further and forward and to keep us on time and focused… Great job, Leigh!”
“Leigh did a wonderful job — can’t be improved upon.”
-Participant evaluations of an Arts Are Elementary Strategic Planning Session
Testimonials from Storytelling Trainings
“So much was covered in such a deliberate manner that it will be easy to put into practice. One of the best workshops I have attended.”
-Participant evaluation from a storytelling workshop
“It was an incredibly powerful experience to hear about how this program we’ve been running actually impacts people. I felt empowered by learning from our shared untold stories.”
“[The training] brought us closer together and really highlighted the strength and growth of our department.”
“Very informative and educational and much humor.”
“Learning how to tell a story better…how to take the story and expand it to make a better story.”
-Participant evaluations from a training held by a community sharing with one another the impact of a grant
“I articulated my story in a way I had never done so before – I’ve thought about it but never told it out loud. I found this challenging – in a good way!”
“Wonderful experience, foundational and deep. I’ll carry this with me into my work. Invaluable.”
-Participant evaluation from a storytelling workshop
“[The most valuable part of this training was] hearing about the struggles of other organizations (and people) to tell impactful stories, inspiration drawn from thinking about WHY we need/want to tell these stories, HOW we tell them, and what kinds of actions we want from telling them.”
“[The most valuable part of this training was] understanding how to craft/shape a story to make an emotional impact.”
-Participant evaluations from a training held for non-profit leaders from organizations throughout Maine
“Loved the interactivity”
“In a short amount of time I developed an impactful story about me and my business that will serve me well in networking and when giving presentations. And it was fun, enjoyable, inspiring, and so helpful. Thank you!”
“This workshop will forever change the way you approach your story, your marketing, and maybe even your life. Could not recommend it enough!”
“Down and dirty, passionate, fun, vulnerable, and productive – all of this came up for me and more during this workshop. I want more!”
“I nailed a personal “why” story which is great! My other story has always been the “how” story.”
“The workshop has completely changed my perception of how to talk about my work…I’m stoked for this new approach to open my talks and do my networking spiel!”
“Totally empowered and inspired! Thank you!”
-Participant evaluations from a cross-sector training held for entrepreneurs,small business owners, nonprofits, and for-profits
“The high point for me was watching people get nervous but somehow bring their stories to life and I appreciated the courageous people in here who shared their personal stories even though it was hard.”
“I learned that in order to make friends and learn about the world around you, you need to open up!”
What have you learned? “To value my voice/story and that others care and will listen.”
–Participant evaluations of a training held for high school students to share the impact of a grant funding a mentorship program
“I was impressed with how interactive and lively the training was!”
-Participant evaluation from a grant recipient training on how to incorporate storytelling into the grant process to magnify impact
“I was amazed to hear three peers being able to tell diverse but spell-binding stories so well after such a short time with instructions and practice.”
-Participant evaluation from a storytelling workshop