From “Wait, What?!” to “Oh, I See!”
Making Sense is an 8-week workshop series that turns “Wait, what?!” moments into compelling content so you can help your audience make sense of the unexpected.
No matter how smart or well-informed you are, you experience your fair share of “Wait, what?!” moments. An outcome, headline, or social interaction defies your expectations, leaving you scratching your head and wondering what you missed.
Confusion sets in when what we expect is different from what we observe or experience. What we expect is the product of our mental models—our understanding of how things work.
A “What, what?!” moment is a sign that our mental model needs an update. We need a new way to think about what we’re observing or experiencing.
Maybe you do some research or talk to a friend. You figure out how things work and why you experienced the shock of confusion. You gain a new mental model and make sense of whatever phenomenon left you puzzled. And you can use that mental model to make better predictions and make sense of situations faster than you did without it.
Of course, you’re also the friend, expert, or in-the-know person others come to when they experience those “Wait, what?!” moments.
You already have this skill. You see it in the flashes of understanding others have when you explain your thinking. And now you’re ready to share your insights with more people.
Making Sense is a step-by-step framework for doing just that.
In Making Sense, you’ll explore the methods that sensemakers, theorists, and thought leaders use to help their audiences make sense of one small part of the world.
This 8-week seminar combines analysis, research, process, and craft. By the end, you’ll have a draft of an article, episode, video, or social media post (or a detailed outline of a larger work) that makes sense of an experience or question common to your audience.
Making Sense is for media makers of all kinds—writers, illustrators, content creators, speakers, academics, managers, etc.—who aim to turn lived experience and deep analysis into an idea that shifts how others think.
The Syllabus
Project: draft an article, episode, video, or social media post (or a detailed outline of a larger work) that makes sense of an experience or question common to your audience.
The Schedule
We’ll meet for 90 minutes on Tuesdays at 1pm ET (New York)/10am PT (Los Angeles)/6pm BT (London) between March 24 and May 12.
Every session is recorded. Come as you are and participate in the way that’s best for you: camera on or off, on mic or in chat.
Sessions generally consist of a lesson, collaborative media analysis, and time for questions. The three workshop sessions (5, 7, and 8) are participant-directed and designed to help you personalize the program to your needs.
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“Sensemaking starts with chaos,” says organizational theorist Karl Weick.
Making sense starts with identifying the “Wait, what?!” moment and figuring out why it occurs. We get up close and personal with your audience to discover not only who they are but how they think.
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You have access to a mental model or theory that your audience doesn’t. Identify it and use it to explain the “Wait, what?!” moment.
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Using your theory or mental model, focus your project by creating a compelling argument, central thesis, or guiding question.
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In this session, we’ll examine four common structures or templates for sensemaking media. We’ll also identify opportunities to add research to your project, consider how to conduct that research, and identify a number of resources and workflows that make research more rewarding. Your critical making assignment will be to create a skeleton outline of your project based on one of the templates we discuss.
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This session is all for you! Ask questions, share your progress, and get feedback on what you’ve created so far, no matter how far along in the process you are.
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I’ll walk you through how one of my own sensemaking projects came to fruition. From idea to research to messy first draft to refining to final product, you’ll see the sensemaking process in action. Plus, I share some additional tips & tricks for making media that makes sense!
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This session is all for you! Ask questions, share your progress, and get feedback on what you’ve created so far, no matter how far along in the process you are.
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Present your sensemaking project to the group for feedback. No matter what stage it’s in, we want to celebrate the work you’ve put into critical thinking and critical making.
Live, Online Learning
Making Sense is predominantly a live, online learning experience. We’ll meet on Zoom for 90-minute sessions that include lecture, media analysis, and Q&A.
All sessions will be recorded and available for those who can’t attend or want to review them. Please prioritize attending live for the best experience!
We aim to practice inclusive online meetings—come as you are, camera on or off, mic on or off. We treat participation in the chat as equal to verbal participation.
Critical Making Assignments
Each week, you’ll get your hands dirty and move your project another step closer to completion. Our critical making assignments will not only help you make progress on your project, but also play, experiment, and get to know your own ideas better!
Feedback & Collaboration
Share your work with Tara and the group during live sessions for feedback. Hear how others are transforming their own insights into remarkable media.
Looking for 1:1 feedback and coaching? You can add on private sessions with Tara.
Meet Your Guide
Tara McMullin is a writer and critic who studies the future of work through the lens of philosophy, critical theory, and media. She's the creator of What Works and the co-founder of YellowHouse.Media, a boutique audio & video production agency.
She believes that care, curiosity, and context create an environment where we can not only learn but experience new and sometimes challenging ideas with grace. She's coached, taught, and facilitated for over 16 years—including more than a dozen classes with CreativeLive.
Tara brings her own experience as an autistic feminist, endurance athlete, and amateur baker to everything she does.
Making Sense was made for you if you are:
A coach or consultant who feels confident in 1:1 work, but don’t know how to translate that into articles or social media posts
An academic who struggles when you try to reach audiences outside the academy
A small business owner who is tired of marketing-as-usual and wants to find a new way to reach customers
A manager or director tasked with getting your team on the same page and getting buy-in from higher-ups
A podcaster or video creator who wants to take a risk and build a body of work around a theory or framework you have
Questions?
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This seminar is designed to help content creators and communicators of all kinds. Whether you're a writer, video creator, podcaster, marketer, influencer, illustrator, or work in some other medium, you'll learn a process for upping your game and making the world make sense for those you create for.
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No! If you have an established newsletter, podcast, YouTube channel, etc., where you can publish your final project, excellent! If you don't, Making Sense could help you jumpstart one if that's your goal. It can also help you craft better internal communications, draft a speech, or create compelling articles for other channels.
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Expect to spend 5-10 hours on your final project, depending on how ambitious it is! You'll receive weekly assignments so that your time commitment for that project is spread out over the 8 weeks.
Each live session is about 90 minutes, and we’ll have 7 over the course of 8 weeks.
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During live sessions, there will typically be enough time to get to everyone’s questions. If you can’t make it, there is an opportunity to submit questions beforehand.
We’ll do more in-depth feedback during Session 5 and Session 7 when you’ll have the opportunity to share part of your project with Tara and the group.
If you’re interested in even more feedback, opt for the 1:1 guidance option.
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Seminar x What Works often offers reduced fees and sliding scale prices for our programs. Because Making Sense is a limited enrollment, interactive seminar, we cannot offer reduced fees at this time.
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If you register before August 30 and need to drop out, you will receive a full refund. If you register after August 30 and need to drop out, you may transfer your registration to someone else.
Because the program is limited enrollment, no refunds or transfers will be made after September 5.
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You can get a feel for how Tara teaches by viewing her free lessons from her classes on CreativeLive. We recommend checking out this one and this one. You can also check out a recent talk she gave at Plywood Presents in Atlanta, GA.
Ready to Enroll?
Choose from either the program only or the program plus 1:1 feedback. Then, choose whether to pay in full today or split your investment into 2 payments (no service fees).
All prices are USD.
$400
Making Sense Program Only
Get 8 live sessions over 8 weeks, plus access to recordings, transcripts, slide decks, case studies, and templates, all organized in an easy-to-use program hub.
$800
Program +
1:1 Feedback
Get the full Making Sense program plus 2 30-minute private sessions with Tara McMullin. Share your notes, outlines, or drafts for feedback. Ask questions about the process. Or talk strategy.