Collaboration Thanks.

I can live for two months on a good compliment - Mark Twain.

It’s Canadian Thanksgiving and a tinge of gratitude is felt in the Fall-time air and a notion of holding appreciation is infused in family meals and friendly gatherings. This spirit of thanks has us wondering what would happen if it was also infused within people’s collaboration and working together environments.  

In the book Heart at Work by Jack Canfield and Jacqueline Miller, entrepreneurial visionary Ronald E. Guzik writes of the benefits of praising your way to team success. He relates three ways to increase team confidence and sustainability:

1. Recognize yourself and your own accomplishments.  (Doing this makes it easier for you to appreciate others)
2. Cultivate the habit of looking for what people do right.  (Extend this to what groups/teams do right)
3. Speak up when you see something good.  (Don’t just notice how others are contributing – tell them)

It seems quite simple really, to motivate and empower people to work together, make sure they feel appreciated!  So today, in honour of Thanksgiving, take a moment to reflect on team morale boosters. Stop and acknowledge what you bring to collaboration, what you notice others doing “right” in their collaboration and think of creative ways you can authentically praise one another.

As the above Mark Twain quote implies... there is something nourishing about being noticed by another. The appreciation payback is guaranteed to last longer than any turkey leftovers. Happy Thanksgiving all!

Village Raising Question:

 What part of collaboration are you thankful for? When will you tell others?

Collaboration Compass: Finding Direction with Strengths

Want a quick, yet impact filled way, to start your next team meeting or community gathering? Try this activity that what we facilitated in a recent strategic planning session.

The Strength Compass Activity:

Draw compass points on a flip-chart. Ask people to pick the ONE compass point that most describes or reflects their personal preference (with the understanding that people likely have some aspects of all of these strengths).

Read out the following descriptions:
North: You are a let’s get it done person. All about the action
South: You are a let’s look at the big picture person
East: You are about inclusion of everyone’s feelings and voice
West: You pay attention to the details.

Have people stand and cluster in groups, based on their chosen compass points, and encourage them to talk about the strengths they each bring in their chosen area. Although people cluster together under one heading, it becomes clear that each person approaches their strength in a unique way. After small group discussion - capture the collective strengths on a flip-chart (like in the photo). Use this as a visual reference throughout any meeting to keep the various strengths in mind that can help influence things like strategic planning, goal setting or initiative task appointing. These strengths can help any plan come to fruition! Each time we have facilitated this activity there is a resulting buzz of conversation and a claiming of personal strengths that fills meeting rooms!

Here are two more resources filled with strength based approaches and community building tools:

1. We LOVE this Sierra Health Foundation resource that is chock full of asset minded activities. In particular take a look at their capacity inventory checklist and asset mapping activity. They ask things like... What do we have that will help us get there? What are our assets, resources, strengths or capacities? What are the gifts people can bring?
http://www.sierrahealth.org/assets/files/other_pubs/WDIO-We-Did-It-Ourselves.pdf

2. A Guide to Capacity Inventories: Mobilizing the Community Skills of Local Residents by John P. Kretzmann John McKnight and Co-directors Geralyn Sheehan. This document focuses on individual capacities and collective assets. One of the main questions they suggest communities should ask is: How will the skills and capacities of local people be translated into meeting community-building goals?
This resource takes community planning from thinking about needs (issues/problems) to thinking about capacities (tools to promote growth and enhance quality). Check out the capacity inventory checklist: http://www.abcdinstitute.org/docs/CapacityInventories%281%29.pdf

All of the above activities and resources speak to the power of finding collaborative direction with the STRENGTHS of the individuals and whole. Try it!

Discover the strengths that fill your collaboration compass!


Village Raising Question:

What is a strength filled activity you have used?

* Note: Does this activity interest you? If so, the collaboration compass can be found in our new book Village Raising: Learn, Think, Innovate and Act Together. This book is chock full of 60 engaging activities for group leaders.

* See related blog:
Who is the ultimate team member? Using collective strengths.  http://raisingthevillage.blogspot.ca/2012/09/who-is-ultimate-team-member.html 

3 Questions that Lead to Collaborative Focus

Last week’s blog set the reflective stage for your organization to think about collaborative focus.

One approach that can help organizations find and follow through with a strong collaborative focus is based on Jim Collins hedgehog concept. The concept is based on a parable, whereby a hedgehog outsmarts a fox by doing one big thing, sticking to it and doing it really well. According to Collins this concept is what takes companies from Good to Great (also the title of his book).  While this book is largely written with big business in mind, the concepts can easily be adapted for any organization. In fact Collins wrote a follow up monograph to accompany Good To Great specifically for the social sector which is also an interesting read.

So what is the Hedgehog concept?  It’s where leaders can discover their capacity, competence and the consistent activities that will boost your organizations work.

 It’s all about reaching an understanding based on three core questions...

1. What is your organization deeply passionate about?
2. What drives your economic engine?  (For non profit organizations consider this two ways; what drives your resource engine? and what drives your socio- economic results?)
3. What can you be the best in the world at? (This refers to your organization’s unique contribution and what it CAN be best at – not what it WANTS to be best at).

While the concept is somewhat simple, reaching collective understanding and focus takes time. Go over and over the three questions above (and do pick up Jim Collins book for more guidance of how to work through the Hedgehog Concept and to move your organization from Good to Great). Enjoy the dialogue and focused collaboration!  It’s through exploration of questions like these that you will unearth your core activities and strategic decisions.

Village Raising Question:

What is ONE thing that could bring the greatest single impact to your initiative?

(add more later). 

Looking for a Ticket into Higher Participation? Create collective FUN!

“A master in the art of living draws no sharp distinctions between his work and his play, his labour and his leisure, his mind and his body, his education and his recreation. He hardly knows which is which. He simply pursues his vision of excellence through whatever he is doing and leaves others to determine whether he is working and playing.”

L.P. Jacks, Education Through Recreation.

Communities and organizations can sustain their working together efforts with this type of blurred movement between work and play. In fact, our partnership, Raising the Village Consulting, started in the realm of fun. We (Tammy and Tracy) met at a women’s kayaking and cycling course and while dodging (or aiming for) mud puddles and navigating waves in the pouring rain, we found our combined commitment to creative group processes. After co-authoring our book Raising the Village, we quickly discovered that we were NOT the only ones on the pursuit for more creative interaction, fun and engagement in communities. The biggest request we have received since the book is for MORE ways to engage groups and more ways to facilitate creative processes that hold meaning.

When it comes to participatory methods we’ve used a slew of creative processes (and honestly, not always successfully) such as:

• Collaging exercises or play-dough to create vision statements
• Blocks to discuss the difference between collaboration and cooperation
• Graphic recording to keep people’s attention and open up the right side of the brain 
• Balls to signal when it is someone else's turn to share/talk on an agenda (keeps people awake and
• on their toes too)
• Champagne toasts to create mission statements
• Strategic plan scavenger hunts around town
• Comedic comedy clips or cartoons to bring issues alive in an indirect way

Through any process we bring our humour and let our quirks shine. We certainly admit to when an activity “bombs” or doesn’t quite land which brings an authenticity that keeps things light and real (and boy does that help when dealing with complex issues)! For example, one time we facilitated a creative visualization around moving through obstacles and challenges. People seemed very reflective during this but when it came time to share stories the room was more silent than expressive. In hindsight, people weren’t yet ready to share intimate details and stories with a room of people they did not know. We adjusted on the fly and turned the opportunity into a dialogue about obstacles in general instead of sharing stories. During a similar workshop the following week we “warmed” the climate first by playing an “obstacle bingo” game which was a light and perhaps safer way to explore the challenges that face collaborative work. After the tone was set, deeper stories were spontaneously shared in small groups with expression aplenty.

Now creativity, fun and group process is not all about gimmicks, role plays and props (although it certainly can be). It is also about how people approach one another and work together. It can be your ticket to higher participation, maximized engagement, expanded collective thinking and meaningful action.

“Mark Beeman, PhD, at Northwestern University, found that people have an easier time solving a puzzle after watching a short comedy clip. Having fun, perhaps by easing tension, may facilitate neuronal connections that are helpful for greater mental flexibility and creativity. In another brain imaging study, Dr. Beeman found that activation of pleasure centers in the brain predicted successful puzzle-solving. These findings suggest that well-being helps us think more creatively and could potentially help us resolve challenging situations.”

Spirituality & Health, May-June 2011 ~ Emma Seppala

The benefits of using creative group process are massive. We have seen firsthand how taking a playful approach together can lead to:

• Extraordinary fuller dialogue that captures many voices
• Engaged WHOLE brain activity (the left and right)
• The spirit of play – which is key to innovation.
• Increased shared experience and co-created meaning
• Less daunting complexity and increased creative solutions
• A spirit of celebration and “can do” or “we” type of attitude
• Enriched relationships (and often a shared leadership/ownership)
• Expanded and reframed challenges

Creative group process can instigate an environment of fun, but it will be different for everyone.  It’s important to know your group and know your own leadership style so that you can pick the processes that will 1) work for you and 2) STRETCH but not hinder your engagement with others. A bit of discomfort and a bit of a stretch is good, but if you push too far, people may put up walls that no creative process is getting through. So do match the leader and the situation so that creativity has the ground to flourish. Meet people where they are, add a dash of fun and grab your ticket into higher participation infused with a collective smile.

For more ideas and resources on creative group process visit our website www.raisingthevillage and watch for our soon to be released book that is busting with 60 group activities,

Village Raising. Learn, Think, Innovate & Act Together. Engaging Activities for Group Leaders.

You’re Turn! Village Raising Questions:

• Where does your distinction lie between work and play? How are the two combined?
• What participatory methods have you used that bring a sense of collective fun?
• How do you resolve challenging situations in groups?
• Where is your comfort zone with participating in or facilitating creative group process? What benefits are there to stepping out of this comfort zone? What benefits are there to respect people’s different boundaries around participation? 

What’s your favorite place?

What's your favorite place to collaborate, kibitz, and all around community build?

The location of any group meeting conveys a message all on its own.  Some of our most moving and magical collaborative moments have occurred by taking a twist on the usual board room or office meeting space. For example, we have facilitated and hosted in our own homes or in coffee shops (think First Nation spirituality conversations while nestled in circular placed couches or watching strength inspired movie clips while lounging in a family setting). Several times we have held meetings and celebrations out of the usual conference room and donned outdoor gear (think strategic planning scavenger hunt in a park or annual networking events while walking on the beach - true stories).

So if you are looking for some mindful meeting magic remember to think about the physical space and location. Being intentional sets the tone for the type of interaction that will evolve.

• If you are thinking creative - be playful and unexpected with the environment.
•  If you are thinking renewal and rejuvenation – design a space to be calm and filled with natural elements. 
• If you are thinking relationship building and networking – use a space to allow movement and connection.

Your turn...tell us your favorite place to do it. Collaboration that is! 

Share your meeting space "twist" or collaborative location ideas and help inspire other village raisers!
Post on RTV facebook or Twitter.

Mindful Meeting Magic!

Intention is change fueled and a core piece of village raising. 

Behind every goal, strategic plan, meeting or collaborative encounter there is an intention lurking. The idea is to become increasingly more mindful to the intentions, bringing them from our subconscious to our consciousness so that we can be more direct and aware of the path we are setting.

One of the leading gurus on intention, Dr. Wayne Dyer says, "The secret to changing your life is in your intentions. Wishing, hoping and goal setting cannot accomplish change without intention. What is needed is a shift from the inert energy of wanting to the active energy of doing and intention".

Where can we surface intent while working with others?

As designers of creative group processes, we have reflected on some practical ways in which mindful intent beckons us to bring it front and center. Here is what has worked for us:

Physical space/environment:  Before a gathering even occurs, think about the location of your meeting.  Being intentional in the spaces we choose sets the tone for the type of interaction we hope will evolve. If you are thinking creative - be playful and unexpected with the environment.  If you are thinking renewal and rejuvenation – design a space to be calm and filled with natural elements.  If you are thinking relationship building and networking – use a space to allow movement and connection.

Agendas:  Imagine starting every agenda clearly stating what your intent is for the day and giving space to learn what other people’s intents are.  Design an agenda that offers an opportunity for people to share. The moment intents are spoken out loud there is a transparent and open agenda that increases trust.  Intent expresses clear expectations.

Guiding principles/Ground Rules:  Build on your mindful meeting magic by crafting questions that have your group think intently together. For example, ask a key question such as, “how do we want to be together?” and feel the intent in the room.  In this form, intents are the commitment to each other in the collaborative effort. What if every person set their own intent to be responsible for their own reactions and level of participation? Ask people to set intent around how they will handle their own feelings/reactions/learning and speak to it. In this case intent is accountability.  Think about work plans clear in intent and imagine what could be accomplished!

 Mindful intention enhances meeting tone, expectations, commitment and accountability. In our next three blogs we will go into each of these in more detail...watch for it and share with us how you create mindful meeting magic. 

Collaboration Trap: Burn Out! Try the 4 D's.

How many times have you heard these kinds of statements? “It’s always the same people that show up at the table over and over” or “The project just seemed to fizzle out”.

Welcome to the place of burnout! This energy zapping place often occurs when people who are deeply committed and passionate about their work are potentially doing too many activities that drain them.

You can prevent (or reduce) burnout with the 4 D’s:

• Discuss succession planning from the get go of every community initiative. Have a plan.  What does the end of our working together look like? What will be in place when the work or position is ready to be turned over?
• Don a direction mindset and reconnect to your personal leadership mission and goals and where you are going as a group. When we stay connected to the greater picture or direction our actions are infused with greater purpose and burnout is less formidable.  
• Ditch or delegate by really, truly delegating and ditching the things that drain you. Break projects up into manageable chunks and open the opportunity for someone else to grow. Someone else may hold the very strength and passion to do the job that drains you.
• Drink in the successes and celebrate, celebrate, and celebrate! Acknowledging people cannot be under-rated on the engagement and burnout prevention scale.

Village Raising Question?

How do you combat leadership burnout? What keeps you (and your group) energized?

Collaboration Trap: M-O-N-E-Y

There are three big, heart-stopping, "watch-your-step" traps to avoid when building community. Attempts at coordination, cooperation and collaboration can take a turn south when these three elements are neglected. Learned from both experience (good and bad) as well as what we discovered from research and many interviews over the course of writing Raising the Village, the three traps are… money, burn out and territorial issues.

This week, lets look at the power of the green stuff (or gorgeous colourful cash in Canada). 

Money can be a difficult subject for many people to talk about. When we are referring to funds that support community, it often gets politicized and interlocked with power and influence. In the world of community not-for-profits, we don’t want it to be, but one of the biggest threats to sustained collaborative relationships is money.  Most social programs and services are funded in a patchwork way, stitched together from a variety of sources: government, charities, foundations, grants, local businesses, and consumers. Funding opportunities are usually created and distributed with narrow deliverables and strings attached.  

People either whine too much about money or don’t whine enough and take on a "make do," limiting attitude. Some people act irrational when money is dangled in front of them. How many people have experienced the end of the fiscal year rush when one-time only “pots of money” are grabbed at by organizations, using the trendy need or theme of the day or who you know?  The inconsistency of funding opportunities and allocation unavoidably creates the perception that funding is unpredictable and unfair. This perception feeds into the panic about funding.

Raising the Village Consulting helped set up one group process in which the agencies who were submitting a proposal to a funding competition were required to sit in a room with all the other organizations asking for money. While a tad awkward at times (!!) – proponents shared their ideas with passion rather than secretly submitting them. The entire group had the pleasure of hearing the many fantastic ideas and... at the end of the evening many of the proposals changed because they all heard the true priorities that lay beneath the proposals. Agencies that typically would have kept to themselves were inspired to engage with new partners. The excitement of how to help each other's great ideas was palpable. For example, two proposals were so similar that the agencies involved said, "lets do this together" and decided to submit a joint proposal – saving a ton of money and increasing the likelihood that they would both get a piece of the proverbial pie. Another organization said, you don't need to ask for "x" - we'll give that to you for free!

This sort of process takes practice and a huge dose of trust. Our hope is that processes like this can replace traditional funding competitions more often. We also believe strongly that community collaboratives can play a strong role in shaping community priorities, allocating community dollars and maximizing the use of the limited money out there.

Village Raising Question:

What are your tips to help AVOID the money trap when working in community?

Understanding, engaging and moving forward with groups.

This week we answer the question: What are some of the best ways to UNDERSTAND a group, ENGAGE them and MOVE FORWARD in addressing complex issues?

UNDERSTANDING takes listening and learning.  This could look very different depending on the group. Formally, you can use surveys, forums and research or consider collaborative conversations and seeking points of view more informally through fun engagement and interaction. Be curious…ask questions. Craft ones that are tough, deep, and emotional because its those kinds of questions that get people thinking. Remember to be open, patient and deliberate in all of your approaches within community.

 ENGAGE the group by giving them what they need. Keep brain based engagement principles in mind.  Find what makes things relevant for them.  That might include what is relevant for the group as a whole as well as what is relevant for individual people too.   Create the space, ask phenomenological questions, celebrate together, and hold tons of dialogue.

Then, once you have got people engaged, MOVING FORWARD to address complex issues is the goal. We believe that it is though well planned group process that moves groups to action.  And not just any action – but one that resonates, is well informed and has everyone’s buy-in.

See our related blog on the four steps to dealing with complexity using group processes.

Village Raising Question:

Reflect on what might happen when any of these strategies is skipped or rushed.  What happens when a community builder doesn't really understand the group they are with or if only part of the group is engaged in the topic or issue? How effective is action when not everyone is informed and "bought" it?

Related blogs:

 6 Group Process Tips
Brain Based Engagement Strategies
Find What Binds You

Brain-based Engagement Strategies - a List

After a year of offering our Collaboration: Authentic Engagement Workshop, we have compiled a list of brain-based engagement strategies from the amazing and diverse workshop participants whose wisdom, experience, innovative thinking and new insights filled flip chart pages with practical engagement ideas.

The ideas are organized by the four key community building strategies that we outline in our book, Raising the Village;

1.  Unearthing - Are you looking at finding a deeper understanding of community?

2. Building Relationships - Are you looking at strengthening relationships or building new partnerships?

3.  Framing Leadership - Are you looking at enhancing and sharing the leadership required to work together?

4.  Constructing Collective Relevance - Are you seeking that "feeling" of collective relevance...the "us"?

The ideas are further sorted according to the 5 domains of human interaction using a brain-based engagement lens. We have learned about these domains over the last five blogs; status, certainty, autonomy, relatedness and fairness.

Enjoy! Download this handout of engagement ideas here. (under the leader Development section). We hope it is useful!


Upon reflection, our last six blogs have been a reminder to examine how we engage you - blog-readers interested in building stronger communities. Our mission at Raising the Village is to support, inspire and engage individuals, organizations and communities in their efforts to collaborate. So taking direction from our own handout...

We welcome your input, comments, posts and questions in all of our online communities - blog, Facebook and Twitter. Tell us what engages you about building community - and what you are interested in learning more about.

We are continually seeking new ways to support community building efforts (in your families, in your workplaces and in your communities). Check out our website Resource page for a great selection of information on community development, leader development, the early years and group activities.

Our new book will be available soon! It is full of engaging activities for group leaders. The book (also available as 2 ebooks) shares 50 group activities that guides groups to gather information, make meaning from data, generate innovative action ideas and make decisions for action. For our growing Raising the Village communities we want to offer a pre-order discount. If you are not already receiving our seasonal newsletter, sign up here - we'll be sending out the discount soon.

Autonomy - how do you feel when you lose control?

It can't be avoided. When working in a team situation, the individual players lose a bit of autonomy.

Autonomy is that sense of control and ability to make choices which is intricately connected to people's feelings of freedom and their ability to handle stress. Funnily enough, in this game of life, autonomy is often a matter of perception.  Do people "think or feel" that they have the power to choose?

Crazy rat experiments showed that inescapable stress can be highly destructive, whereas the same stress interpreted as escapable is significantly less destructive. (Donny et al, 2006). The difference in some rat studies was life and death (Dworkin et al, 1995). (My stress level goes up just thinking of the trapped rats!!) Think Hotel California:

Last thing I remember, I was
Running for the door
I had to find the passage back
To the place I was before
"Relax, " said the night man,
"We are programmed to receive.
You can check-out any time you like,
But you can never leave! "

When people experience a loss of autonomy, they feel threatened, hemmed in, pushed around, bullied... None of which are reactions that would help teams to work collaboratively, build relationships or leverage creativity and innovation.  Often policies that exist in our systems set boundaries that can make people feel like they are losing control. Examples include an inflexible work week, shared and depersonalized work spaces, directives, and micro-managing.

Working in community, or in other collaborations, there is the dance of give and take - so a loss of autonomy lays persistently beneath the surface of partnerships and group efforts. So how can you, as collaborator and community builder, help to diminish the AVOID responses of people when they feel like they are losing autonomy?

Our number one, best tactic is to ensure everyone's strengths shine. When we are acknowledged and honoured for how we can contribute to something using our strengths/passions/greatness, there is a much better chance of being ok with others doing the same...even when it means WE don't get to have as much say.

Example: if your schtick is coming up with poetic and powerful words and the project allows you to contribute your best writing, you are going to be a little softer when someone else brings images that maybe you would have done a bit different. When you have a chance to shine and also see how other people shine when they have their chance...the control is shared more peaceably.

Here are other great ways to bring more autonomy (and the perception of autonomy) to groups:

• self-directed learning
• seek creativity through flexible and open processes
• ask lots of questions and seek clarity constantly
• have decision making processes that work towards or embrace consensus
• level the playing field when different partners have more power (both real and perceived)
• identify the key pieces of the work and how we are all needed and important to the issue
• an escape route!

Next week - Relatedness, SCARF brain-based engagement and the 4th (of 5) domains of social experience.

photo by indi.ca

Crafting a solid strategic plan

flickr cc zenera

Strategic planning actually makes some people excited!

Others, however, find something else to do.


The key to a usable, practical, inspiring strategic plan is to have the final product resonate with both kinds of people. 


  
1.  Be clear about what a strategic plan is BEFORE you begin.
Not every plan is a strategic plan. A strategic plan is a tool or map to fulfill your mission with efficiency and impact. If it is to be responsive and useful, it should articulate specific priorities and describe the strategies and resources needed to accomplish them. Commonly, most strategic plans are reviewed and rewritten every three to five years.

"Because it is impossible to do everything that needs to be done in this world, strategic planning implies that some organizational decisions and actions are more important than others - and that much of the strategy lies in making the tough decisions about what is most important to achieving organizational success." Carol Munro (friend and colleague - www.carolmunro.com)

Don't confuse a strategic plan with an operating plan. This is a coordinated set of tasks for carrying out the goals of the strategic plan (usually a 9 or 12 month timeline). The operating plan is the who, what, where, when kind of information to help people hit the ground running. Very important... but created after the strategic plan!


2.  Consider a realistic time frame in which to create the plan.
A day just won't cut it. If the next 3 to 5 years really matter to your team, invest more than a day in designing how to make the best use of your efforts. Here are a few of the reasons why a one-day, isolated attempt is not effective.
a) people are absolutely exhausted after 6 hours of serious thinking, planning and dialogue, by the end of the day any big decisions will be compromised.
b) some people need time to process - often making great connections and innovations when they allow their brains to percolate with information.  Rushing a group process will deny you the gifts of these kinds of thinkers.
c) it is highly unlikely that you will capture all the necessary perspectives in one day. Consider breaking the process down into a few steps which encourage and allow people to have a voice in different ways.

At the same time, don't drag a strategic planning process out too long. People will lose enthusiasm and momentum.



3.  Take ownership of the process and the plan.
If a team hires a consultant (or in our case consultants) to facilitate a strategic planning process, avoid the trap of transferring too much responsibility to them. It is the team... the participants... the USERS of the plan that require a vested interest in crafting a strategic plan that holds meaning. The consultant can provide invaluable assistance in designing a planning process, involving key stakeholders, listening with an objective perspective, and synthesizing key issues that arise out of an often messy, creative process. But you're not hiring a consultant to do the actual planning or make the tough decisions - that's your job!


Have some fun with this...why not!?!?
We've shared some ways to add some laughter and team building to strategic planning efforts in previous blog posts; The Right Brain Approach,  Tips for Group Toys, and the Strengths Compass Activity.
We're on the lookout for more ideas too!

What was the most fun/inspired/creative strategic planning activity you have been involved in?

Everyday Items Yield Extraordinary Dialogue

The intention of dialogue is to reach new understanding and, in doing so, to form a totally new basis from which to think and act. William Isaacs. *


And often this level of dialogue can be reached by using everyday items that shake regular routines and thought patterns up!

For example, what could you do with...

• Stones


• Straws


• String

...to promote dialogue and multi person perspective sharing?

Over our years of facilitating groups we have used all of the above items (and many more) to craft and host a variety of team experiences filled with extraordinary dialogue that leads to collective action and learning.

Stones : pass around stones to a group as a check-in or check out. Whoever holds the stone has uninterrupted time to share their thoughts and ideas.

Straws : work together to build collective straw towers - debrief and land the learning by asking the group... How were decisions made? What did people notice about the role they played in the building? What kind of dialogue took place? How might this apply to the work they do together?

String or rope: toss a ball of string around the room until everyone holds a piece and has had their say. We have also used rope in activities like this one: http://www.teambuildingportal.com/games/rope-knots-game

There is no end to the things you can do. Challenge yourself and grab a random everyday object right now. Take a moment to brainstorm all the ways you could use that item to foster extraordinary dialogue.

Village Raising Questions:
What makes extraordinary dialogue?
What everyday item will you use in your next group meet?

We know you have good activity ideas - so please share them with us and others! Post your activity idea on our Raising the Village Facebook page. The post that gets the most "LIKES" between February 14 and Feb 22nd will be highlighted in one of our books and as a bonus, recieve a free copy when it is released!











* Note: William Isaacs quote from his book: A Pioneering Approach to Communicating in Business and in Life – dialogue and the art of thinking together.