“The way we get to know each other is fateful” — how powerful a statement. I have been wanting to facilitate an opening roundtable for our beautiful Spring Energy Event the last two years and this year I had the opportunity. On the opening evening Friday, I offered the following questions to the participants:
- What do you most appreciate about yourself?
- What makes you feel alive, vital and creative?
- Think of a previous conference experience? What made it so satisfying?
- What are you most hopeful about this gathering?
- Complete this sentence: Our best will be ____________.
People shared with each other and we created flipcharts of the last two answers. It was a delicious way to engage with the loving energy that shows up in this EFT gathering.
We can use this approach in everything we enter into. Try it – you might be surprised. I was.
Appreciative Inquiry
David Cooperrider, creator of an approach to organization development called ‘appreciative inquiry’, who is a social constructionist, once said, “The way we get to know one another is fateful.” He demonstrated in his work that, depending on whether your approach to engaging with one another is positive or negative, the resulting relationship will lean in the direction of affirming or negating. Cooperrider tells us that by becoming adept at framing our questions affirmatively, we can consciously create an affirmative culture in our team. [1]
Photo by Katarzyna Pe
