Letter to self

This can be used to help focus on what is important in the here and now and/or in the future, identify what your desired future is and if required the steps that help you achieve your goals.

Facilitators can use this to:

  • help people create a collective vision,
  • help people consider their ways of being or;
  • enable someone to rise above an emotional issue they are working through and consider it through a values lens.

Write a letter to yourself about an issue or an ambition.

Issue – Imagine you are outside of yourself and giving yourself advice on a matter that is troubling you. Describe in that letter:

  • what you think is going on for you,
  • why it matters,
  • what values it speaks to and;
  • what options you have to address it, teasing out what the consequence of each option might be
  • then give yourself advice on how to move forwards.

Ambition – Write a letter to self about what you need to do now and, in the near future, to change your ways of being, how you might do that, what you are going to commit to.

OR

Write a letter to your future self – detailing what you hope you will have achieved by then; how you think you will have got there and why it all matters so much.

  • Resources: Paper, pen
  • Time: 15-30 mins

Reflective Walk

To connect with nature and our creative whole selves to figure out yet to be known / articulated / understood issues within one’s practice.

  • Go out in pairs with a critical question e.g. how am I showing up as a leader of person-centredness? What part am I playing in my team dynamic?
  • Walk mindfully in silence, using all senses – what are you drawn to; noticing? (10 minutes) . some people find it helpful to note things down – a red car, a noisy engine, a grey austere building, a tree withered and blown by the wind, a cow pat etc
  • Come back to starting point spending 5 minutes each sharing what came up for you and why. Listener can use questions to help person “get out” the relevance of what they have noticed.
  • Note down what was revealed and what that means for answering your critical question and taking positive action – you can do this creatively or using words

If working as a large group people may want to share what has come up, synthesise this and collate what key themes/ insights they have revealed.

  • Resources: Walking / comfortable shows, access to outdoors although it can be done indoors, paper and pen
  • Time: 30 minutes, with options to extend

Cards, Imagery, Words, Statements

The use of images or quotes can help individuals and teams consider what is on their mind, what is important to them, what they most desire etc. Working with them can help reduce the voice of the inner critic and logic and, enable the brain to be playful, imaginative and creative. This enables more innovative solutions to problems individuals/ teams are facing.

Invite person(s) to look at images or words on cards – and to pick up what are they drawn to. Ask them to think about, why. Remind them they may not know why at the outset but if their eyes are drawn to the image, advise them to pick it up

Provide silence to enable others to consider: What sense am I making of this? What might that card mean to me and why?

What do I know now; what do I do with this new insight?

Invite them to discuss this in pairs or a group to deepen and arrive at what they have learned about themselves, their situation etc.

  • Resources: Facilitation cards OR images from magazines OR photographs OR quotes or small objects from home and work (pencils , rulers, Sellotape, a soft toy, a small ornament; a kitchen utensil. Wool, etc etc
  • Time: 20 mins per person with 10 mins to sum up and evaluate at the end.

Action Learning

A facilitator or group would use this when they wanted to create an opportunity to work through a shared concern, issues in the workplace. It provides the opportunity for shared skills development in:

  • concise story telling;
  • reflective questioning,
  • listening and observation skills and;
  • working as a group to ensure collective psychological safety.

  • Have a group of between 6-12 people
  • Nominate a facilitator
  • Nominate an observer who will feed back to the group on how they operated once the group have finished each round.
  • 2-3 people offer a topic/issue they wish to reflect on
  • Group choose first then second (one round followed by second)
  • Reflector shares their story and their thoughts about it (5 mins)
  • Individuals in group ask critical questions to the reflector to help them critique their thinking and move to find actions to take forward (20 mins)
  • Facilitator supports group participants to avoid giving advice or sharing own similar story
  • Facilitator invites the reflector, then the group followed by the observer to reflect on how the session felt and what the group did well/ not so well.
  • Group considers key learning and takes some time to note actions for self
  • Group moves to the second reflector and repeats process

  • Resources: Chairs, facilitator, paper and pen for each participant
  • Time: 1 hour

Triads

This provides an opportunity for three people reflect on an issue in practice and to be supported to critically evaluate it from a range of perspectives so that they can come to their own conclusions on how to address it. Its focus is empowering, and it enables all three people to build skills and confidence in reflecting, facilitating critical reflection, observation and feedback.

15-minute rounds. Each person plays each role in the triad, so 3 rounds.

  • Reflector – share their issue, ready to reflect on it and self to arrive at new insights and future action (3-5 mins).
  • Facilitator – uses range of questions to enable person to clarify issues; challenge or confront their thinking; consider options and decide on action (5-7 mins).
  • Observer – gives feedback to the facilitator on skills shown; questions asked and their impact; their body language; their ability to avoid giving advice (3 mins).

  • Resources: Paper, pen, timer
  • Time: 15 mins per round – 50 mins for all three persons (includes transition time from one role to next)

We acknowledge these facilitation resources have been written by Vanessa Smith and Deborah Baldie, NHS Grampian. They have been adapted from activities in:

Dickson, C, MacDonald, K and Drummond, C. (2021). SEEDS: Supporting & Enhancing Empowerment & Development through Storytelling. Available at: https://www.qnis.org.uk/catalysts-for-change-seeds-project/

Dickson, CAW and MacDonald, K. (2023) Embedding storytelling in practice through CAKE – a recipe for team wellbeing and effectiveness. International Practice Development Journal Volume 13, Issue 1, Article 3 Available at: https://doi.org/10.19043/ipdj.131.003