Working with creative processes: Painting, story boards, poetry, haiku’s, newspaper/letter articles

To enable participants to step away from the judgemental, cognitive thinking brain, to allow the creative, imaginative brain to come to the foreground. This process can be used to support mindfulness or to enable someone to take time to allow inner knowing, thought, reasoning and emotions to surface and be worked through to develop new insights and possibilities for future action/ consideration.

With all 5 activities the same process applies.

  • Focus on the issue you wish to explore then try and put it to the back of your mind.
  • Engage with a process (writing , drawing, painting etc); paying as little attention as you can to what you are producing and “go with the flow.”
  • Pick up and work with what comes to you, what feels good, helpful. Let the creative process take you to the knowing rather than use the process to describe the knowing.

Step back from the creative “production” and seek meaning:

  • how has this felt?
  • what came up for me?
  • why does “this” (colour, shape, word, line in poem etc) matter?
  • what does this mean for me?
  • what do I know that I didn’t before?

Individuals can do this themselves but often find it helpful to share this and be questioned by others either in pairs or in a group. Often others will see/ hear things that they think may be significant and can help each other explore wider as a result.

Help the person summarise what the process has raised and what this means for them moving forwards.

Activities:

Painting

Paint an image; focus on colours; texture; brush strokes. Let the colours and the brushes “pick you” – trust your gut. Painting can be precise or abstract – anything goes. Be playful.

Story Board

Create a story board by dividing the page into 6 “frames” Draw out the story (here and now through to desired future) from start to finish.

Poem

Write a poem about the issue being explored. Poems don’t have to rhyme; they need to flow and are usually full of concise and punchy writing. Enabling the discipline of writing in verse to occupy your mind.

Haiku

Japanese poem – verses made up of:

5 syllables

7 syllables

5 syllables

Should talk in some way about changing of seasons. As many verses as you like.

Newspaper/ newsletter article/ blog / social media post  

Write an article set in the future:

  • Detail what has changed
  • How the change happened and how it was experienced
  • What the key learning has been
  • Why it’s important
  • What role you and others played

What was key to your success?

  • Resources: Paints, brushes, water, large pieces of paper, pens and paper
  • Time: 10-20 mins for creative activity, 5 mins per person to share, 15 mins to summarise / theme insights.

Campfire Dialogue

This activity enables teams to talk through things which may be challenging to discuss, be sensitive or emotional but needs to be worked through in an honest and brave way to enable the team to move on in their development as a team. It should only be used when all the team have agreed to participate in accordance with some rules or ways of working which keep all safe. It is particularly helpful for seldom heard voices to be heard and should help the team let go of the past and invite a new future possibility.

The group/ facilitator collect / bring items to construct a creative representation of a fire. Some have used crepe paper and wood branches from outdoors. Others have used a digital fire burning with low sound. Its purpose is to act as a central point on the floor where all eyes are focused throughout the exercise.

The topic for discussion should be determined by the group.

Rules:

  1. Everyone has to look at the fire throughout.   
  2. Share honest thoughts and feelings
  3. Do not directly challenge another’s contributions, rather replace that with an alternative perspective with kindness and to enable various perspectives to hold truth at the same time
  4. Don’t avoid confusion or unravelling as you progress – this is normal.
  5. Live with silence to give everyone ample time to think about issues, to consider if and how they want to respond.
  6. The group should naturally move from a first phase of exploring the past and its impact to exploring what is possible in the future.  If not the facilitator can check in to ascertain that everyone has shared what they want and gently invite them to consider what next – what could it look like moving forward , what would work.

Facilitator should round up the discussion with a summary – check it for accuracy with the group and seek to agree some positive actions, time frames and persons responsible ,as well as a timeframe to check on progress.

  • Resources: 4- 12 people (if you have more than 12 consider 2 facilitators), skilled facilitators who can manage highly charged discussions and emotions, paper and pen to record agreed action plan
  • Time: 1 hour

Modified Samoan Circle

This type of discussion tool can be used when there are issues that may be controversial and there are a large number of people interested in the topic. It enables the group to share knowledge and different opinions. It is not intended to resolve conflict, instead it lays the ground before decisions can be made, ensuring decisions are made based on all the relevant information and perspectives.

The group agree on a topic they would like to understand better, from a range of perspectives. There is no maximum size of group. They normally pose them as questions.
The group appoint a facilitator

4 chairs are placed in an inner circle and then everyone’s chairs are in an outer circle. Those most interested in discussing the topic move to the inner circle.

No dialogue is allowed on outer circle or commentary or cheering, groaning etc.

Those in the inner circle can leave the circle at any time. Those on the outside can take a one of the four chairs in the inner circle when they wish to contribute and if there is not one empty then can tap a person on the shoulder to ask them to leave.
The person tapped must leave when asked.

Once all contributions have been made the facilitator asks the group to help them summarise the perspectives and any conclusions they can draw.
The group can use this to decision make at another meeting or progress to use a collaborative process for considering and agreeing on options for action.

  • Resources: Chairs, Quiet room without disruption, Skilled facilitator to help people stick with the rules and to support summarising, Sometimes it can help to have an observer who catalogues key points raised and to share this with the group at the end.
  • Time: This depends on how many issues or how complex an issue is. A minimum of 30 mins is needed for one topic.

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