When a wrong makes right...

So many of my insights for this blog come out of our ADDIE to Improv web class.  I am sitting there in class and ideas and thoughts come to me and then I am off into a world of idea association.  I have found that if I make a short note, something I can come back to later, I can quickly avert the "down the rabbit hole" excursion and stay with our class.  And this topic is definitely one of those topics.  We talk about the value of practicing the wrong or ineffective behavior, and the benefits of using humor to highlight this kind of behavior.   Jeff Foxworthy comes to mind with his "You just might be a redneck..." bit.  I came across a short video (5 minutes or less) when reading the Rapid E-Learning Blog that did a great job of highlighting some of the wrong or ineffective behaviors around e-mail.  It has something for everyone - those of us who are frustrated by e-mail to those of us that are clueless that what we are sending in e-mail might be frustrating to others.  If you have the time, I encourage you to take a short jaunt down this rabbit hole. Go to this link .   Make sure to watch the  YouTube Video

But getting back to the idea of practicing the wrong or ineffective behavior... In the Improv world this game is often known as the game: The World's Worst.  And the idea behind it is to say things that embody the world's worst _______________(fill in the blank: Occupation).  

 Here's my example of The World's Worst Trainer:  (In a monotone, soft voice, sniffling from allergies) As you can see here in bullet point 6, that I highlighted the most important concepts in light gray, and the less important words in darker gray... I will just leave the slide up for a moment so you can jot down notes before I move on... uh Susan, go ahead and order lunch for everyone as we should easily get through this 106 slide slide deck by 1:30.

Thiagi has a great description of how the game can be played in an applied situation and he has a great list of the World's Worst Salesperson lines under his field notes section - Aside from all the wonderfully bad statements - where does this get us?  What is the value in practicing the wrong behavior?  The gold is in the debrief.  Thiagi recommends using a debrief he calls THIRTYFIVE .  The debrief is the area of where trainers can be eager to get past - because, this leads into territory that is less controlled, less planned.  Things can happen out here.  Unplanned discussion - but valuing that discovery and seeking it can really help your adult learners to process and think about what they have just been asked to do.  

Thiagi takes it a step further and asks the participants to rate the debrief responses that are written on cards -further instilling the thought process about what they just witnessed - and if that isn't enough, the participants, as a part of the debrief, asked to talk to one another - which by the 3rd round you most likely are talking to people you don't know so well.  Eek! Pushing the comfort level for both the traditional trainer, and the participant.  Wow!  But we learn empathy, by experience.  We get the opportunity to experience things first hand, in someone else's shoes.  We may even see ourselves from a different perspective.  We practice the wrong behavior to turn the whole problem inside out and see it from another perspective - and then we talk about it.  

The Importance of Listening

It struck me in our last ADDIE to Improv class, when we got to talking about the importance of listening, how difficult it can be to really listen.  Be it our spouse, our customer, our team members.  This cartoon came to mind.  I used to have it pinned up in my cubicle many years ago - and it speaks to the truth of not listening. 

We all want to be useful and helpful.  We all want to use our skills, especially when our economic situation has been so trying.

But how many of us are comfortable with really listening?  To set aside the impulses to jump to a solution before really hearing what is being said and then staying present in a dialogue about what the problem really is.  Does our culture make this easier or harder?  And why?

For me I think the reason I tend to jump to a solution before the person is finished talking is mainly fear.  Fear of not looking smart.  Fear of not having all the answers.  Fear of not being in control.  Ooh, I know.  Big stuff.  I also know that I cannot demand that my fears just go away - but I can recognize them.  Allow them to be there, but still move forward, still listen, remain present, ask questions that further open the conversation, follow the dialogue. 

Because in the end, we come to a better place.  We have authentically built our relationship with another person and ourselves.  We can share our thoughts and ideas and hopefully have a better solution, one that actually addresses the current issues rather than an egocentric solution that is built on what we already know how to do.