Typically we are told that people suffer changes as they do grief – by going through stages of denial, resistance, paralysis and then inquiry, experimentation, adaptation and acceptance. Yet people seem to love change – witness the extraordinary rise of travel to distant parts of the world, the success of Massive online courses, the spread and development of technology such as apps and the iPad/Pod/Phone phenomenon, etc.. If you consider all the changes in your own life – personal, professional, technological, and in community, you may find that the change in the past few years has been considerable, and perhaps greater than you had expected. When change brings excitement, novelty and personal engagement, we seem to do lots of it.
Which raises the question: What if you could capture the excitement and novelty of exploration, to elicit the changes you would like to see?
The key lies in the word Inquiry. While it is the fourth stage in grief, it can be the starting stage for change. While imposed change often feels uncomfortable and unclear, in the moment we are invited to inquire into and shape the change, we regain ownership. But to really enable successful change, we need to focus on what works. This is the heart of Appreciative Inquiry.
The future is already here. It is just unevenly distributed. -William Gibson
Appreciative Inquiry discovers what is already working well, and helps shine a light on that. At the personal, team and organisational levels, there are practices that enable really good work. When we focus on those practices, which so often go unnoticed, people can recognise what a better situation would look like. More importantly, they can envision how a better functioning organisation could work. After all, they have examples already!
Naturally Appreciative Inquiry can work not only at the organisational level, but also at the personal level, the team level, and the strategic level.
To explore what Appreciative Inquiry can bring you and the organisations you work with, join us on 22 June, at the John Knox Center in Geneva. We’ll be running a one-day intensive and participatory workshop on Appreciative Inquiry and exploring how it works at the personal, collective and strategic levels.
Information and registration here: Appreciative inquiry for building-strategy that-works
