I was catching up on some of Chad Littlefield's videos (a 'must-tab' YouTube channel) when I was reminded of the 'unofficial start' tool (Chad credited to Mark Collard). [NOTE: Priya Parker, the author of 'The Art of Gathering' calls it a "Threshold Moment."]
I had a program coming up with a large group and this quick reminder of the tool inspired me to create an Unofficial Start related to my program plan theme – 'Adventures.' (My program plan involved taking the group on some adventures as a way to make connections with their colleagues, old and new. One of the thoughts I shared with them was, "Some people see particular situations they face as problems. Other people see their situations as adventures.")
I ended up with the idea of Adventure Slips – 12 voluntary adventures I could hand out as I connected with participants as they came into the room. Here are a few:
I had a program coming up with a large group and this quick reminder of the tool inspired me to create an Unofficial Start related to my program plan theme – 'Adventures.' (My program plan involved taking the group on some adventures as a way to make connections with their colleagues, old and new. One of the thoughts I shared with them was, "Some people see particular situations they face as problems. Other people see their situations as adventures.")
I ended up with the idea of Adventure Slips – 12 voluntary adventures I could hand out as I connected with participants as they came into the room. Here are a few:
- This Is Voluntary In the spirit of adventure, find someone you don’t know, introduce yourself, and: Discover a book you have both read and what you took away from it.
- This Is Voluntary In the spirit of adventure, find someone you don’t know, introduce yourself, and: Play 10 games of Rock, Paper, Scissors and see how many ‘matches’ you can get!
- This Is Voluntary In the spirit of adventure, find someone you don’t know, introduce yourself, and: Make up a handshake only the two of you will know.
Soft Start Adventure Slips
| adventureslipes_document_cavert.pdf |
Process: I created the Adventure Slips document, took it to my local print shop, put the Adventure Slips on 13 sheets of bright green paper (I was expecting up to 150 participants), and settled in to cut out all the Slips (I am a frequent user of the rotary cutter at the print shop - big jobs go pretty fast once you establish a rhythm.)
After all the Slips were cut, I folded them in half and placed them into an envelope ready to travel. On the morning of the event, I put all the folded Slips into a little basket I made with one of the gear bags I brought with me – I rolled down the top of the bag to make a more rigid basket to carry:
When there was a 'critical mass' of people in the room (about 30 I think), I started wandering around the crowd with my Adventure Slips basket in hand. [NOTE: I didn't want to 'pounce' on people right away. I thought letting them settle a bit into the space would be a better idea.]
Reflecting on the experience, I realized I did gravitate to the people who made eye contact with me in the beginning and then did branch out to others I thought might be less inclined to meet me and interact (personal assumption). Some people ended up seeking me out after experiencing an 'adventure' with someone in the room. [NOTE: Full transparency – this type of impromptu interaction is a high yellow comfort zone experience for me. My brain goes to "I don't want to intrude." And I know, in the grand scheme, this 'Unofficial' mingling connection with participants is a good thing.]
Here's was my pitch: "Hello, my name is Chris. I will be your facilitator this morning. It's nice to meet you...........I'm handing out Adventures – completely voluntary – if you would like to jump in and interact with some of your colleagues before we get started. Again, completely voluntary. You are not required to go on the Adventure."
Most of the people I met took an Adventure. (I'm guessing many of them did it just to be nice, since I offered.) There were a few that said, "No thank you." I have to admit, it did tip me off balance for a second – a physiological reaction to rejection I suppose – but I moved past it quickly (reminding myself this was okay) and found someone else to meet.
Now, I can't say how many people attempted the adventures, I was busy meeting others in the room. But I can say it was fun connecting with the crowd for sure. Most were receptive to my greeting and some even asked me inquisitive questions so we could have a little conversation. Overall, it was fun for me to (make myself) interact in an unofficial capacity. (And, the client did see me "working the crowd" – I've made the assumption that this was a positive thing in their eyes.)
If I were to do this again, I might take some time to ask a question or two about the Adventures, like, "If you tried your Adventure, what struck you about it?" Or, "If you didn't try your Adventure, what prevented you from doing so?" and "What learning could be pulled from the invitation to Adventure?"
What other 'Unofficial Starts' do you like using? Share with us in the Comments.
All the best,
Chris Cavert, Ed.D.
Reflecting on the experience, I realized I did gravitate to the people who made eye contact with me in the beginning and then did branch out to others I thought might be less inclined to meet me and interact (personal assumption). Some people ended up seeking me out after experiencing an 'adventure' with someone in the room. [NOTE: Full transparency – this type of impromptu interaction is a high yellow comfort zone experience for me. My brain goes to "I don't want to intrude." And I know, in the grand scheme, this 'Unofficial' mingling connection with participants is a good thing.]
Here's was my pitch: "Hello, my name is Chris. I will be your facilitator this morning. It's nice to meet you...........I'm handing out Adventures – completely voluntary – if you would like to jump in and interact with some of your colleagues before we get started. Again, completely voluntary. You are not required to go on the Adventure."
Most of the people I met took an Adventure. (I'm guessing many of them did it just to be nice, since I offered.) There were a few that said, "No thank you." I have to admit, it did tip me off balance for a second – a physiological reaction to rejection I suppose – but I moved past it quickly (reminding myself this was okay) and found someone else to meet.
Now, I can't say how many people attempted the adventures, I was busy meeting others in the room. But I can say it was fun connecting with the crowd for sure. Most were receptive to my greeting and some even asked me inquisitive questions so we could have a little conversation. Overall, it was fun for me to (make myself) interact in an unofficial capacity. (And, the client did see me "working the crowd" – I've made the assumption that this was a positive thing in their eyes.)
If I were to do this again, I might take some time to ask a question or two about the Adventures, like, "If you tried your Adventure, what struck you about it?" Or, "If you didn't try your Adventure, what prevented you from doing so?" and "What learning could be pulled from the invitation to Adventure?"
What other 'Unofficial Starts' do you like using? Share with us in the Comments.
All the best,
Chris Cavert, Ed.D.
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