I'm facilitating a small group on a programme this week and it's reminded me of a helpful acronym I use (and share with the group) about creating SPACE. We often talk about the importance of creating space for people to do their development work, but how do you do it? Clearly it's not just a mechanical process, but I offer you these practical points as a useful framework to kick things off:
Story: Tell the story of a specific event as it happened. And go slowly - don't skip over or rush the uncomfortable bits!
Personal: Talk about your personal experience of the situation, rather than talking conceptually or objectively about it.
Attention: As a listener, pay attention to the whole person, not just their words. And listen with your whole body.
Curiosity: Wonder about what's going on, with compassion for their difficulty, rather than judging whether they are right or wrong.
Empathy: See if you can connect with their experience from the inside. What would your experience be if you were them?
Transitional space is all about the shared experience of two separate but connected minds.
