Constellations
Individuals express their response to a statement or idea by standing closer or further from a central object. Used with teams to reveal system, hidden patterns, perspectives.
Goal
Reveals the system of beliefs, feelings, thoughts, etc. with all involved
Allows team to see patterns that are otherwise invisible
Allows exploration of physical expression, felt sense of truth
Creates a sense of connection, trust, curiosity
Allows non-verbal response
Materials
Instructions
Gather group in open room. Will read a statement & you'll decide how you feel about that statement. Place item in the middle that is the topic. Closer to this item means agreement/true, further from the item means non-alignment / not true for you.
Have people walk around at random in silence
Read the statement, people arrange themselves in proximity to the center object
Go to one person, stand next to them, ask:
1. Why are you standing where you are standing? (or What has you standing here)
2. What's it like to stand here?
Repeat for at least 2 more statements.
Facilitator notes
Only ask these 2 questions and move on. Not getting into details. Focus on revealing the larger pattern. Standing next to them (not facing them) signals you are with them, empathy, coaching perspective. We are curious about people's *relationship* to the central focus, not the content or fixing. Who is this person in relationship to the topic? Who is this system in relationship to the statement?
Create neutrally phrased statements.
ie. "I have the resources I need to succeed at my job"
To try -- put colored dots on the floor to show where people ended up & later graph those dots.
From Marita Fridhon (~30 min in podcast)
3 questions
1. Establishing question - Where are you now (in relation to X topic)
2. Unfolding question - tests the truth of what was just said. How engaged are you in making changes around X?
3. Future question: How engaged do you want to be?
Dialogue question: What will have you disengage (relative to how you want to be engaged)?
Result: The reason there is difficulty to accomplish X is ____. The suggestion that come from this system to make this better are ____.
Variation to preserve anonymity
Have everyone walk around, get a feel of their response, & then mark their responses on a card (to preserve anonymity).
Swap cards & share from the perspective of another (empathy activity)
Collect cards & graph responses
Background
Detailed explanation: https://crruk.com/constellations-exercise/
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