The Projector and Screens
By maestro. Filed in Productivity |
Find two partners to participate. You will be the “movie projector” or speaker, and your two friends will act as “screens” or listeners. First, the projector selects a conflict, preferably an internal one. The projector then describes one side of this conflict to the first screen and the other side to the second screen. If I am trying to decide where to go on vacation, one friend might represent the argument to go to Mexico and the other to go to Florida. The screens must listen very carefully, since they will take on the perspective given to each of them by the projector as though it was their own. They will only be able to use the information you as the projector provide them, for example, “I want to go to Mexico because it’s fun to speak Spanish, I love the food . . .”
Next your screen friends turn to one another and, as though they were the parties in a conflict, they present their sides to each other. The projector may jump in at any time to clarify the positions, and the screens may ask questions to further clarify the positions you have given them. After five to ten minutes of discussion, the three participants share their experiences.
Participants in this exercise often report that just hearing a personal conflict as an outside observer provokes new creative solutions and perspectives. It is also a great listening exercise as a “screen,” knowing you must defend a position and thus carefully gather information about your position.
To Explore
Use the projector and screens with your team to solve your current conflict. Each team member brings his or her own questions to the conflict. I might ask, “Should I leave the organization?” I might think out loud using this exercise to try on different possible resolutions: “Should we move to New Mexico?”
Taken From : The Way of Conflict—Elemental Wisdom for Resolving Disputes and Transcending Differences
