Stories: Essence of Appreciative Inquiry

Last week Sue and I ran our two day ‘The Essence of Appreciative Inquiry‘ workshop at the Abbotsford Convent and it was very well received.

It was our fifth ‘Essence’ workshop here in Melbourne; next week we go to Sydney to run our first workshop there and I’m looking forward to it.

Sue’s the lead facilitator in these workshops and I assist with the group discussions and provide key practical Tai Chi skills to reinforce certain themes. Besides the Tai Chi, I always find the stories that are shared are varied and interesting. In a supportive environment I hear many stories of not only workplace successes and difficulties but also of personal success and challenges.

As an assistant facilitator I have to be ready to step up when required and react in a moment’s time if there is a need to change direction. So that requires patience and focus but it’s never boring.

Because at any moment a story is waiting to be shared by a participant that can grab my attention and sometimes move me. Those are the sort of highlights that makes it fun to be part of our Essence of Appreciative Inquiry workshops.

Stories are not only the essence of appreciative inquiry, they’re also the essence of life.