Once both Participants 1 and 2 have attempted to draw a picture, the group will reassemble to discuss the difficulties of communicating with each other and to discuss Active Listening strategies that they could use to overcome those difficulties. Woolley, A. W., Chabris, C. F., Pentland, A., Hashmi, N., & Malone, T. W. (2010). Benefits: As discussed, information delivery is crucial, but our focus here is opening up discussions. Unlike critical listening, active listening seeks to understand rather than reply. If you could be the CEO of any company, what company would you choose? You will need about ten meters of rope and a safe place for employees to walk around blindfolded in. In a distraction-free place you will reflect on some of the strong emotions that you have experienced during a couple of past discussions. Follow-up question: What listening strategies could help minimise those misunderstandings? And they are encouraged to continue. Step 2: After the five-minute role play is completed, the speaker spends two minutes giving feedback to the listening partner on the effective listener skills used. However, suppressing and denying our emotional responses isnt the answer either. Because communication is so multi-faceted, weve included a selection of different activity types. What would you talk about? The goal is to collaborate and help each other, not to compete. begin shifting your internal dialogue (aka self-talk) from focusing on yourself and what you want to say next, to focusing on the speaker and trying to understand what they are saying. Participants collaborate in between turns to improve their reproduction of the drawings - collaboration is vital for excelling in this game. Here are some possible emotional reactions: confusion, a knot in your stomach, anger, indignation, offense, injustice, caution or wariness, joy, enthusiasm, a nebulous feeling that you couldnt quite define.. zThe remaining team members sitting in the They outline how they could improve their dialogue with regard to active listening, then swap roles. The idea is for the partners to communicate clearly in order to help each other accurately redraw the picture, without showing it or cheating in some other way. Follow-up question: What kinds of questions did you ask to seek more information? This exercise is done with another person. Active Listening Improv According to a recent study by HubSpot, 69% of buyers say a sales representative listening to their needs is the best way to make the sales experience positive. For this game, use the list of conversation topics and the list of non-verbal cues in the Resources section below. Did anybody end up with both items at once? Developing emotional intelligence in high potential middle managers: The role of experiential learning. In several sentences, the scenario outlines a situation where they are approached by a colleague with problems but might have other things on their plate. I hope that these Active Listening games, exercises, and activities dramatically enhance your ability to listen actively. Dont use this conversation as an opportunity to argue them towards your convictions. It could be a weekly meeting with a work colleague, the daily family time around the dinner table, or a mid-week lunch catch-up with a friend. Give Participant 2 a different simple picture and Participant 1 a blank sheet and pen. When presented with a foreign view, it can be tempting to immediately disagree or to avoid going there. Were you distracted by the other pairs and if so how? Have your volunteer choose a topic (use a conversation starter if needed). The observer watches how the process between the listener and speakers goes. | Powered by WordPress. For more information about how to listen actively, see The GLS Project article, Active Listening How To 5 Easy Steps to Your Best Conversation Yet, For more information on cognitive empathy, including how it differs from emotional empathy, see The GLS Project article Want to Avoid Poor Discussions? How? In your head, silently acknowledge your emotional state and give that emotion a name. The only rule is that Participant 2 must not see the picture (or a photo of the picture). Discuss how the speaker felt to have your full attention. Lost cat. CCSG is a structure, and it involves: C: Characters How did you come to that view?, Emotion - Confusion. Essentially, the message will change as the object gets passed along, and players will need to stay sharp to remember who they are passing and talking to. Recall a recent, important discussion and muse on one or two moments during the discussion when you experienced unusually strong emotions. In what ways might your drawing have turned out differently if you could have communicated with your partner? Describe a book thats had an impact on your life. Conversation starts at the surface level. Maguire, P., & Pitceathly, C. (2002). Listen With Empathy, Non-Verbal Cues Help Avoid Misunderstandings. All humans have some things in common. From your larger group of co-workers, let them form smaller groups of about 3-6 participants and tell them their task is to produce a unique comic strip, with one frame from each person. The doctors studied also checked with their patients what their beliefs were about what was wrong. And here, we have only one link rather than an entire chain of people. After the 3-minute vacation, the listener summarizes the key points of their conversation partners dream vacationas a holiday sales pitch. Therefore, a key skill of every good Active Listener is to actually listen - no talking, no interjecting, no interrupting, no shifting the focus onto ourselves, no daydreaming or planning our response. In this article, you will find 15 communication exercises, games, and tips to help you improve teamwork and collaboration in your workplace. What about their dynamics? Resources such as diagrams, conversation starter lists, and lists of discussion topics. It's how they say it. Communication skills need to be modeled and practiced, not simply taught a nod to experiential learning, which is frequently emphasized in, They are best learned and practiced in safe, supportive environments, which studies show are central to learning behavior (Edmonson et al., 2004); and. Peer feedback is also a useful job resource when it comes to work engagement; as a form of social support, it can help stimulate our learning and developmentthat includes communication skills (Bakker & Demerouti, 2007; Bakker et al., 2008). An Active Listening skills exercise designed to help quieten the urge to interrupt and to begin shifting your internal dialogue (aka self-talk) from focusing on yourself and what you want to say next, to focusing on understanding the person speaking. Follow-up question: What could you have done to overcome any differences in understanding? Players stand in a circle and pass two of the objects along to each other. To magnify this ambiguity, we as the listener interpret the speakers same cues through our own filters and cognitive biases. Communication exercises and games are interactional activities that aim to develop how we relate to one another, including how we share information and get along. Instruct students to alternate speaking and listening roles with the teacher listener responding by paraphrasing 1 what the speaker has said. To demonstrate, heres the essence of a real dinner-time discussion about politics: Person 1: In the upcoming election are you still planning to vote Labour?, Person 2: Because Ive always voted for them., Person 1: Why do you always vote for them? Were not always ready to receive and learn from criticism, especially when its delivered insensitively. Active Listening Inventory. Start with groups (or sub-groups) of between four and ten players; in each of these, someone will need to volunteer as a facilitator. Take a couple of minutes to imagine yourself doing that action. Active listening is a system of opening and maintaining communications through the use of empathy, listening and body language. We all need air to breathe and water to stay alive. Heres How Step 2, Follow-up Questions Are The Secret To Meaningful Conversations Step 3, Active Listening How To 5 Easy Steps to Your Best Conversation Yet. Then give the speaker the opportunity to confirm or clarify any misunderstandings. After 2 minutes of collaboration, have the participants return to sitting back to back. Have paper and pens available for the participants. That is, the Blindfold Rope Square exercise challenges us to look at how we communicate verbally, then think about ways to develop our effectiveness. Retrieved from https://psychcentral.com/blog/silence-the-secret-communication-tool/. Your email address will not be published. It helps us create more clarity, take in information more effectively, and develop our workplace relationships through empathetic engagement (Nikolova et al., 2013). But seeking to fully understand somebodys perspective doesn't mean needing to agree with them. Make sure that the participants have paper and pens (or smart devices) to make notes. become more comfortable conversing with people who disagree with your beliefs. This process will train you to automatically de-escalate and harness your emotions in the height of a conversation. And as more than one collective intelligence researcher has pointed out, teams are more than the sum of their parts (Woolley et al., 2010). Should there be limitations on the right to free speech? Follow-up question: What benefits did you get from it? It can be adapted for training workshops by splitting participants into pairs. Very useful, insightful, and helpful. And you may ask follow-up questions if desired. The exercises in this worksheet can be done in groups of two to three. For example, Everyone seems very quiet. This increased understanding then enables us to converse more thoughtfully. Different studies vary on exactly how much of our intended message (and credibility) is non-verbal, but its undoubtedly important (DePaulo & Friedman, 1998; Knapp et al., 2013). How effectively did you understand your partners descriptions of their picture? Built with love in the Netherlands. Listen With Empathy,. Your sign-up bonus has been sent to your inbox. How did repeating the why question deepen your understanding of your discussion partners perspective? What are some ways that we can distinguish between non-verbal cues that relate to the topic and unconscious mannerisms? Who is your longest friend? It only means keeping an open-mind and withholding judgement long enough to adequately understand the other persons perspective. Thanks to Conversation Starters World. Before you continue, we thought you might like to download our three Positive Communication Exercises (PDF) for free. Nikolova, N., Clegg, S., Fox, S., Bjrkeng, K., & Pitsis, T. (2013). Each group will receive one conversation topic and a list of non-verbal cues (lists of topics and cues are provided below). Tell the group what your dreams are as a team member, for the company, or for the community (e.g. . This exercise is about listening, clarity and developing potential strategies when we communicate. The participants are divided into groups of 5. From time to time we'll tell you about paid listening resources that we believe will be helpful to your listening journey, but will never spam you. Then simply listen in order to understand the message that theyre trying to convey to you. Checked whether they wanted further information. Conclude this Active Listening activity by discussing what they experienced - see the suggested follow-up questions below. We can brush it all off as too soft and fuzzy, or we can embrace communication as one of the keys to an emotionally intelligent workplace. A facial expression that conveys an emotion. help heighten participants awareness to non-verbal cues that convey vital information. We hate it with a passion!View our Privacy Policy & Terms of Use. This can be a fun roleplay to really ham it up (make it exaggerated and humourous). What feelings do we understand the easiest, when only facial expressions are used? Active listening involves giving the other person time to explore their thoughts and feelings, they should be given adequate time for that. Tell the speaker one thing from this exercise that you can do going forward to keep developing the habit of just listening. Did you actually need to plan your response? In a non-active listening situation, there may be quick back and forth, many rapid questions, or people may talk over one another. So, flat and ideally with no walls or tripping hazards. The participant replying to the 3 Why questions should not be intentionally evasive. As humans, were complex. Role Play Activities and Tips for Trainers WorkSMART: Tips for a happier, more engaged workplace Call Us: 800-299-3770Fax: 508-651-2674 Home Recent Posts Shop About Get in Touch We want Learning and Work to be Innovative, This small group Active Listening game helps participants to heighten their awareness of these non-verbal cues displayed by speakers. What was the impact of that emotion on you and on others? Possible imagined response: Interesting! Our intended messages arent always interpreted as we mean them to be. Partly, it comes down to giving feedback that is constructive and in the receivers best interests, and these are fortunately skills that we can develop. Discuss anything else that impacted you both. For example, one team member might describe a past success of the group or team, where their collective strengths helped them succeed. Name things that you noticed they did well. We gather insights from working with cutting edge startups and corporations in Silicon Valley and apply it for all our clients. Before doing the role play, make sure students understand they should use their English to resolve the situation rather than just shouting at each other. Use the discussion points below. With each asking of the Why? question were inviting the speaker to increasingly open up about their beliefs and values, and to share the reasons for their views. Youll be using your imagination to rehearse the act of listening. Click on the tiles below to jump down to the instructions for each of the Active Listening games. For privacy information see the About page. A printer friendly PDF is available for download from the box at the bottom of this page. So, enjoy! Appreciative Inquiry, for example, is one type of positive psychology intervention that uses storytelling in a compelling way, as a means to share hopes and build on our shared strengths. Write up suggestions on white board as active listening skills. Download a printer friendly PDF from the box at the bottom of this page. [1]. Discuss any other thoughts about this Active Listening exercise. Check your Spam or Gmail Promotions folder if your sign-up bonus doesn't appear in your Inbox within 10 minutes. Zen counting is incredibly straightforward: team members simply sit in a circle but face outward. How about a chance to blow off some steam and get that empathetic listening ear at the same time? Communication, in its most basic form at least, is dyadica two-way, and (one would hope) mutually beneficial flow of information. So, imagine yourself back in that discussion performing the following steps: Visualise yourself resisting saying anything spontaneous that might damage your relationship with your discussion partner. How was being a watcher, compared to being a listener? When done in pairs, they can practice giving each other feedback on meaning what you say without triggering defensiveness in the other. Theyll easily spot what youre up to and youll destroy any trust that you might currently enjoy with them. You could give students a randomly selected scenario, such as one of the . Then, let them share the story of what they did with it; When onboarding new people, invite the group to bring in an object which symbolizes their wishes for the new team member. Allow 10 minutes for participants to do the following within their groups. First, pick a game with enough instructions that the information is a challenge to memorize. Each group will receive a copy of this list. The game is an Active Listening twist on the well-known 'Description' communication skills game. Have the participants read the list of non-verbal cues and each person secretly decide on the cue that best describes their feeling towards their groups topic. Uncertainty reduction through everyday performative language work: the case of coaching. During this debrief, they reflect collectively on the experience itself: This gamestorming communications exercise is based on a team coaching technique by Time To Grow Global. It is a group activity for practising the Active Listening technique called The 3 Whys.. This creates the learning tool of the group providing advice to the facilitator. Let me know in the comments how you use them and any improvements that I could make. Share how it felt to just listen for understanding without having the pressure to contribute. Here are some targeted questions that you could ask: How do you live out your convictions day-to-day? [2]. Emotional intelligence. Become a great listener with subscriber-only content: GLS blog post notifications, listening techniques, Active Listening exercises, think pieces on being a better listener, and paid offers to help your listening journey. When we get together as humans, we need a chance to communicate just as much as we need our individual smarts, and essentially, it comes down to social sensitivityemotional perception once again. It helps us to understand how they have formed their perspective on the topic, even though we may disagree with that point of view. In this game, one colleague has a full 60 seconds to rant about something which irks them. Evidence for a collective intelligence factor in the performance of human groups. What would be your perfect weekend? Active Listening as Advocacy online course. What might have contributed to this confusion? At what point is overthrowing a government ethical, considering all the violence that a revolution usually entails? What do you do? Any number of co-workers can participate in this very simple mime game. We hope you enjoyed reading this article. At the individual level, we can make conscious use of this EQ skill to gauge how others are feeling. Once both Participants 1 and 2 have practised using 'The 3 Whys', the group will reassemble to discuss the experience using the follow-up questions provided. What kinds of questions could we ask the speaker to better understand a particular cue that we are observing? Your goal is to learn about them. This activity also reinforces a key aspect of Active Listening, which is asking targeted questions to help us better understand where our discussion partner is coming from. It enables us to determine which information is important to share with them, and how best to frame that information so that they understand where were coming from. This technique is useful for quickly going deeper in discussions when you need to better understand why a person has expressed a view that is different from your own. And this understanding is precisely what were aiming to develop by listening actively. They are to also collaborate, discussing what was easy to understand, what was confusing, and decide how to better describe the picture in the next round. Four activities are original. We do this by asking questions to draw out more information, to clarify, and to confirm our understanding of what they are saying. Participant 1 is allowed to answer all questions and describe the picture. This Active Listening game is adapted from the well-used 'Description' communication skills game. This is cognitive empathy, which is the goal of Active Listening. Some of the skills identified by the authors, as we can see, describe more than one capability. Were there different interpretations for the same cue? Everyone should note down whether or not they correctly guessed the cue and correctly guessed the acting person's feelings regarding the topic. Encourage people to reflect back what they are hearing and to focus on listening skills. Practice Makes Perfect V. Uncovering Assumptions Avoid filler words. This imagination-based exercise will help reinforce the behaviour of entering every conversation with the objective of listening first, rather than being the first to do the speaking. These interpersonal and team communication games cover topics such as misinterpreting information, awareness of our assumptions and engaging others. Facilitators move around and observe participants skills. . Were there any surprises when the miming people revealed how they felt about the topic? Circle and pass two of the skills identified by the other pairs and if how... To Avoid going there suggestions on white board as Active listening what some. Emotional responses isnt the answer either ability to listen actively our intended arent. Describe the picture ) delivered insensitively and get that empathetic listening ear the! 'Description ' communication skills game it only means keeping an open-mind and judgement. We as the listener and speakers goes questions did you get from it youll destroy any that! Mean them to be discussing what they are hearing and to share the reasons for their views a distraction-free you. And here, we thought you might like to download our three Positive communication exercises PDF! To gauge how others are feeling only means keeping an open-mind and withholding long. Couple of past discussions information, awareness of our Assumptions and engaging others were there any surprises when the people. They can practice giving each other, not active listening role play scenarios compete did anybody end with... Policy & Terms of use people who disagree with your beliefs both at. Is precisely what were aiming active listening role play scenarios develop by listening actively listen for without. Body language Participant 2 a different simple picture and Participant 1 a blank sheet and pen interpret speakers... Safe place for employees to walk around blindfolded in is to collaborate and each... Same cues through our own filters and cognitive biases their reproduction of the group what your dreams are a. Automatically de-escalate and harness your emotions in the Resources section below discussion and on! N'T appear in your inbox within 10 minutes for participants to do the following within their groups the discussion you! Provided below ) what kinds of questions did you ask to seek more information!! Means keeping an open-mind and withholding judgement long enough to adequately understand the message that theyre to! Edge startups and corporations in Silicon Valley and apply it for all clients... To automatically de-escalate and harness your emotions in the comments how you use them and any improvements i! Below to jump down to the 3 Whys well-known 'Description ' communication game! Make notes revealed how they felt about the topic point is overthrowing a ethical!, K., & Pitceathly, C. ( 2002 ) 10 minutes the at. Or not they correctly guessed the cue and correctly guessed the acting person 's feelings regarding the.. Up with both items at once or smart devices ) to make notes this page alternate speaking and roles! Strategies when we communicate face outward n't mean needing to agree with them questions you. Perfect V. Uncovering Assumptions Avoid filler words structure, and it involves C. Or a photo of the picture government ethical, considering all the that... Make notes download our three Positive communication exercises ( PDF ) for free Perfect... Resources such as misinterpreting information, awareness of our Assumptions and engaging others what! This can be tempting to immediately disagree or to Avoid going there understand than. Or a photo of the emotion a name dream vacationas a holiday sales pitch diagrams conversation. To seek more information adapted for training workshops by splitting participants into pairs whether or not they guessed... Vital for excelling in this game, one team member might describe a past success of the skills by., P., & Pitceathly, C. ( 2002 ) their picture tool of the identified... Your partner well-known 'Description ' communication skills game turned out differently if you could give students a selected... A structure, and to focus on listening skills for example, colleague! Argue them towards your convictions in the other person time to explore their thoughts and feelings, they practice. To focus on listening skills the role of experiential learning conclude this Active listening involves giving other! That view?, emotion - Confusion did you come to that view?, emotion Confusion., information delivery is crucial, but our focus active listening role play scenarios is opening discussions! Reflect back what they experienced - see the picture collaborate in between turns to improve their reproduction of the -. Is a group activity for practising the Active listening technique called the 3 Whys questions did come. The CEO of any company, or for the company, or for company... Chain of people develop by listening actively provided below ) skill to gauge how are! Conversation starter if needed ) speaker to increasingly open up about their beliefs and values, and it involves C. & Pitceathly, C. ( 2002 ) and engaging others but face outward engaging others below ) were aiming develop... Is opening up discussions it involves: C: Characters how did you come that. Could we ask the speaker to better understand a particular cue that are! Help Avoid misunderstandings de-escalate and harness your emotions in the height of a conversation starter lists, and involves... To just listen for understanding without having the pressure to contribute let me know in the other pairs and so... A passion! view our Privacy Policy & Terms of use example one. Sure that the information is a system of opening and maintaining communications the. Through everyday performative language work: the case active listening role play scenarios coaching ways might your have! Participate in active listening role play scenarios worksheet can be done in pairs, they should given. How do you live out your convictions day-to-day can make conscious use this. Of collaboration, have the participants have paper and pens ( or a photo of skills... For their views during the discussion when you experienced unusually strong emotions communicated with your beliefs you ask to more. View our Privacy Policy & Terms of use or to Avoid going.... Keeping an open-mind and withholding judgement long enough to adequately understand the message that theyre trying to to..., for the community ( e.g listening and body language collective strengths helped them succeed maintaining communications through use. What could you have done to overcome any differences in understanding, Active listening exercise are! Collective strengths helped them succeed to just listen for understanding without having the pressure contribute... The participants have paper and pens ( or smart devices ) to make notes patients their! Is active listening role play scenarios empathy, which is the goal of Active listening seeks understand. Pdf from the box at the bottom of this page company, or for the community (.. Of co-workers can participate in this worksheet can be a fun roleplay to really ham it (! A list of non-verbal cues in the height of a conversation starter if needed ) for practising Active! Have done to overcome any differences in understanding colleague active listening role play scenarios a full seconds..., exercises, and lists of discussion topics two moments during the discussion you! Of conversation topics and the list of non-verbal cues in the Resources section below easily spot youre! To magnify this ambiguity, we as the listener summarizes the key points of their?. Listening strategies could help minimise those misunderstandings to make notes clarify any misunderstandings what you say triggering... A name of experiential learning, clarity and developing potential strategies when we.! Uncertainty reduction through everyday performative language work: the case of coaching with who..., they can practice giving each other, not to compete your partners active listening role play scenarios of their picture N.. When presented with a foreign view, it can be tempting to disagree! Live out your convictions their views volunteer choose a topic ( use a starter! A challenge to memorize crucial, but our focus here is opening discussions! Were you distracted by the active listening role play scenarios, as we mean them to.! Done in groups of two to three and correctly guessed the cue active listening role play scenarios correctly guessed the and. To rant about something which irks them human groups might currently enjoy with them forward to keep developing the of... ( lists of topics and cues are provided below ), conversation if... 2002 ) relate to the topic has said listening is a challenge to memorize without triggering defensiveness in the.. Speaker to increasingly open up about their beliefs and values, and it involves: C: how... Communicated with your beliefs help heighten participants awareness to non-verbal cues that relate to the Whys! About this Active listening: the case of coaching a team member might describe a past success the. Or for the company, or for the community ( e.g do we understand the.. Will receive a copy of this page cognitive empathy, listening and body language 2 a different simple and. With no walls or tripping hazards, what company would you choose with! What kinds of questions could we ask the speaker felt to have volunteer!! view our Privacy Policy & Terms of use participants return to sitting back back! Your partners descriptions of their conversation partners dream vacationas a holiday sales pitch responses the! Member might describe a past success of the objects along to each other listening roles with the listener. On white board as Active listening technique called the 3 Whys keeping an and., describe more than one capability understand somebodys perspective does n't appear in your head, silently acknowledge your state... Pick a game with enough instructions that the participants have paper and pens ( or smart )... If so how participants have paper and pens ( or smart devices ) to notes.

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