I'm designing a half-day session for the above group who will have at least 3 years management experience and probably more. I was thinking about doing a section on challenges & successes as a manager-communicator & then going onto using storytelling as a communication tool. The group would have the opportunity to brainstorm some story categories and maybe practice telling them. I was also going to mention and make links to authenticity.
I would love some thoughts/feedback from the community on these ideas.
Thanks
Sophie
3E People Performance Ltd
4 Responses
all very well, but……
do managers really feel they have the time for "storytelling"?
Might not something relating to the difference between intention and impact have more relevance to managers? looking holistically at the ananomy of an impression and how messages get interpreted in variance to the intention of the speaker/writer.
Just a thought!
Rus
Some other ideas
Hello, I also wondered about the story-telling component of your half-day and why you thought this would be important to include as a management skill. I see story-telling more as a leadership skill – not that your managers can't do leadership too – but if you only have limited time, perhaps it is not a priority.
Your experienced managers might come with questions that you can help them share, discuss and then potentially have practice conversations. That will help them develop an authentic way of dealing with their own challenges.
You might like to consider: how to give/receive feedback, have performance management conversations, manage workload via delegation and empowerment, influence upwards, appraisals, or running effective meetings. Those are all recurring themes with the managers I've worked with in different industries.
Good luck and have fun,
Hilary
Map of the world
I think I would, much as I'm not a great fan of NLP, include something around understanding other people's 'map of the world' (perspectives; beliefs; values) and how they might consider shaping their communication with a full and proper understanding of the recipient, so that they communicate effectively and avoid making assumptions.
Perhaps also educate them on some of the many reported 'essentials' of communication:
1. Communication of a message is the responsibility of the sender
2. In communication, people operate from their map of the world (their perspective)
3. The person with the most flexibility controls the outcome
Hope this helps.
Adrian.
Difficult Conversations
Hi
In total agreement with the above. My recent experience is that many managers shy away from having those "difficult conversations" with staff. Maybe a short session looking at this topic might give them a definite take-away?
Jenny