Methodology
COMMUNITY IS AN EXPERIENCE OF AN EXTRAORDINARY SENSE OF SECURITY AND EXCEPTIONAL RESPECT
12 Guidelines in brackets in the original version
Each of us is born with some talents. They do not always reveal themselves throughout our lives, because it depends on many factors, but each of us certainly has some talent.
Building community is such a 'talent'. However, it is different from typical talents because we all have it, as Scott Peck discovered. It is somehow 'programmed' in us, just as the potential to perform addition, multiplication, speaking and many other operations is programmed.
When we talk about the methodology of building communities, we do not mean controlling or managing this process. This process develops spontaneously in the group, and the facilitator's task is to observe it, understand where the group is in this process and possibly inform the group about it.
© Copyright 2023 Edward Groody - Confidential
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Listening is not the same as hearing (Listen only listen)
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We use 'I' Statements
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Moved to speak
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Take a risk Be emotionally present
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Include yourself and others
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Hang in there
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Voice displeasure to the entire group
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Each person is responsible for their success and the success of the group.
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Give space, find the pace
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Participation in the workshop can be both verbal and non-verbal
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Imperfection is essential
Nearly 40 years of community building practice have resulted in proven practices that allow a group (although this is not guaranteed) to achieve a state of community.
The methodology formulated by Scott Peck and extended by Edward Groody includes:
* 12 guidelines that a group should follow to achieve a state of togetherness. Failure to comply with them practically guarantees that the community will not be created. These guidelines are available in a visible place throughout the workshop
* 4 phases of the community building process that always occur, although their length and intensity is always different for each group
* 40 years of accumulated experience in community building, which means understanding what phase of community building a group is in. By understanding what the 'model' process looks like, the facilitator can intervene, informing the group where it is in the process and whether it is going in the right (or wrong) direction.
PSEUDOCOMMUNITY - We try to make it nice, we try not to step on anyone's toes, we pretend it's nice even when it's terrible and we do it 'for the good' of the group. We pretend to be someone we are not, we sweep difficult matters under the carpet.
CHAOS - We start to look at each other, we are disappointed, disappointed and angry both at others and at the person who facilitates the workshops. We disconnect from the group and/or try to impose our opinions and solutions on the group and create a group structure.
EMPTYING - We start sharing our difficult things. We open ourselves to other people's differences, realizing that there are no fundamental differences between us. We are gaining trust, more and more. We create an empty and friendly space to 'absorb' other people's otherness.
COMMUNITY - Our sense of security increases because we see that what we share is not used against us in any way. There is a growing sense of peace and joy just from being with other people. We see the negative features of other people, but they stop bothering us, we treat them with kind indulgence, because we know (or rather feel certain) that deep inside our SELF we are the same.
4 PHASES OF BUILDING A COMMUNITY