Collective Story Harvest

Process

Duration:
  • 90 min.
Harvesting Arcs:
  1. What are the deeper qualities & practices of stepping in and stepping back in this story?
  2. What can we learn about courage from this story? What are the qualities & conditions for courage to show up?
  3. What can we learn about belonging and strength from this story?
  4. Where & how do the elements of the Fourfold Practice show up in this story? (host yourself, be hosted, host & harvest conversations that matter, co-create).
  5. What did I learn from the story that I could apply in my life/work?
  6. What potent questions arise from this story that anyone can use in their work?
  7. Witness.

Agenda:
In the full group (15 min)
  • Process host welcomes the group, describes the process and introduces the harvesting arcs
  • Storytellers introduce their stories (30 seconds each)
  • People gather around storytellers

In Story Circles (60 min)
  • Circle hosts welcome the group to the space and reminds everyone of the arcs and asks them to choose and arc to harvest -- the host also checks if there are other modalities people want to harvest in (poetry, song, dance, artc, etc) (3 min)
  • Everyone chooses an arc and takes a moment to prepare themselves either separately or together as a harvesting team (2 min)
  • Circle hosts invite the story (1min)
  • Storyteller tells/Harvesters harvest (20 - 30 min)
  • Harvesters report in/Storyteller harvests (15 min)
  • Storyteller reports in (5 min)
  • Witness reports in (5 min)
  • If there is time, questions can be asked and the group take time for sharing
  • Host closes the circle

Normally the harvesting would be given to the storyteller.  In this case, we asked each host to collect a few gold nuggets from each harvester and these went into an additional sensemaking process during the Learning Expedition.  

In the full group (15 min)
  • Process host welcomes the group back, and asks for a insights and experiences of the process -- either by opening as a general question or by asking storytellers what happened for them, hosts and witnesses and then the harvesters in general.
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Hosting Roles:
Process host - story host - storytellers - harvesters - witness

Materials:
Flipcharts for the full group
  • the process flow
  • harvesting arcs
  • list of storytellers and hosts and spaces
In story circles
  • list of harvesting arcs
  • harvesting templates
  • pens
  • post it notes
  • Art materials, if needed

Experience