A profound understanding of that which is utterly ‘other’ lies not in the intellect, but in an embodied encounter, in creating a kind of dance – a dance with ‘otherness’.
Great organisations know the extraordinary value of being able to stand in the shoes of their customers, partners and suppliers. Occasionally they develop the uncanny ability to create breathtaking new value – products and services that are deeply satisfying, even before the need had been thought, let alone spoken aloud.
But where does this empathic ability come from, and what does it look like in practice? It is a little-known secret that this ability has been at the heart of theatre work for centuries.
Actors develop a special insight that enables them to take on a bewildering diversity of roles. It is not an intellectual insight, or even an emotional one: rather, it is embodied and deeply empathic. It is what generates a fully rounded character in performance, using the most subtle of gestures.
These are learnable skills – indeed, they build on our human tendency to make personal connection despite great difference in outlook or social position. Developing these skills can give you an unfair advantage when it comes to understanding stakeholders, peers and those you seek to influence.
What you can expect:
- We will stage a series of encounters with ‘others’ – from spaces and materials to people and cultures.
- You will develop techniques to notice how others act in and react to their environment, and how to echo these patterns in order to understand them deeply.
- You will be invited to initiate a to-and-fro encounter with others, risking changing your own outlook as a result.
After the Studio together we will prompt you to take this way of encountering and conversing with others to your life, within and beyond your work environment.
This Studio can be presented as one full-day session or over two half days. Or, as with all of our curriculum modules, we can draw on this Studio content to create one or more shorter, express sessions for your team, diving into elements of Through Other Eyes, providing familiarisation, inspiration and ideas to take forward.
Whichever format works best for your team, we will tailor content to directly address your organisational needs, as framed in the initial consultancy.
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