Dave’s EC Feedback
The intro is really good! Edwins’ shining empathic presence is upfront.
There is an unevenness in the mic levels so some people like Edwin is loud and others are too quiet which makes it difficult to listen to.
( ) How might we adjust the mic levels in zoom?
I wonder how one can deal with people who “don’t get it” it right away in a less painful way. If there is a co-facilitator it might be good to model up front the things that people seem to have trouble with, for example how to reflect back a question, .Don’t you have a video already that people can watch before to learn the process? It could be any video you think is good. I would think James Damore because both Edwin and Lou are on the video would be a great model for “how to”. One can see how difficult it is for many people to reflect accurately.
( ) Make some intro videos to view before taking part in an empathy circle?
( ) Samples of how to do elections
Lisa is great.Having someone in the circle who can really model empathic dialogue is really helpful .I WOULD LOVE TO HEAR HER FEEDBACK ON THE EC.
Very helpful to have an experienced empathic listener be part of the circle.
It would be good to somehow combine “do you feel heard?” with “Is there more?. Do you feel heard shuts people down if they say yes when they might have more to say,
Always ask: “Is there more?".
Its a problem for me that nobody is able to explain why AntiFa is responding to Patriot Prayer the way they are, ie Rod’s perspective, that there are Neo NAzis in tow, that this kind of ignorance gets perpetuated in these circles.
It’s interesting to see how Lisa loses her ability to reflect as well when she gets upset. This section of the dialogue is really powerful and interesting.around 1:10.
There was an implies threat in David’s communication, I felt it. And that was not really dealt with.He was blaming her for Anitfa which is outrageous. But i think that is what Lisa was dealing with and was not able to articulately respond to.
When you say someone can say “anything they want” you are assuming that the listener knows how to deal with that…I’m not sure we have worked through this question adequately.
( ) The listener may get triggered, upset, lash out at what is said. The facilitator needs to step in then to reflect what the speaker has said. We do want the speakers to feel free to express themselves freely. There is the whole objection with Politically Correct speech. Often people need to express their pent up frustrations, get them out, and it comes out with a bite. Once they get over through it they calm down. The circle can also have a circle which each person and the facilitator. This way they can express their frustrations, and the facilitator can hear it.
( ) Explain the role of the facilitator. They may step in to reflect, and keep the process on track.
We need to keep good track of who the good participants are, the types of participants, to try to invite people back that make sense, whether they are difficult or not. To organize circles that will be impactful.
TOPICS
I agree with Lou that the topic is not the best.
I would like to see “
Why do you consider yourself a conservative, libertarian,liberal etc?
What is it that draws you to the left or the right?
How do you feel misunderstood?
What would you like to see?
I also in the future would like to see circles with specific topics like
guns,
abortion,
immigration,
where feelings are very strong with lots of specifics, where an EC might be particularly helpful.