Are you tired of conversations that focus on problems without leading to real solutions? Imagine creating a workplace culture where communication builds trust, boosts productivity, and sparks positive change.
Whether it’s internal dialogue or team interactions, our conversations shape the well-being of our organizations. So ask yourself: how often are those conversations truly worth having?
The Conversations Worth Having Bootcamp is based on the bestselling book Conversations Worth Having: Using Appreciative Inquiry to Fuel Productive and Meaningful Engagement by Jackie Stavros and Cheri Torres. This training equips you with practical tools to shift conversations from problem-focused to possibility-driven.
Research shows that high-performing teams experience a 5:1 ratio of positive to negative interactions—while most teams hover around 1:1. Learn how to elevate the tone and impact of your conversations, and start transforming your team today.
CONVERSATIONS BOOTCAMP 1: Conversations Worth Having at Work
HERE’S WHAT WE’LL BE DOING IN THIS FOUR-WEEK COURSE (75 MIN PER WEEK):
Module 1: The Power of Conversations
- Explore the nature of conversations and the effects they have on you and others.
- Discover the science behind negative and positive conversations and how this causes us to react.
- Experience how to choose to be intentional and stay calm under stress.
- Learn to use mindfulness tools to shift from reactionary to deliberate communication.
Module 2: Asking Questions
- Learn to ask generative questions to shift the dynamics of workplace communication problems.
- Experience the impact of AI on individual and organizational capacity.
- Discover how to choose curiosity over knowing and assuming.
Module 3: Flipping to the Positive Opposite
- Experience flipping negative conversations to conversations worth having.
- Learn how to use flipping to frame workplace communication issues.
- Develop generative questions to fuel productive, meaningful engagement around workplace challenges.
Module 4: Step Up to Feedback
- Discover how to adopt a learning mindset to support openness and interest in regular feedback.
- Learn how to change feedback avoidance patterns.
- Adopt the use of an appreciative feedback strategy with common workplace situations.
The dates for the next online course are September 25, October 9, 16 and 23 from 10-11:15 a.m. Pacific time. Each interactive session is 75 minutes long.
Price $395 per person. Register by July 15 for less—save $100. Team rates available.
CONVERSATIONS BOOTCAMP 2: Strategic Conversations at Work
Four weekly 1hr 15 min webinars
Module 1: Valuing Strategic Thinking
- Understand the importance of strategic conversations and the role positive framing and generative questions play.
- Learn to adopt an AI and SOAR (Strengths, Opportunities, Aspirations and Results) framework for strategic thinking
- Discover how to recognize when and why strategic thinking is important.
- Practice framing strategic conversations and asking strategic generative questions.
Module 2: Learning to SOAR
- Understand the three strategic elements (1. having a strategic plan, 2. understanding that strategy is nested, and 3. engaging stakeholders).
- Experience the use of SOAR as a positive framework for strategic conversations.
- Practice positive framing and generative questions at various levels in the organization.
Module 3: The AI 5-D Cycle
- Learn how you can engage the whole system in strategic conversations.
- Understand how the two AI practices—positive framing and generative questions— apply to the 5-D cycle.
- Discover how to identify opportunities for whole system conversations.
Module 4: Strategic Areas for Application
- Experience how to recognize and frame opportunities for strategic conversations at nested levels within the organization.
- Develop and receive feedforward on your prototype for a strategic conversation.
- Practice providing feedforward to improve conversation topics and questions.