March 16th, 2009

We welcomed Von and Jan to the group for the first time this month - all the way from Dorset. Together with Dave, that meant we had three people from Dorset! Our new format - with newcomers arriving early for a short introduction - appeared to work well. Marian has produced a 'Practice Group' booklet which explains a bit about the group and about Clean Language, including the main questions. Von and Jan had done a one-day introduction so were already familiar with the questions, so we spent the time getting to know each other and discussing specific questions they had.

The topic for the main part of the evening was 'scaling'. A number of coaching processes include 'scaling questions' such as 'On a scale of 1 to 10, how confident are you that you will achieve x?' The coach then works with the client to find out what needs to happen for the number on the scale to go up. As Clean Language is a neutral tool, it can easily be combined with questions such as this - and of course, if we ask this question, we are introducing the whole concept of scale into the conversation. So our focus for the evening was how can we work with scale cleanly?

We worked in threes, with more experienced members facilitating each other, while beginners observed. In some groups, the facilitator directed the client's attention to any 'scale' words and these were developed. In other groups, observers simply noted down examples of words which implied a scale, even if they were not developed. Most of us were surprised at how many words people tend to use which imply some kind of scale, for example: best (I want to help in the best way I can); very (very serenely); most (most days); feel good, feel horrible; appropriate; lessening of tension; insurmountable, manageable; fairly big; big picture.

Some people were concerned that paying attention to scale did not feel clean... and it's important to note that this was indeed a facilitator outcome, training our attention, so we can be more aware of 'scale' in future client sessions. We were not suggesting that it is clean to pick up on every 'scaling' word in every client session, but that it may sometimes be useful (depending on the client's desired outcome) to help clients to become aware of the way they unconsciously use scale to organise their perceptions. For more about this, read Penny Tompkins and James Lawley's article: Big Fish in a Small Pond: The Importance of Scale.

Recalling an earlier Practice Group topic about how to remember the Clean Language questions, Dave brought everyone a copy of "The Handy Model", developed by Judy Barber, which allows you to use the fingers and palms of each hand to remember the Clean Language questions. This was well-received by everyone - so thanks Dave, and thanks Judy.

In the final part of the meeting, beginners joined in as clients or facilitators, so everyone went home having had some experience of Clean Language.

I for one enjoyed the meeting and I hope you did too. Thank you for coming and for all your contributions. Our next meeting is on Monday 20th April.