It’s Hard To Describe… But I’ll Try.

“OK, so that all sounds well and good,” you’re saying, “but it still doesn’t describe what I’ll be learning at your NSA chapter meeting.”

That’s true, because sculpting is so unique, it’s difficult to explain. But once you “get it,” you “get it!”

Let’s try this: Sculpting is “a visual, interactive representation of a point in time, an emotional state, or a relationship.”

“HUH?”

It is not role-playing. It is not acting. It is not therapy. It is completely unique.

To see a session on how to sculpt delivered to NSA/Ohio you can follow this link to flickr.

Let’s say you help people move toward accomplishing their goals, or breaking through barriers. You probably have some strong stories and examples about how to do so. You have a powerpoint presentation and handouts. You might use pre-presentation questionnaires, even some tests and surveys. Most likely, you have some activities that help cement the point you’re trying to make. These are all well and good. But sculpting will take you one giant step beyond that.

There is a video on this page (below) of a small-group sculpt I recently did. To understand the video, I need to provide you with the backstory.

Prior to what you are going to view, I had the participants identify barriers to their goals and then I brought up two volunteers. The tall woman in the video played the main character. (What you cannot see is that there is another woman off camera, to the right of the screen, who represents the main character’s goals.) Prior to this brief clip, the subject merely had to walk across the room to “her goals,” (the other woman). Obviously, this was merely a metaphor of moving toward one’s objectives, no big deal, no effort. It merely gave me some time to play with her and the audience. It literally and figuratively helped set the stage for what was to happen next.

After the first activity, I said, “Now, let’s make it look like real life.” That’s where this scene begins.

The Audience Gets Involved

I brought up several other volunteers to represent the daily and long-term barriers the main character faces in achieving her goals. One person represents interruptions (you can hear the “ringing telephone”). One person represents doubt. Another is commuter traffic. One child is her daughter. (The band connecting the two prevents her from moving too far from her daughter, but also causes her to be pulled by her daughter’s needs.) As you can see, the players surround her, they pull and they tug at her.

After setting this up (by getting the audience’s ideas), I “put it in motion.” You can see and feel the energy, activity, and involvement. You can hear the laughter (even from those passive audience members still sitting). When the sculpt completed, we debriefed what happened and how it felt. We discuss what could be different, what can be changed — and what cannot.

Making An Impact & Having Fun

The impact is immediate and deep. The audience is involved. The results are astonishing. They understand the lesson. They get the point. You get the credit.

There are many type of sculpts, from extremely simple to amazingly complex.

We will go over simple one-person sculpts all the way up to multi-player, deeply involved sculpts. You will see how you can use a 30 second sculpt in a keynote, or help design – on the fly – a 15-30 minute activity for a breakout or training. You will learn about using props – or not. Come prepared to be involved and to have fun.

Dr. Peter Alsop taught me about sculpts. I now use them in virtually every one of my presentations. The audience loves it. The meeting planners appreciate it.

And it makes me a better presenter.

It will do the same for you!