Sparkling moment

A nice exercise to start a training or workshop with is the SPARKLING MOMENT exercise. I first heard about this term (sparkling moment) from Paul Z. Jackson but I think the term is older. The instruction for this exercise is:

Form duo's. Tell each other about a fulfilling moment you have recently experienced in your work (a sparkling moment). The person who listens to the story encourages the other person until a lively description of what happened in the sparkling moment has emerged. Take 5 minutes per person.

Afterwards people you ask people to tell how it was for them to do this exercise. Here is a list of the things people normally say:

• "Fun to do!"
• "It gives you energy, it brings you in good mood right away, you're active right away."
• "It helps you realize that there actually are things that are going well."
• "At first, it was hard to find an example but when I found one, I relived the situation completely."
• "This way, it is very easy to make contact with each other."
• "It is both fun to tell about your own sparkling moment and to listen to the sparkling moment of the other person."
• 'It makes me become more aware of what is important to me in my work."
• "It helps me find new ideas about how I can have fun and fulfillment in my work more often."

Also read: I never thought I'd say this, but ...