Seen, Heard, Respected

Liberating Structures make it easy for leaders of all levels to create conditions for people to work at the top of their intelligence and creativity. In this environment, people thrive and enjoy their work. It is also the path to top performance. The SEEN, HEARD, RESPECTED Liberating Structure can create opportunity for you and others to fully empathize by listening to others stories. Having someone actively listen to your story — without them judging or interrupting you — is liberating. 

Purpose

‘Heard, Seen, Respected’ is all about building empathy and compassion. It does so by inviting us to share a story of a time when we felt not heard, seen or respected. But also by inviting us to actively listen to the story of another person.

This structure was created by Henri Lipmanowicz and Keith McCandless, inspired by earlier work by Mark Jones.

Steps to facilitate Heard, Seen, Respected

Begin by introducing the purpose ‘Heard, Seen, Respected’. In this structure, participants will take turns to share a personal story while the other person listens with full attention:

  • (2 min) Individually and in silence, invite participants to think of a situation or a time when they felt NOT heard, seen or respected. Taking from Keith McCandless, we always encourage them to avoid picking the biggest one — the one that stings the most
  • (1 min) Ask people to pair up and pull up chairs so they can sit face-to-face, knees almost touching, without anything between them;
  • (14 min) In pairs, each person has 7 minutes to share their story. The other person listens with full, undivided attention and doesn’t ask any questions
  • (5 min) In their pairs, partners share the experiences of listening and storytelling: “What did it feel like to tell my story; what did it feel like to listen to your story?
  • (10 min) Using 1–2–4-ALL, invite participants to reflect on the stories and identify patterns. What do these patterns mean to this group? How could HSR or other Liberating Structures be used to address the challenges revealed by the patterns?

Examples of Heard, Seen, Respected

  • Creating space for diverse opinions to be heard
  • Space for individuals and groups that are experiencing change
  • Rebuilding trust and empathy
  • Build trust in new teams or new dynamics

People who participate in ‘Heard, Seen, Respected’ often reflect on the power of listening to others and how difficult it is to only listen. ‘Heard, Seen, Respected’ is all about creating a space where leaders can better understand others.

  • Share a story of a surprising challenge that you encountered during the Stay Safe, Stay Home initiative.
  • Share an opportunity that remote work provided that the pre-COVID workplace did not provide. 
  • What frustrations did you experience with social distancing? What strategies did you use to help lessen the frustration?
  • What is one thing that you feel is important to remember from the Stay Safe, Stay Home period of time? What lessons learned are most important to remember?