How can you create respectful dialogue in your community?

Respectful dialogue is essential for building trust, understanding, and collaboration in your community. However, it can be challenging to create a space where people can express their views and listen to others without feeling attacked, dismissed, or ignored. In this article, you will learn some tips and strategies to facilitate respectful dialogue in your community, whether you are organizing a meeting, a workshop, or a campaign.

1 Define the purpose and the rules

Before you start a dialogue, make sure you have a clear and shared purpose for it. What are you trying to achieve? What are the main questions or issues you want to explore? How will you use the outcomes of the dialogue? Having a purpose will help you set the tone and the direction of the conversation. It will also help you establish some ground rules for the dialogue, such as how long it will last, how people can participate, and what behaviors are expected and unacceptable. For example, you might ask people to use respectful language, listen actively, avoid interrupting, and acknowledge different perspectives.

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2 Invite diverse and relevant voices

A respectful dialogue requires diversity and inclusion. You want to hear from people who have different backgrounds, experiences, opinions, and interests related to the topic of the dialogue. This will enrich the discussion and help you learn from each other. However, diversity alone is not enough. You also need to make sure that the people you invite are relevant and interested in the dialogue. They should have some stake or connection to the issue, and they should be willing to engage in a respectful and constructive way. You can use various methods to identify and invite potential participants, such as surveys, referrals, social media, or community networks.

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Renuu Tandon, ICF PCC, EMCC SP, SHRM-SCP, GPHR

FutureofWork, AI and Coaching || Systemic Team & Executive Coach || ICF PCC, EMCC SP || Fellow Institute of Coaching, McLean/ Harvard Medical School || ICF DEIB MRG Leader and Chapter Champion || ICF Pune Chapter Leader
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Communities are about diversity - views, cultures, age, backgrounds, gender and more. You need to create a safe space where all views can openly be shared, communicated and acknowledged. Everyone may not agree with the same perspectives, however are respectful to divergent views and appreciate their unique values. Both the contributor and the audience need to demonstrate core behaviours of openness, curiosity, empathy, listening and being able to engage in a respectful dialogue.

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Sharon Matike

Entrepreneur ll Market Research Analyst ll Consultant ll Business Developer Sub Saharan Africa- Business and Industry
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Respectful dialogue also includes valuing the opinions of the parties in the dialogue. While the opinions of every party may not be right or helpful, it's important to not flippantly dismiss others perspectives. You can always disagree without being disrespectful or disagreeable. You can say something like, "Thank you for your thoughts, it makes sense however what we are trying to achieve by having this conversation is rather to ......" Often people will co-operate more when they realize they have a voice and are listened to ....

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3 Create a safe and comfortable environment

The environment where you hold the dialogue can influence how people feel and behave. You want to create a space that is safe, comfortable, and conducive to dialogue. This means choosing a location that is accessible, neutral, and appropriate for the size and format of the dialogue. It also means arranging the space in a way that fosters interaction, openness, and equality. For example, you might use a circle or a U-shape seating arrangement, provide refreshments and breaks, and use posters or flipcharts to display the purpose, the rules, and the key points of the dialogue.

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Sharon Matike

Entrepreneur ll Market Research Analyst ll Consultant ll Business Developer Sub Saharan Africa- Business and Industry
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Safe environments also mean people can easily speak up about things bothering them without earning tags as being difficult etc. People should feel free to express their thoughts, challenges and perspectives without the fear of being denied promotion or perhaps earning a place in bad books in the organization. A safe space is where the culture values respect in dialoguing with any and everyone, it's where it's easy to get or provide feedback, it's where the success of the team takes priority over individual success and every team members contribution regardless of their position is termed valuable.

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Katie McCauley

Community @ Square | Built & scaled 6+ communities for working professionals & biz owners | Google alum, CMX alum | Open to fractional work!
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Setting expectations for the space is important. In online communities, it is critical to create Community Guidelines so all members know what the "house rules" are. This allows the Community Moderator to have documented expectations to point to if something is crossed, members can see that they are safe, AND members can see how they are encouraged to participate. People can feel unsafe and uncomfortable if they don't know the community guidelines. They not only protect members in times of conflict, but they also provide confidence for members to participate.

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4 Use facilitation techniques and tools

Facilitation is the process of guiding and supporting a group of people to have a productive and respectful dialogue. As a facilitator, you have several techniques and tools that can help you achieve this goal. For example, asking open-ended and probing questions to elicit and clarify views, feelings, and experiences; paraphrasing and summarizing what people say to check understanding and highlight commonalities and differences; encouraging participation and feedback from everyone, particularly those who are quiet or marginalized; managing conflicts and emotions by acknowledging them, addressing them constructively, and redirecting them to the purpose of the dialogue; using icebreakers, warm-ups, and energizers to build rapport among participants; as well as using visual aids, games, exercises, or stories to illustrate points or stimulate discussion.

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5 Evaluate and follow up

After the dialogue, it is important to evaluate and follow up with the participants. Evaluation is the process of assessing the effectiveness and the impact of the dialogue. You can use various methods to collect feedback from the participants, such as surveys, interviews, or focus groups. You can also use your own observations and reflections to evaluate the dialogue. The feedback will help you identify what worked well, what can be improved, and what are the next steps. Follow-up is the process of maintaining and strengthening the relationships and the outcomes of the dialogue. You can use various methods to follow up with the participants, such as sending thank-you notes, sharing summaries or reports, inviting them to future events, or connecting them to other resources or opportunities.

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Katie McCauley

Community @ Square | Built & scaled 6+ communities for working professionals & biz owners | Google alum, CMX alum | Open to fractional work!
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In online communities, sometimes these facilitated discussions can happen with a smaller group of members from that community. This can be to resolve conflict or even to discuss positive changes that may affect the greater community. In addition to sending a recap to this facilitation group, its critical to send an update to the community-at-large if the outcomes of this discussion impact the whole community. In this case, consider outlining the goal of the meeting, how you chose members for this discussion, the concerns/ideas that were presented, and what the course of action is. And, set any expectations for additional followup about the topic in the future, like a quarterly revisit.

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6 Here’s what else to consider

This is a space to share examples, stories, or insights that don’t fit into any of the previous sections. What else would you like to add?

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How can you create respectful dialogue in your community?

1

2

3

4

5

6

1 Define the purpose and the rules

2 Invite diverse and relevant voices

3 Create a safe and comfortable environment

4 Use facilitation techniques and tools

5 Evaluate and follow up

6 Here’s what else to consider

Community Organizing

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How can you create respectful dialogue in your community?

1

2

3

4

5

6

1 Define the purpose and the rules

2 Invite diverse and relevant voices

3 Create a safe and comfortable environment

4 Use facilitation techniques and tools

5 Evaluate and follow up

6 Here’s what else to consider

Community Organizing

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