The document discusses best practices for introducing, conducting, and processing exercises in group settings. It emphasizes that the processing phase is the most important part of any exercise, where members can delve deeper into their thoughts, feelings, and insights. Effective processing involves giving members adequate time to discuss their experiences in the exercise in various formats like rounds, dyads, writing, or full group discussion. The leader must decide whether to focus discussion on individual members or the whole group, and when to shift focus to facilitate deeper exploration of issues.

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©
2012
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Cengage
Learning,
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Introducing, Conducting,
and Processing Exercises
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Introducing
an Exercise
 Set the right tone
 Inform the members of the purpose and
procedures
 Avoid confusing directions
 Avoid lengthy directions
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2012
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Conducting
an Exercise
 Make sure members follow
instructions
 Allow members to not participate
 Be prepared for emotional reactions
 Change or stop an exercise if not
going well
 Inform members of the time, if
appropriate
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Leader
Participation
in Exercises
 It is always an option
 Participate if it will be helpful
 Don’t participate if the members
are going to focus on your
comments
 Never participate if you are
working on your unfinished
business
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2012
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division
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Cengage
Learning,
Inc.
Processing
an Exercise
 Understanding the processing of exercises is essential
because it is by far the most important phase of any
exercise
 Always consider the purpose of the exercise when
processing
 Give thought to the various ways of processing before
using an exercise
 Anticipate potential problems
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2012
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division
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Cengage
Learning,
Inc.
Goals of
Processing
 To stimulate sharing and discussion about topics or
issues
 To stimulate members to delve deeper into
thoughts and feelings
 To stimulate sharing and discussion related to the
group dynamics and group process
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Learning,
Inc.
Time
Needed
for
Adequate
Processing
 A leader should make sure there is adequate time
to process the exercise to the depth desired
 Novice leaders move on to something else and
don’t allow enough time for processing
 Recognize when the exercise has served its
purpose…then move on
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2012
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division
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Learning,
Inc.
Ways of
Processing
 Through rounds
 In dyads or triads
 Through writing
 Comments from the entire group
 Any combination of the preceding
four ways
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Kinds of
Processing
Questions
 “What insights did you get from doing this?”
 “What feelings were stirred up for you?”
 “How can you use this exercise to help you in your
life?”
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Time
Spent
Discussing
theActual
Exercise
 Sometimes discussing the exercise is the
processing.
 Other times, the discussion of the exercise leads to
deeper work and the leader may want to shift to
working on the issues that came up as a result of
processing the exercise.
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Focusing
onOne
Member
or on the
Entire
Group
 Exercises often cause members to delve deeply
into themselves. The leader decides if he or she
wants to focus on one member or the entire group.
It depends on the group and the issues.
 Often it is best to focus on the entire group and
then on one or two members who may wish to
process more deeply.
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Holding and
Shifting the
Focus
 Inexperienced leaders hold the focus too long on
one person, often the first one to speak.
 It is usually best to hear from all or the majority of
members before focusing on one member
 Inexperienced leaders shift the focus too
frequently, thus preventing the group to go very
deep.
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Learning,
Inc.
Processing
Past-
Centered
Exercises
 Some exercises are focused on the past—
childhood, early memories, etc. These exercises
are valuable.
 The leader has to decide if the value is in spending
the majority of the time in the past or in how the
past is currently effecting the members.
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