Tim Wilborn designed the following tool to introduce youth in Imagine Detroit to Appreciative Inquiry:
The Power of Appreciative Inquiry
Appreciative Inquiry is more that a process, it’s a way of life. How you ask a question can very well determine the type of feedback you receive. To prove it, I’ll need two volunteers.
1. Have one of the volunteers leave the room.
2. Ask the volunteer remaining in the room, "How has your week been?" (More than likely, the person will answer, "Fine," or "Okay," or some other one-word response.)
3. Have the first volunteer sit down. Ask the second volunteer to come inside the room and ask them, "Tell me something good that happened to you this week?"
4. Ask the participants in the workshop if they could hear the difference in the two responses.
5. Go to the board and write, "Tell me three things about yourself" and "Tell me three things that you like about yourself".
6. Ask the students what type of response they think people will give to the first question versus the second question.
How to Use Appreciative Inquiry
1. Ask participants to write down 2-3 questions they could ask a complete stranger on the street and get a positive response.
2. Once they have their questions, pair the youth up and have them ask each other the questions they have written, and take notes on the answers to share with the whole group.
3. Bring the group back together and ask, "From the questions you just asked, what new things did you learn about the person you just met?"
4. "What questions got the most feedback?"