166 - Scribing: A Social Art and Facilitative Practice with Kelvy Bird

Kelvy has been a scribe for almost 30 years - there are few people better placed to share insights and reflections on the discipline & its impact on collaborative work.

Scribing is far more than ‘just’ drawing pictures or transcribing speech, as Kelvy explains with perfect clarity & engaging spirit in this episode.  

We explore what it means to listen without seeing, to participate without influencing, & to join art and information for the benefit of the group.

Find out about:

• What scribing is and how it enhances our collaboration
• Why ink and pencil marks are only the tip of the iceberg in the multi-sensory world of scribing
• How perception, knowledge, and drawing come together in scribing
• How Otto Scharmer’s four levels of listening translate to scribing
• What feedback looks like when we accept that no drawing can be ‘bad’
• Why Kelvy recommends for anyone interested in exploring scribing

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Questions and Answers
Part one 
[01:08] When did you start calling yourself a facilitator - if you do? 
[04:09] What did you have to leave behind from your education in art to become a 'real' scribe? 
[05:57] Can you explain the difference between scribing and graphic facilitation?
[11:03] How do you perceive your impact on the group - does scribing change the course of a workshop?
[13:28] How do you represent silence, pauses, and the unspoken? 
[16:43] Can you read other scribes' work in ways that participants can't? 
[23:01] What's the difference between reading body language in-person and online? 
[25:46] Has there been a particular moment when you've felt proud of the group's reaction to your drawings? 
[29:59] More emotion comes through in drawings, does that make them more memorable than traditional minute-taking? 
[31:21] Where is the line between art and information in your work? Do the two merge
[32:56] How do you retain independent creativity whilst trying to meet the expectations of the client? 
[36:20] What I'm hearing is that you may feel you've lost some sharpness, but gained more 'sensing'? 
[38:25] Could a university professor use a scribe to capture their first iteration of a lecture and then use those drawings as their presentation in the future? 
[45:24] Could you imagine a museum or gallery for scribes? 
[49:34] Is the sense of care and depth of listening a way to distinguish between a good scribe and a bad scribe? Is there such a distinction?

Links
Website
Upcoming programs
Scribing Essentials course, in October
Generative Scribing book
Medium profile

Connect to Kelvy:
LinkedIn
Twitter

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