Aligning Intentions

This step of the Exploring Intentional Collaborations discussion series builds on an appreciation of shared values to explore the context within which we can make meaning together in more detail, and identify whether we are currently in a position to collaborate on a given project.

Context for Aligning Intentions

Context is the backdrop against which our collaboration unfolds, and meaning emerges from the stories we share about how this collaboration relates to the broader tapestry of our lives.

Changes in our context can occur when there are shifts or alterations within any area where we expect to contribute our energy and time (other collaborations, relationships, personal commitments, caring responsibilities, paid-work, etc,). Contextual changes can also emerge from external constraints (such as changes in our physical location, health, life events, livelihood, and so on).

Discussing the context in which our collaboration exists serves several purposes, including:

• Nurturing a deeper understanding of our hopes for this project, uncovering our individual aspirations and seeing where they meet collectively
• Exploring how our intentions fit into broader life commitments
• Assessing what realistic capacity we can give this project given our broader set of commitments
• Anticipating shifts in context that may influence participation
• Aligning on our expectations for how others participate in this project

The following steps are offered as a potential way of structuring these discussions.

Reflecting on Hopes & Aspirations

Take a moment to recall the shared values discussed and then independently explore the expectations you are bringing to the project.

Begin by journaling any thoughts the following sentence-starters prompt:

• This work is important to me because . . .
• This is part of . . .
• The short-term objectives I hope to achieve . . .
• The long-term goals it could help make progress on . . .
• The intangible outcomes of this could be . . .
• It would be really exciting if we could . . .
• Something I personally want to practice, try, experiment with is . . .

When ready, select three images or objects from within your space that reflect the themes that emerged from your journaling and other creative explorations.

Returning to the group, share your selected images/objects and how these reflect the themes that emerged from your reflections.

Mapping Commitments

Take some time to individually reflect on all of your existing commitments.

• Brainstorm a list of any aspects of your life where you contribute your energy (creative projects, work projects, community projects, relationships, hobbies, household commitments, personal development, health practices, etc.,).
• Map out the dynamic impacts on your energy from your participation in each of these commitments. For example, you might use an 'Energy Solar System' visualisation. In the example shown, the location to the centre reflects the degree of energy gained from each commitment, size indicates relative degree of energy each commitment tends to require, and colour illustrate grouping of commitments by their life-role characteristics.
  
• Consider how you expect your participation in this project to fit into this dynamic, and select a position on your map that reflects this.
• Step back and take stock. What does this positioning reveal about your ability to contribute to this collaboration (given your existing commitments)?
• Returning to the group, each share a summary of your existing commitments (allowing space for clarifying questions)
• Once everyone has shared existing commitments, each describe:
  • how your participation in this project fits in within the dynamics of your existing commitments.
  • the levels/types of energy you expect to be able to commit to this project
• Allow space for any clarifying questions and discussion

Anticipating Shifts in Context

Looking forward, reflect on what changes you might expect to:

• the existing commitments already shared (starting a new project, wrapping up an existing project, an increase/decrease in caring responsibilities, etc.,)
• any temporary conditions or external constraints that might impact your intended participation in the project? (e.g., travel, moving house, surgeries, etc.,)

Returning to the group, share your expectations about any foreseeable changes in your context that might impact how and when you have capacity to participate in the project.

Making Meaning Together

As a group, return to your hopes and aspirations for the project and discuss how your inital intentions may be impacted by the context each of us bring to the collaboration.

If unsure where to start, consider the following discussion prompts:

• How does my current capacity for contributing to this project align with my hopes and aspirations?
• Do we feel good about our respective capacities for contributing to the project?
• Are there ways that we can create flexibility within our ways of collaborating to allow for known changes in our respective contexts?

Take an agreed-upon period of time away from the group to reflect on what you are willing to commit as next steps on this project.

Return to the group, and articulate when/how your collaboration will move forward.

Next Steps?

The next step in the Exploring Intentional Collaborations series offers prompts for discussing preemptive Relationship Gardening practices.

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tags: discussion-prompt, intentional collaborations,collaborative-practices, intentional-relationships, meta-communication

Date initially created: 2023 (originally titled 'Meaning making in context')
Version: 2.0 (2024)
Created for: Intentional Collaborations Project
Attribution: Created, based on collaborations with Bridget Mullins and Susan Basterfield, by E. T. Smith on unceded lands of the Wurundjeri people.

CC BY-NC-SA