ECCAY RESOURCES
Exercise nr. 29
PERSONAL MAPPING
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Minimum number of participants |
Average time length | Individual setting |
Group setting | Special Equipment | Unit | Online | Challenges/ competition |
| 1 | 30-60 min | yes | yes | no | 2,3,4 | yes | no |
Overview (this part is seen immediately when opening the exercise)
“Mapping builds enthusiasm for a project as it provides almost immediately a powerful view of a community. Weaving mapping into the connective tissue of storytelling, dialogue and art-centred approaches grounds the conversation, the vision, and the complex reality of what actually exists in our community and who we are.” (Ganley, 2011).
This exercise for both individual settings and groups helps young people to gain self-awareness and self-development, and when conducted in groups, aims to help them better understand each other, and communicate and collaborate in a more effective way. Individuals can map their own values; the groups, formal institutions and associations to which they belong or feel connected.
Personal Mapping, as any other kind of mapping or mind-mapping, aims to provide a visual representation of a
Aim / Benefits
If you plan to use this exercise in a group setting with young people at risk of exclusion in order to strengthen their relationships, or if you feel that they need to get to know each other better, personal maps may be a useful tool to do so.
Especially, as this technique helps to identify common topics for which to start a conversation in an easy manner. It can also help them to talk about their personal lives, therefore it is easier for them to empathise together. Even a brief conversation about something that is near and dear to their heart can give a sense of security in the other person. This will make it easier for all to express their views and respect each other whilst doing
They are also a suitable way to find out the connection between thoughts and ideas that might not have been known to you before, which make it a great exercise for self-reflection.
UNIT(s) related
Plus, Unit 3. Building the Relationship and Unit 4. Solution Focused Group Work with young people at risk of exclusion delves into how to build relationships between you as a professional and your client(s), and how to improve teamwork and group performance among young people at risk of exclusion, also strengthening their relationships and their bonds with their communities.
How to do the exercise
The professional introduces the exercise to his/her client(s). If implemented on an individual level, he/she explains to the young person the purpose of the personal map, which could go from merely getting to know the client better to guide him/her in the self-discovery and/or construction of solutions for the desired future.
If in a group setting, the professional should explain the purpose of the exercise, e.g. as an ice-breaker for getting to know each other (for instance at the start of the group gathering) or to identify common interests, challenges or issues within the community. Depending on how the exercise is conducted (as indicated in the final step) there are several ways to conduct the exercise, either scenario, you as the professional should explain the process.
Step 2
The exercise starts by putting your client’s name in the centre of a piece of paper or blackboard, and then writing categories of interest around it.
The most commonly used categories are the following: work, education, friends, family, hobbies, goals, values and home. However, bear in mind that these categories should represent the main focus of interest of the young, so it would be great to have an ice-breaker conversation to identify these categories in advance.
You can use different colours or coloured sticky notes to represent the brainstormed ideas, thoughts, potential solutions, etc., related to each specific category of interest.
Step 3
Slowly let the young person reflect for a while about each one of the categories and start filling them out. Again, the categories are not fixed, so encourage him/her to edit categories along with what he/she finds interesting as moving along.
Ask him/her to place the items that are most important or the ones to which he/she identifies the most closely closest to you and arrange those less important or connected further out. Rearrange the sticky notes to indicate how each item relates to one another.
If you feel the client is reluctant or shows scepticism towards the exercise, you might start off with an example and draw your own personal map.
Final step / Conclusion:
At the end of the exercise the professional can ask the young person to present his/her personal map to the rest of the participants when the exercise is developed as a group activity, or use it for their own analysis (and not share with the group).
There are several ways in which the resulting personal maps can be used:
● Each young person makes a map about themselves, which is then shared and discussed with others within a solution-approach mindset.
● When working in a group, participants might be divided into pairs and make personal maps of each other. They will be able to ask and talk about what interests both of them.
● Ask one participant to make the map of another one during a specific time, e.g. a week. The idea is that during different moments (e.g. session break) the one making the personal map tries, through conversations, to fill in the map. They are not allowed to ask direct questions, (e.g. “What are your hobbies?”). Then, ask all participants in a plenary session to reflect ask them to reflect on how many unconscious and incorrect mental judgements they have made about their partner during the week and what their main learnings have been during this time (the learnings can be about their activity partner as well as about their own judgements).
Debrief
After the session, the results can be analysed
- On the level of an individual;
- On a group level.
The professional can use a client’s personal map to get to know them better and engage in a conversation on the things that motivate or worry them.
When using it in groups, once the personal maps have been shared among all, the professional can analyse them and identify common items, topics, etc., and use these to create a feeling of belonging or raise awareness and understanding about each other's differences, and thus increase mutual respect.
Some of the questions which the professional could ask after the exercise are the following:
● What ideas/thoughts/feelings do you have after the process of creating your own (or someone else´s) personal map?
● Did the process change the ideas/thoughts/feelings you have about your life and interests?
● What did you learn about yourself (and the other young people) when doing the exercise and creating the personal maps?
Specific materials
- A3 paper
- Sticky notes
- Coloured pencils or markers
Tips and Tricks
- Allow clients to share freely what they think and encourage them to do so, do not force them to share something specific.
- Make sure to guide their self-reflection focussing on the positive aspect of their maps and potential solutions for their desired selfs in the future.
- When working in groups, try not to focus the discussion on just one subject, which may interest only 2-3 people.
- If personal maps are a new thing for your client(s), make first your first map and share it with them, which may also be great to build trust between you both. Then, continue with his/her own or with someone who offers to try it out.
On-line version
Plus, there are plenty of digital tools that can help you and your client(s) to create and fill Personal Maps. You can use different online tools to work with them, e.g. Miro Board, Mural.
Bibliography - Sitography
M30 Practice: Personal Maps Build Closeness in Modern Teams
Personal Maps - Getting to Know the Whole Human Being
Personal Maps Used As An Icebreaker | agilefellow
Print
eccay-curriculum-en.pdf