Here’s a short activity to run early in a workshop focused on sharing any concerns related to the overall theme. The purpose of using this activity is to create openness and "clear the air" within a group.

The stinky fish is a metaphor for "that thing that you carry around but don’t like to talk about – but the longer you hide it, the stinkier it gets." By putting "stinky fish" on the table, participants relate to each other, get more comfortable sharing, and uncover areas for learning and development.

STEP 1: PURPOSE

• Introduce the purpose of the exercise in your own words. Explain that the purpose is to explore and share our individual concerns/worries about the workshop/program theme or about the future as a way to start a conversation and begin to confront or overcome them.

• Give a Stinky Fish template to each participant. Explain the metaphor of the Stinky Fish: “The Stinky Fish that thing that you carry around but don’t like to talk about; but the longer you hide it, the stinkier it gets. It’s a metaphor for fear or anxiety; something that will only get worse if you don’t acknowledge and deal with it.”

STEP 2: REFLECTION

• Give participants around 5 minutes to capture their personal stinky fish for the context of the workshop/program. For example, if the context is an organizational change workshop, the stinky fish could be about fears and anxieties related to changes within the organization. People should write only a few words or a phrase inside the body of the fish.

STEP 3: SHARING

• Once all participants have captured their own stinky fish, invite the group back, and have each participant share their stinky fish with the rest of the group. Ask participants to share one at a time, for 30-60 seconds each. Continue until all participants have shared.

• Optionally, put all the stinky fish up on the wall as a kind of gallery. It can be useful to come back to them later in a program to refer back to some of the fears and anxieties that were brought up at the beginning.

STEP 4: CLOSING

• Wrap-up the exercise by thanking participants and reminding them that in times of change and uncertainty worry about the future is completely normal.

• Explain that "putting fish on the table" is an important first step to confronting and dealing with concerns and worries. If relevant, explain that elements of the workshop/program to follow will offer the chance to further explore some of these stinky fish.

From Hyperisland