Method guide · Progress through phases
Heard, Seen, Respected
Listen to experiences of respect and identify the conditions that made people feel respected, without recording their personal stories.
- People
- 2–40
- Base procedure time
- 35 minutes
- Recording
- Shared record
Purpose: Explore through dialogue; Build working relationships.
English guide
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How this method works
A paired method for sharing experiences of being respected and identifying the conditions that created respect. Use it when advice arrives before people can speak openly, or early on when the group wants to build a foundation for relationships in a short time. The experience of being listened to without being corrected or evaluated creates a sense of safety and trust. Speakers share only what they are comfortable sharing and may choose not to speak. Listeners give no advice or interpretation, and briefly reflect back only the key points that stayed with them. The result is a list of conditions that created respect from each pair and one action to try next time. Do not use this method on its own where personal stories will be shared with everyone or entered in meeting records, or where highly distressing memories will be explored.
Phase schedule
Minutes are cumulative from the start of the base plan, not a live timer. Read scaling for any additional time. Phase controls do not advance automatically.
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- Present the question0–3 minutes from the start (3 minutes)
Action: Present. Participation: Everyone.
Recording not separately specified for this phase
- Recall an experience3–5 minutes from the start (2 minutes)
Action: Recall. Participation: Individually.
Recording not separately specified for this phase
- Tell and listen5–17 minutes from the start (12 minutes)
Action: Listen. Participation: Pairs.
Recording not separately specified for this phase
- Reflect back the key points17–25 minutes from the start (8 minutes)
Action: Reflect. Participation: Pairs.
Shared record
- Record the conditions25–35 minutes from the start (10 minutes)
Action: Record. Participation: Everyone.
Shared record
Facilitation steps
- For 3 minutes, present the question and first explain that people may share only what they are comfortable sharing, may choose not to speak, and that personal stories will not be recorded.
- For 2 minutes, each person silently recalls a situation in which they felt heard, seen, and respected, and what the other person was doing.
- For 12 minutes, work in pairs with a speaker and a listener. Listen without advice or interpretation and swap roles after 6 minutes.
- For 8 minutes, listeners briefly reflect back only the key points that stayed with them, and the pair writes the conditions that created respect on cards.
- For 10 minutes, each pair gives only the conditions, not the personal stories, to the whole group. Agree on one action to try next time and close.
If something changes
If
A listener starts giving advice or telling their own story twice in succession.
Then
The facilitator reminds everyone to ‘Reflect back just one key point’ and returns the speaking turn to the speaker.
If
The speaker pauses for 30 seconds or more, or asks to stop.
Then
Explain that they may stop telling the story and let them choose whether to spend the remaining time only listening or to leave.
If
Whole-group sharing includes a name, affiliation, or other detail that could identify a person.
Then
The facilitator restates it only as a condition and keeps only the conditions in the record.
Preparation
Materials
- Chairs for each pair to sit facing one another, without a table
- Two cards per pair, A6 or larger, for recording conditions that created respect
- One dark-coloured pen per pair, medium tip or wider
- One shared display surface per venue for the conditions
Room and setup
- Arrange chairs facing one another in pairs as the standard; only when the number is odd, make one group of 3
- Leave at least 1 m between groups so their stories do not overlap audibly
Adjust for people and time
With 2 people, take turns as speaker and listener and complete the reflection of key points. With 3–40, use pairs as the standard. If the number is odd, the facilitator can join as a listener, or make one group of 3 and shorten the storytelling to three turns of 4 minutes each. Above 20 people, limit whole-group sharing to one condition per pair, post the cards on the shared surface, and read silently to see where conditions overlap.
Safety and non-applicable situations
Speaking is optional, and participants choose the extent of what they share. Give no advice or interpretation. Do not record or share personal stories with the whole group; record only conditions that created respect, without identifying details. A person who pauses or asks to stop may stop, only listen, or leave. Do not use this method alone to explore highly distressing memories.
Historical translation and source notes
These original notes are retained verbatim with their fixed source versions. This historical label does not resolve a source-specific concern or establish current acceptance.
- The Japanese source gives three storytelling turns of 4 minutes for a group of 3 but does not specify how the two listening roles rotate or how its 8-minute reflection phase is divided. This draft preserves the stated timings without adding a new role or timing rule.
Manuscript's recorded references
These translate the original manuscript's source and rights claims. They remain separate from any current-page notice below; they do not establish new verification.
- Liberating Structures Fieldbook (2026): Heard, Seen, Respected — Henri Lipmanowicz / Keith McCandless / Nancy White
https://www.liberatingstructures.com/heard-seen-respected
Adaptation under CC BY-SA 4.0; changes made
- CC BY-SA 4.0
Current-page licence notice
This explanation is an adaptation for Taiwa no Fumen based on the official Liberating Structures page linked below. The manuscript's recorded references are listed separately from the web page checked on 17 October 2026.
Changes: the Japanese explanation and facilitation plan have been edited for Taiwa no Fumen. The English edition translates that Japanese manuscript; it is not a verbatim translation of the official page.
The LS-adapted text on this page, including this site's editorial and translation contributions, is shared under CC BY-SA 4.0. When reusing it, credit the creators, identify the source and licence, indicate changes, and follow the licence's ShareAlike terms when sharing adaptations.
This site's notation diagrams and on-screen illustrations explain the facilitation process. They are not presented as official LS icons.
Method names are used to identify their sources. This is not an official LS website, and no endorsement or approval by the creators or rights holders is implied.
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Credits on the checked source page
- Developed by: Henri Lipmanowicz, Keith McCandless
Related work credited on that page: His Holiness the Dalai Lama.
Source page checked on 2026-10-17: Heard, Seen, Respected (HSR).
Source lineage
- Original repertoire (2013): Henri Lipmanowicz, Keith McCandless
- 2026 Fieldbook: Keith McCandless, Nancy White
Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International · Legal code · Official source policy
This material-specific notice does not itself establish publication clearance. Preserved manuscript references above remain separate from the current page's credits and licence evidence.
Diagram, print, and video language
Original Japanese guide, diagram, and print view. Their labels and print text have not been translated; an English print edition is not provided here.
English video-library navigation. Original Japanese audio, subtitles and transcripts remain labelled Japanese resources. Their translations are separate later work. No remote player is embedded here.
The manual English phase controls are a navigation aid, not a live facilitation timer. Interactive diagram motion remains pending.
Editorial provenance
Japanese source status and logs are provenance only. They do not mean this English text or interface was field-tested. Historical fixed-text acceptance and hold records remain specific to their recorded versions; displaying them neither asserts current acceptance nor resolves source-specific restrictions.