Method guide · Work with a structured grid
Observation Contract
Agree who will observe an action, what facts they will look for, and how the results will be returned to the person trying it.
- People
- 3–16
- Base procedure time
- 30 minutes
- Recording
- Shared record
Purpose: Make a decision; Build working relationships.
English guide
Text acceptance is not approval of this rendered page, its media, or publication.
How this method works
A method for agreeing not only on an action to try but who will check it and through what facts. Use it when improvement proposals are decided but evaluation stays impressionistic and people disagree about what to look for afterwards. Restating interpretive words as observable events and specifying observers and formats in advance makes the conversation after the trial more concrete. Decide at the same time how observations will be returned to the person concerned, so records are not used independently of that feedback. The result is an observation contract with a deadline. Do not use it for individual appraisal, secret surveillance, or tracking behaviour without the person's consent.
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.
Use the arrow keys, Home or End while these controls have focus. The complete phase schedule remains below, including without JavaScript.
- Propose actions0–5 minutes from the start (5 minutes)
Action: Propose. Participation: Everyone.
Individual record
- Restate as facts5–12 minutes from the start (7 minutes)
Action: Restate. Participation: Groups of 3–5.
Shared record
- Allocate observation12–19 minutes from the start (7 minutes)
Action: Allocate. Participation: Groups of 3–5.
Shared record
- Choose a format19–25 minutes from the start (6 minutes)
Action: Choose. Participation: Everyone.
Shared record
- Keep the contract25–30 minutes from the start (5 minutes)
Action: Keep. Participation: Everyone.
Shared record
Facilitation steps
- For 5 minutes, write the next actions to try and the changes they should bring about, one item per sticky note.
- For 7 minutes, restate each evaluative word about the action as a fact that can be seen or heard.
- For 7 minutes, decide who will observe each action and how the observed facts will be returned to the person concerned.
- For 6 minutes, choose one of three record formats: counts, short text, or checkboxes.
- For 5 minutes, write on the contract the deadline for ending observation and the setting for a conversation to review the results.
If something changes
If
Three minutes into restating facts, at least half the notes still contain evaluative words.
Then
Rewrite them to answer, ‘What would a third party say happened if they saw it?’
If
Four minutes into allocating observation, 2 or more rows still have no observer.
Then
Choose one person other than the person responsible for the action and limit the sharing method to a short written record.
Preparation
Materials
- Three action sticky notes per person
- One A3 observation-contract sheet per group, plus one for whole-group integration
- One writing implement per person
- One example-record card per group
Room and setup
- One island table per group of no more than 5, with observers and people carrying out actions in separate seats
- At least 10 cm of right-hand margin on each group's contract-sheet work surface for adding a check date at the end of each row
- One wall for posting together rows using the same record format
Adjust for people and time
With fewer than 3 people, it is difficult to separate observers from people carrying out actions, so do not use the method. Divide everyone into groups of no more than 5 whose sizes differ by no more than 1 person, each using one work surface. Transfer up to 2 rows per group to the whole-group display. With 16 people, display 8 rows from four groups, bring rows using the same observation format together, and align their review dates.
Safety and non-applicable situations
Do not use observations for individual appraisal, secret surveillance, or behaviour tracking without the person's consent. Decide how results will be returned to the person as well as who will observe, the record format, the end date, and the review conversation.
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 phase labels specify groups of 3–5; scaling gives a maximum of 5 and balanced sizes but does not give a group-count algorithm. Both are preserved without inventing one.
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.
- Taiwa no Fumen editorial team: Observation Contract
Original description and illustrations
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.