The Importance of Debriefing
At the end of every school year, I do an important activity with my administrative team. I did it when there were 10 people on the team, and I’ve done it when there are more than 110 on the team. We gather in small groups, talk through a simple set of questions, take time to laugh, cry, vent, and celebrate, and then we’re done.
The size of the group doesn’t matter. What matters is that you take time to process what happened during the year that created heavy doses of stress.
It’s not a complicated process, and if you take even an hour to go through it, you’ll have people who walk out feeling lighter and leaving some of this year at the door rather than carrying it with them.
Free Resource
I’ve done the work for you. If you’d like to use the format and series of questions I’ve designed, click HERE to download your free copy!
What’s the catch? There isn’t one. I believe in this so strongly after so many years that I want everyone to let go of some of the “yuck” rather than having it accumulate more and more over time. If we don’t let go of some of the stress, it is less likely that people will be able to go the distance. It’s just that simple.
You can use the resource in various ways. Use it as a discussion guide. Take the questions and put them on a single slide for groups to see at a glance. Send the resource home with people after you’ve worked through the group discussions. There is no right or wrong way—the benefit is in going through the questions for reflection and debriefing.
At the end of this session, we award the People’s Choice Award—You Can’t Make It Up winner for the year! We take the craziest of the crazy, and the winner gets a gigantic, completely obnoxious trophy to display in their office next year! We put the year to rest and start resting so we can rev up and go again next year!
I hope you’re taking the long weekend to rest, and if your year is finished – congratulations! If you still have a few weeks to go before you’re wrapping up the year, best wishes for a smooth slide into home base!
Let me know if you have a question. Feel free to email or leave a comment! Share the FREE RESOURCE with a friend and have them subscribe!
Yay for Long Weekends!
Jane