Positive? No, Appreciative
Sometimes we attend training sessions that excite us at the moment. We leave with the desire to apply, to transform our practices, convinced that this time, it will be different.
And yet… a few months, a few years later, there often remains only a file in a forgotten folder.
Because daily life takes over. Because we couldn’t, didn’t know how, or didn’t dare to integrate these learnings into our professional life.
And then… there are training sessions that leave a lifelong mark.
Those that, far beyond the method, reinforce a stance, a view of the world, a philosophy.
For me, this was the case with Appreciative Inquiry.
🌱 An experience that changed my way of acting
I attended this training in a very particular context: the first two days in February 2020… and the next two in June 2020, just after the first lockdown.
A pivotal period, full of uncertainties, reinvention, and search for meaning. This training was a true turning point.
Since then, it has infused all my support activities: seminars, coaching, workshops.
I incorporate both the stance and the tools I learned there, like a very powerful guiding thread.
🔍 What exactly is Appreciative Inquiry?
🧠 An approach born from a change of perspective
AI was born in the late 1980s at Cleveland University (Ohio), with Professor David Cooperrider, from a very simple realization:
“People respond to the questions they are asked. When you ask a system what is wrong, it tells you what is wrong. But if you ask it positive questions, it tells positive stories. And these stories activate empowering emotions, which in turn generate desire, creativity, and engagement. “
Contrary to what one might think, being appreciative does not mean being naively positive. It is about being curious about what creates value in a system, relying on what already works — without denying the problems.
🔁 Where problem-solving starts with a hypothesis and an uncertain action plan, AI starts with a real, lived, proven success.
It proposes to grow what works, rather than simply correcting what doesn’t.
⚡The ‘catalytic’ effect comes from the combination of Exploration and Appreciation…
Ap-pre-ci-ate: To value, esteem, or admire highly; to assign value, understand, and recognize the best around us. Affirm strengths, successes, potentials, and perceive what gives vitality and excellence.
and…Inquire: To explore, discover, ask questions, study, research
AI unfolds into powerful questioning but can also be applied to a team, an organization wanting to embark on a transformation, with a five-phase approach (Definition, Discovery, Dream, Design, Destiny).
💥 The power of AI in times of crisis
One of the most significant moments when I applied AI was during the lockdown.
With my team, we launched an initiative we called ‘Rebound’.
Remotely, with limited resources, but with a strong intuition:something unprecedented is happening. It must be captured.
We observed that there was more listening, more solidarity, more effective meetings, faster decisions.
We then launched 60 remote interviews with managers to understand what they were experiencing, what they were feeling, and especially what they were doing well during this period. To move away from this feeling of the end of the world, fear, and doubts.
And there, the magic of AI operated.
🎧 In one hour of appreciative questioning, you could hear the voice and see the face of the people light up, their energy change.
It was powerful. And so precious in this period of uncertainty.
Among the lessons, we were struck by what our leaders told us in summary of what they had learned: “Active listening, initially constrained by ‘forced’ remote work, has become a performance lever. By developing our capacity for concentration and focus, we observed a productivity gain of up to 20%.”
But beyond reinvigorating our managers, the AI approach allowed them to identify three to four concrete paths they wanted to implement to continue maintaining this “state of grace, once the confinement ended” and improve their own performance and that of their team.
💡 And you, what could you grow?
What if you took a moment to look at your team, your organization, or your own journey:
- What is the last collective success you’re proud of?
- What did you mobilize to make it happen?
- What if you decided to make it a lever for transformation, rather than trying to fill what’s missing?
Appreciative Inquiry taught me to look at things differently.
It gave me simple, powerful, human tools.
And it continues to inspire me every day
🔗 If this appreciative view resonates with you, if you feel that your team or organization would benefit from exploring its strengths rather than its flaws, I would be delighted to discuss it with you. I regularly offer discovery workshops (1.5 hours, via video conference) or customized seminars.
