The method was originally developed for use in the Nokia factories to help teams connect and improve morale. The Deep Talk approach is currently being used to encourage dialogue in a wide variety of contexts, e.g. workplaces, schools, care homes, wellbeing groups, religious groups, forest church, interfaith groups, hospital chaplaincy, counselling and spiritual accompaniment. Dialogue (both inner and within communities) helps to develop trust and meaningful communication.Deep Talk uses stories as a stimulus for conversations that address big questions of life and build community. It helps people bring their whole selves to a situation, learn to listen to their inner voice and to listen and talk with others in a way that is appreciative and reflective, which strengthens community. 

Deep Talk stories come from all cultures, they include stories from various religions, as well as legends and folktales. The stories are typically minimal and understated, with a limited number of props placed in the sand to illustrate them, leaving much to the imagination. The stories give rise to a time of wondering, and this is followed by a community game in which the participants create a landscape in the sand in response to a question pertinent to the group, such as:
“What is our community like?”
“I wonder what is most important to us, what is our treasure?”
“I wonder if we have any blockages within our community?”
“How do we feel about forgiveness?”

There is a sense of discovering things about ourselves that are already there but hidden, and this is an opportunity to uncover them in a gentle and safe way. It has a carefully crafted structure involving four conceptual spaces, each of which has a role to play:
·       Forming a circle: Everyone is welcomed and takes their place in a circle. We catch up with each other, connect and form the group.
·       Telling the story: We begin with the question “Are you ready to hear a story?” We tell the story with our eyes focused on the props and our hearts and minds fully attentive, listening to our inner voice about the big ethical and moral questions of life. After the story we wonder about it, thinking what we liked about the story and where we see ourselves in it. The group might answer out loud, or quietly to themselves.
·   Community game: We move around and change places in the circle. This helps us see the story from a different angle and helps think afresh about it. We create a landscape in the sand in response to the question posed. This offers a space to address issues and build community. At the end of the game we ask if this is good enough and then close with a blessing over the sand.
·   Celebration: We have something to eat and drink together. This brings us back to normal life and creates an opportunity to chat and connect again in a more ordinary way. We give feedback and talk further about anything we need or want to. And then we say our Goodbyes.

A Deep Talk session gives people a safe and structured space to talk about important issues and the bigger questions of life. It creates an atmosphere where we learn to talk and listen appreciatively, accepting the other’s thoughts and feelings without judgement. This increases trust and sense of community between people, which benefits them personally as well as helping them work better together as a team.

This approach can be used with either individuals or a community/team to enable reflective engagement with stories. We use our head, heart and hands. It is soul work. It is a way of being.

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Deep Talk, including its similarities and overlaps with the following methods: Life Coaching; workplace mentoring; team building; peer-to-peer mentoring; personal, professional and spiritual development; story-telling therapy, work in schools. 

The Deep Talk method will also be related to the six practical methods that have helped shape it: Oral traditions of storytelling (across millennia); Christian Spiritual Accompaniment (across 1700 years); language learning process theory (Joseph Artigas); Montessori Education methods; Godly Play(Jerome Berryman); workplace mediation techniques for groups. This theory and practice in Deep Talk is provided at Developing Deep Talk training.

Deep Talk makes use of conceptual spaces in ways that are very similar to that used by Joseph Artigal in language learning. Deep Talk includes physical spaces in which certain actions take place and the freedom and pleasantness (acceptance) are their fundamental ground-stones. Space, freedom and pleasantness are also important to the development of inner language, the language of sanctity.

There are Deep Talk guides practising in Australia, New Zealand, Finland, Ireland, The Netherlands, South Africa, Sweden, the UK and in other places too, making up a large community.

Deep Talk sessions, follow the same structure as outlined below, of entering four spaces.

Are you ready?
The first conceptual space is the hallway, the moment before the story is started. In that space we prepare ourselves to listen to the story. We try to leave all important things behind and step into the world of the story. The Deep Talk session starts with the words: “Are we ready to hear a story?”. It is important that each person is willing to hear the story because willingness increases the motivation to step in to the process and learn the inner language.

The Story
The second conceptual space is the story. In this space you hear a story and learn something about your inner world. The story is usually hundreds or even thousands of years old. The words and props used in telling are carefully considered. The story itself is minimal and often leaves part of the story open. The guide looks at the materials they show the story with, not at the listeners, which is a strong sign to those listening to open themselves to inner speech.

Through the story a person can sense the spirituality within the whole group. They can feel that they belong to same humanity and are significant and equally valued. The development of inner speech helps them to verbalize the environment around them and their inner world. This spirituality includes attributes that strengthen a person’s ethical and moral values, it also affirms a person’s ability to control over his or her own life or help to accept life as it comes. When individuals start to feel something valuable within themselves, they can transfer this to the use of entire community and co-workers.

Wondering
Wondering happens in the same conceptual space as the story-telling. After the story it is the time to wonder. This is done with carefully defined questions. Wondering changes participant’s inner pondering into words, which further strengthens person’s ability to follow his or her own inner path. The wondering also increases the importance of ethical and moral values in human life.

It is important that within the conceptual space of wondering that there are no right or wrong answers. There is only wonder at the big question of life.

Communal play
In the third conceptual space participants are able to mould the reality of their community by using the tools of the story. The guide of the Deep Talk session leads the work gently. She or he offers some topics from the story which can be handled in communal play. It is very important, however, that the group decides or brings up the topics the play is heading to. The leader just follows.

The play is honestly being ourselves. Everything is allowed in play: we can use the props of the story to experiment, try, revise and complete the reality of our community. The guide has to take care that during the play, things are not good or bad, right or wrong. It is just important to be there and courageously let the things be passed from person to person.

In this space there is a great opportunity to develop the community. Directed and strengthened by the stories a person, group or community can gain courage to address painful issues and process them in varied ways. An experienced guide can evaluate the process and messages of the communal play. The guide can bring up things that have been discovered by the group and help them notice their good solutions. Verbalization of inner thoughts and listening to others can increase the creativity and give light to new ways.

Sharing
The sharing (or celebration) is the fourth conceptual space. The element of celebration is eternal. The group can choose its own way of celebration: a cup of coffee, piece of fruits or other simple food and drink. In Deep Talk we celebrate because we want express our appreciation that we have been able to share this deep talking moment together.

There are many retreats in Finnish and English and other Deep Talk courses.  Go to our community and our Facebook group to ask when one will be happening close by.