Bring a challenge to mind, and summarise it in the middle of a big piece of paper. For example, at YCN we might want to explore how we can continually enrich the relationships we have with our learning community. So, on our piece of paper we could write in the middle 'A more human interaction'.

Now ask yourself; “Where else is this experienced or achieved?” Ponder alone, or discuss as a group — and write down what comes up. Our example above shows different examples of where great and memorable human interaction takes place — whether that's the attention lavished on your upon your arrival at a homely B&B or the wonderful feeling of being guided directly to a book you've been dying to read in a lending library.

From here you can consider what to 'steal with pride' and bring back to the challenge in mind. For us that might involve thinking about how we use the evocative language of a love letter to better grab the attention of our audience; or how we might keep personal things aside for members of our community, in the way a librarian may well recommend a book to a regular visitor.