By the end of the activity, participants will be able to:
Recognise that fundamental decisions are primarily values-based
Experience the tensions involved in value-based decisions
Duration: 20 min
Instructions
Story
o 4 characters – a) Girl, b) Fiancé, c) Sailor, and d) Wise Man
o The girl, fiancé, sailor and wise man were on a ship, and were caught in a storm
o The fiancé was stranded on one island, while the girl, the wise man and sailor were on the other island. It was nearby but was too deep to swim over.
o The girl asked the sailor to help her get over to the other island. The sailor agreed on one condition – that she spends the night with him.
o The girl was in a dilemma – she thought hard about it. She then consulted the wise man.
o The wise man said “Follow your Heart”
o The girl thought hard about it, and finally decided to spend the night because that was the only way she could spend the rest of her life with her fiancé.
o The next day, the sailor sent the girl across.
o The girl was reunited with her fiancé. She told him what happened, and he was unable to accept what she did. He left her.
Discussion Process
o Who do you think was the most principled? [Note: Do not use the word ‘values’ at any time]
o Move to four corners of the room; each one representing one of the four characters.
o Small Group Discussion (5 min) – In your groups, share why you chose this character as the most principled?
o Large Group Sharing (4 min) – Explain in one minute, why your group chose that character as the most principled?
o Small Group Strategising (1 min) – In your groups, devise a pitch to convince the others to shift to your group
o Large Group (2 min) – Give your 30-second pitch to convince the rest.
o Large Group (30 seconds) – Allow the team to move, if they want to.
Debrief
o Note: 99% of the time, no one will change groups
o Why did you not change groups?
Typical responses include judgments of the rest, allow it to play on unless it gets very personal (e.g. the girl betrayed her fiancé, the sailor made use of the opportunity, the wise man did not give proper advice, the fiancé did not fully emphathise with that the girl sacrificed for him).
Allow time and space for the group to unpack their decisions.
Value-based decisions – latch onto this piece if any participant brings this up. Ask them to share more about what they mean by they were guided by values, etc.
Logical Responses – There are no wrong or right responses. Everyone’s reasons are highly logical. We make decisions based on ‘who we are’, and the experiences we go through (e.g. how we are brought up, where we went to school, life experience, etc).
o Values guide decisions – It is quite clear that all of us were guided to make our choices because of our values. We might have the same values, but how it manifests is clearly different. It is important to ensure that we find clarity on what these values mean to us, as a collective. Values tell us who we are.
Link to Hierarchy of Choices
o See HoC in Fac Plan (BTB 1)
Logistics:
Nil
Recognise that fundamental decisions are primarily values-based
Experience the tensions involved in value-based decisions
Duration: 20 min
Instructions
Story
o 4 characters – a) Girl, b) Fiancé, c) Sailor, and d) Wise Man
o The girl, fiancé, sailor and wise man were on a ship, and were caught in a storm
o The fiancé was stranded on one island, while the girl, the wise man and sailor were on the other island. It was nearby but was too deep to swim over.
o The girl asked the sailor to help her get over to the other island. The sailor agreed on one condition – that she spends the night with him.
o The girl was in a dilemma – she thought hard about it. She then consulted the wise man.
o The wise man said “Follow your Heart”
o The girl thought hard about it, and finally decided to spend the night because that was the only way she could spend the rest of her life with her fiancé.
o The next day, the sailor sent the girl across.
o The girl was reunited with her fiancé. She told him what happened, and he was unable to accept what she did. He left her.
Discussion Process
o Who do you think was the most principled? [Note: Do not use the word ‘values’ at any time]
o Move to four corners of the room; each one representing one of the four characters.
o Small Group Discussion (5 min) – In your groups, share why you chose this character as the most principled?
o Large Group Sharing (4 min) – Explain in one minute, why your group chose that character as the most principled?
o Small Group Strategising (1 min) – In your groups, devise a pitch to convince the others to shift to your group
o Large Group (2 min) – Give your 30-second pitch to convince the rest.
o Large Group (30 seconds) – Allow the team to move, if they want to.
Debrief
o Note: 99% of the time, no one will change groups
o Why did you not change groups?
Typical responses include judgments of the rest, allow it to play on unless it gets very personal (e.g. the girl betrayed her fiancé, the sailor made use of the opportunity, the wise man did not give proper advice, the fiancé did not fully emphathise with that the girl sacrificed for him).
Allow time and space for the group to unpack their decisions.
Value-based decisions – latch onto this piece if any participant brings this up. Ask them to share more about what they mean by they were guided by values, etc.
Logical Responses – There are no wrong or right responses. Everyone’s reasons are highly logical. We make decisions based on ‘who we are’, and the experiences we go through (e.g. how we are brought up, where we went to school, life experience, etc).
o Values guide decisions – It is quite clear that all of us were guided to make our choices because of our values. We might have the same values, but how it manifests is clearly different. It is important to ensure that we find clarity on what these values mean to us, as a collective. Values tell us who we are.
Link to Hierarchy of Choices
o See HoC in Fac Plan (BTB 1)
Logistics:
Nil