A Curated Toolbox to Help Strengthen Civil Society

All, Stories, Tools
May 19, 2021

The Speed DOing activity is great for groups or individuals that are struggling to think outside the box or break out of normal routine.

During our work with Goethe Institute, we’re delighted to be exploring together new and innovative ways to strengthen civil society and reinvent spaces in a post pandemic world. During our 9-month long impact community program, we are exploring two main avenues: how might we influence or support civil society and how might we redesign the institute space bearing in mind the valuable learnings we’ve all gained over the pandemic.

For both streams of work, we are engaging with over 20 institute leads around the globe to co-create a bright future for civil society in a post-pandemic world. To do so, we’re curating a toolbox that speaks precisely to the institute’s needs and to add to that, a second toolbox that the institute leads can then use with their broader network on a more local level.

So far in our journey with Goethe Institute, one of the most popular tools was a tool called Speed DOing that we think our broader community – from corporates and public sector to entrepreneurs and innovators, might enjoy too.

Speed DOing

What is it used for?

The Speed DOing activity is great for groups or individuals that are struggling to think outside the box or break out of normal routine. This happens to all of us – from big corporations to smaller ventures.

What skills or mindsets does it help develop?

Often it is easier to describe a strategy without actually starting with a first step to make it happen. This activity helps you formulate your ideas and identify the first steps to switch from strategizing to implementing. With this tool you get both: the description of a vision, a goal and a rough intuitive check of feasibility. And a formulation of a first action plan. The time constraints put the focus on tangible items and make it less possible to have a lengthy discussion.

What are the end results?

There are many factors that can get in the way of bringing your idea to life, from hierarchies and unsafe spaces to self doubt and ineffective facilitation. The Speed DOing activity enables individuals and teams to create a concrete list of goals and actionable steps for each goal. It creates the groundwork for a future path of implementation and also reminds you what the core of the idea really was.

“It's amazing what you can do when you put your mind to it. This tool helps is certainly unusual and helps you break up your own routines. And that's what it's all about: trusting your own ideas and translating them into concrete action steps. This tool helps you to do that.”

Alexander Kiesel, Innovation Catalyst at The DO