南希·克莱恩的思考环境理论（译）

The origins of Nancy Kline’s Thinking Environment are steeped in one observation and one question. The observation is “The quality of everything we do depends on the quality of the thinking we do first”, a statement that has powerful implications. The consequent question is: “What does it take for people to help each other to think well for themselves?”

南希·克莱恩的 "思考环境 "起源于一个观察和一个问题。 这个观察是："我们所做的一切的质量取决于我们之前做的思考的质量"，这句话具有强大的意义。随之而来的那个问题是："要怎样才能让人们互相帮助，为自己好好思考？"

Nancy Kline articulated this observation and was asking this question over two decades ago, after she had founded a school in her native USA. When she put the question to people, she noticed that the answer tended not to be about IQ, education, or experience; it turned out that the single most important factor in the quality of someone’s thinking was the way people were being treated by those around them. Nancy went on to identify ten ways that were most dependable in this regard, and these became known as the Ten Components of a Thinking Environment:

20多年前，南希·克莱恩在她的祖国美国创办了一所学校之后，阐述了这一观察，并提出了这个问题。当她向人们提出这个问题时，她注意到答案往往与智商、教育或经验无关；事实证明，影响一个人思维质量的最重要因素是周围人对待他们的方式。南希继续确定了在这方面最可靠的十种方式，这些方式被称为思考环境的十个组成部分。

1. Attention 注意力	Listening with palpable respect and without interruption 不打断而且带着可被感知的尊重来倾听
2. Equality 平等	Treating each other as thinking peers; Giving equal turns and attention; Keeping agreements and boundaries 把每一个人当做有思想的同伴；给予同等的机会和关注；遵守协议和边界
3. Ease 舒适	Offering freedom from internal rush or urgency 避免内部的压力和紧迫，提供自由
4. Appreciation 欣赏	Offering genuine acknowledgement of a person’s qualities; Practicing a 5:1 ratio of appreciation to criticism 给予一个人的品质以真诚的肯定；实践5:1的欣赏和批评的比例
5. Encouragement 鼓励	Giving courage to go to the cutting edge of ideas by moving beyond internal competition 超越内部竞争，给前沿的思想足够的勇气
6. Feelings 感受	Allowing sufficient emotional release to restore thinking 允许充分感情释放，以此来恢复思考
7. Information 信息	Supplying the facts; Dismantling denial 提供事实；消除否认
8. Diversity 多元	Welcoming divergent thinking and diverse group identities 欢迎不同的思维和不同的团体身份
9. Incisive QuestionsTM 犀利的问题	Removing assumptions that limit our ability to think for ourselves clearly and creatively 移除那些限制我们清晰和有创造性的思考能力的假设
10. Place 场所	Creating a physical environment that says back to people, “You matter” 创建一个物理环境，然后对人们说：你们很重要

A Thinking Environment can be created between two people – a Thinking Partnership, comprising Thinker (coachee) and Partner (coach) – or in a group, at a think tank or any other type of meeting.

思考环境可以在两个人，即思考的伙伴关系中创建，由思考者（被教练者）和伙伴（教练），或者一个团体，比如智囊团或其它类型的会议中。

To me, the most important factor of the Thinking Environment described above is the quality of attention in the listening, while some of the other elements contribute to this. The type of listening that Nancy Kline prescribes is not inactive; she describes it as attention bestowed on the Thinker by the Partner and that, for an effective session, this attention needs to be an equal balance of three streams:

对于我来说，上述思考环境描述中最重要的元素就是倾听中注意力的质量，而其它的元素也有助于此。南希·克莱恩所规定的倾听类型并非是不活跃的；她将倾听描述为伙伴对于思考者的关注，对于一个有效的会话过程来说，这种关注需要三种会话流中取得平衡：

“In the first stream the Partner’s attention is on the content of what the Thinker is saying. In the second stream their attention is on their response to what the Thinker is saying. In the third stream their attention is on the creation of a Thinking Environment for the Thinker.”

“在第一个会话流中，伙伴的注意力是在思考者所说的内容上。

在第二个会话流中，他们的注意力是在对思考者所说内容的反应上。

在第三个会话流中，他们的注意力是在为思考者创建一个思考环境上。

”

Nancy Kline’s theories are supported by practical structures which, if adhered to, will enable the Thinker to work through the issues, gain some clarity and find a way forward. The Thinking Session starts with a simple question:

南希·克莱恩的理论受到实用性的结构支持，即，如果坚持下去，这将使思考者可以通过问题，获得一些清晰的认识，并找到前进的方向。思考的会话由一个简单的问题开始：

‘What would you like to think about and what are your thoughts?’

‘你想思考什么，以及你的想法是什么？’

The Thinker is then able to talk through his situation at will. The key here lies in two elements: the quality of attention given by the Partner, and the knowledge from the Thinker that they will not be interrupted; therefore the ‘contracting’ which takes place prior to the conversation is important, so that the Thinker knows they are going to be given sufficient time to speak and be listened to.

思考者之所以能够随意谈论他的情况。关键在于两个因素：伙伴给予关注的质量，以及思考者知道他们不会被打断；因此，在谈话前的“约定”很重要，这样思考者就知道他们有足够的时间说话以及会被倾听到。

Eventually, the Thinker often reaches a point where everything that initially has come into their thoughts will have been said. They will pause and the Partner can ask:

最终，思考者往往达到那个最初进入他们思想的所有事情都被表达出来的点。他们会暂停下来，伙伴可以问：

‘What more do you think, or feel or want to say?’

‘你还想到了什么，或者感受，或者其它想要说的？’

The phrase ‘what more’ can sound unnatural when spoken in some situations. However, to ask ‘what else?’ may lead the Thinker into another subject, while ‘what else about that?’ may limit them to the same one. As I have said before in this series, the technique must be the tool and not the master, and I have heard Nancy offering similar advice herself. This is a process which has been tried and tested over many years, so it is worth while adhering to the exact words where possible; however, the comfort of the Thinker and the rapport within the Partnership are key elements in helping the Thinker to think more clearly, so the words could be changed if necessary to ensure these conditions are met.

在一些情况下，’还有什么’听起来并不自然。然而，问’其它的有什么’可能会将思考者带入另一个话题，而’关于那个其它的还有什么’可能会把他们限制在同一个主题上。正如在这个系列中我之前说过的一样，技术应该是工具而不应该是主宰，我之前也听过南希自己也提过类似的建议。这是一个经过多年的尝试和验证过的过程，所以可能的情况下，尽量使用精准的词汇是值得的；然而，思考者的舒适感和伙伴关系中的融洽关系才是帮助思考者更清楚地思考的关键因素，所以，如果有必要，可以改变这些词汇，以确保这些条件得到满足。

When asked to think some more, the Thinker may be surprised at how many different thoughts come to mind, and because they are in the Thinking Environment created by the Partner, they have the leisure to express and explore them. It is a fact that we often find out what we think by talking out loud, and this is one of the core benefits of this process.

当被要求再想一想的时候，思考者可能会惊讶于脑海中为何会浮现出如此多且不同的想法，因为他们处于由伙伴创建的思考环境当中，他们有了可以表达和发现它们的闲暇。事实上，我们经常通过大声说话来发现自己的想法，这也是这个过程的好处之一。

‘What more?’ questions can be asked several times until everything is out on the table and the Thinker is ready to identify what is standing in the way of their goals.

This is where the Partner makes a more active intervention by asking what Nancy terms ‘Incisive Questions’ TM. The process for this is to:

‘还有什么’这个问题可以问好多次，直到所有东西都摆到桌面上，思考者准备好去识别什么东西阻碍了他们的目标。

这时伙伴会更积极地干预，提出所谓的’犀利的问题’ TM。这个过程就是：

• identify what might be a limiting assumption, for example ‘No-one listens to me around here’;

• ask an Incisive QuestionTM to remove that belief, for example: ‘If you knew you would be listened to, what would you say, and to whom?

• 找出可能是限制性的假设，例如：’这里没有人听我说话’；

• 提出一个’犀利的问题’ TM消除这种信念，例如：’如果你知道你被人倾听了，你会说什么？会对哪一个人说呢？’

Some similar questions might be:

一些同类的问题可能如下：

• What assumption are you making that is getting in the way?

• If you knew you were to become the boss, what problem would you solve first and how?

• If you knew you are vital to this organisation’s success, how would you approach your work?

• If things could be exactly right for you, how would they have to change?

• 阻碍发展的你都有什么假设？

• 如你知道你即将成为老板，你先优先解决什么问题？怎么解决？

• 如果你知道你对组织来说至关重要，你会如何对待你的工作？

• 如果事情对你来说是绝对正确的，它们应该如何变化？

It is important to recognise that the limiting assumption is not necessarily imaginary. The value is in helping the Thinker to face the issue and consider it from different perspectives.

重要的是要认识到，这些限制假设不一定是想象出来的。这个价值在于它帮助了思考者面对问题，从不同的角度来思考问题。

The Thinking Environment is highly effective in group work and meetings. One of the techniques here is the ‘Thinking Round’, which ensures everyone has a chance to say all they want to. As is the case with the Thinking Partnership, it is the contracting at the start of the meeting which brings the value.

思考环境在小组工作和会议中是非常有效的。这里的一个技巧是’思考回合’，它确保每个人都有机会说出他们想说的。对于思考伙伴说来在这种情况下，这是会议开始时的合约的建立过程，可以带来价值。

“To be interrupted is not good. To get lucky and not be interrupted is better. But to know you will not be interrupted allows you truly to think for yourself.”

“被打断并不是好事。

有足够的运气而不被打断更加好。

但是知道自己不会被打断就会让你更真正的为自己思考。”

The principles of the Thinking Environment bear similarities to coaching, which was being developed during the same time period; both are fundamentally about respecting people, caring for their welfare and development, and building relationships grounded in trust. Some of the processes parallel tools used in coaching, such as Clean Language, another strong listening process, and the ‘limiting beliefs’ model espoused by Neuro Linguistic Programming.

思考环境的原则与同一时期发展起来的教练有相似之处；两者都是从根本上尊重人，关心他们的福祉和发展，并在信任的基础上建立关系。有些过程与教练中使用的工具相似，如清晰的语言，另一个强有力的倾听过程，以及NLP（神经语言程序学）所推崇的 "限制性信念 "模型。

One difference is that Nancy does not recommend reflecting the Thinker’s words back, which is a common technique used by coaches. Having experienced being coached by Nancy at a demonstration, I found myself wishing that she would interrupt with the normal coaching interventions of clarifying, reflecting and questioning. However, I was also able to identify that the root of my need was to create a distraction so that I could avoid facing some difficult issues! When given nothing other than ‘What more?’ from Nancy, I was forced to face these issues and, as a result, reached an unexpected breakthrough. Having said that, I would not dismiss the interventionist coaching techniques from the skill set, as they can be effective in creating rapport and helping to focus the mind in some situations.

一个区别是，南希不建议把思考者的话反射回去，这是教练常用的技巧。在经历了南希在一次演示中的指导后，我发现自己希望她能打断正常的教练干预，如澄清、反思和提问。然而，我也能够确定，我的需求的根源是想制造一个分散注意力的机会，以便我能够避免面对一些困难的问题。当南希只给我 "还有什么？"的时候，我被迫面对这些问题，结果，达到了一个意想不到的突破。说到这里，我不会把干预型教练技术从技能组合中剔除，因为它们在某些情况下可以有效地创造融洽的关系，并帮助集中思想。

Nancy Kline’s work highlights the effectiveness of giving people ‘a good listening to’ (and these are my words, not hers). There is much debate among coaches, especially those in training, as to the most effective questions to ask, what supplementary techniques will lead to new insights for the client, what structures to use and how to ‘dance’ with the client in the coaching conversation. If we are not careful, the end result can be a coach who gallops all over clients like an enthusiastic pony, focusing on being a star performer and bringer of solutions instead of concentrating on the coachee’s experience.

南希·克莱恩的工作强调了给人们 "一个好的倾听 "的有效性（这是我的话，不是她的话）。教练之间有很多争论，尤其是那些正在接受培训的教练，争论的焦点是要问哪些最有效的问题，哪些辅助技术会给客户带来新的见解，使用什么结构，以及如何在教练对话中与客户 "共舞"。如果我们不小心，最终的结果可能是一个教练像一匹热情的小马一样在客户身上奔跑，专注于成为一个明星表演者和解决方案的带来者，而不是专注于被辅导者的经验。

When it comes to her own life, Nancy walks the talk; her courses take place in a stunning riverside environment and include not only comfortable surroundings but excellent lunches! All the other nine principles of the Thinking Environment are respected too, particularly in terms of listening and authentic appreciation. If this sounds a little sycophantic, it is an accurate reflection of the effect that this eloquent and graceful woman seems to have on everyone she comes into contact with.

当涉及到她自己的生活时，南希说到做到；她的课程在一个迷人的河边环境中进行，不仅包括舒适的环境，还包括出色的午餐！她的课程也尊重思考环境的其他九个原则，特别是倾听和真实的欣赏。思考环境的所有其他九项原则也得到了尊重，特别是在倾听和真实欣赏方面。如果这听起来有点谄媚，那就是准确地反映了这位雄辩和优雅的女性似乎对她所接触到的每个人都有影响。

The biggest takeaway for me from the time I spent studying with Nancy Kline is a reinforcement of the power of listening, giving quality attention, and contracting to do so at the start, so that my coachees, or ‘thinkers’, have to focus only on their own thought processes without any distractions.

在与南希·克莱恩学习的过程中，我最大的收获是加强了倾听的力量，给予高质量的关注，并在一开始就签约，这样我的被教练者或 "思考者 "就不得不只关注自己的思考过程，而不受任何干扰。