I conducted a creative writing workshop for kids, and the next in the series will be floated soon.
This is the first time I delivered a workshop for kids. We have been running writing challenges and workshops for grown-ups since 2020. Those were mostly done with a friend Harold.
Writing is a natural extension of reading. I am a reader and a book lover. Reading is the only thing that I have been doing consistently since my childhood, whether it’s rain or sunshine! And always aspire to write something.
But when my daughter started writing and won the award for short stories. I took notice. I started looking at the puzzle, what makes one a “competent writer”.
As an academic, I am supposed to be a “competent academic writer”, a professional writer. Academic leveraged these competencies in non-fiction or long-form writing (for example, Adam Grant, Hermenia Ibarra, both organizational psychologists, and so on). It is one of the key skills for knowledge workers.
Most importantly, writing is something that AI will not be able to automate (At least till we don’t devise the technology that will capture our thoughts).
So I forked two projects
- Work with kids and see how can they become competent writers. They can write, whatever they wish. It can be fiction, non-fiction, stories, academic, or scientific. They may write books, or write blogs.
- Develop an “academic writing” program. A series of workshops, based on competencies. Again same competencies can be leveraged for blogging, fiction, non-fiction, or academic writing.
Competency is not a skill, it is much more than that. HR and OB practitioners use competencies in various ways. The concept was developed by David McClelland, a Harvard professor around the 1970s. It is widely used in HR and OB. HR-OB Professionals can identify what competencies are required to be a writer, and what separates competent, best writers from average writers.
I got a chance to learn about competency at XLRI’s one of the most sought-after courses – Managerial Competencies and Career Development. And I also learned at TVRLS – competency mapping program. I use the learning in my teaching and coaching.
This is just an attempt to put into practice something from the OB-HR domain to writing (considered to be art domain!).
Stay tuned for more updates on this.
