Pause before Acting — Session activity

0–5 min | Agree on purpose and fit

Explain the educational scope. Ask what would be useful, check readiness and access needs, and establish choices to observe, adapt, or pass. Use an ordinary example; do not solicit trauma narratives.

5–10 min | Orient with an example

A pause can create space for choosing a safer response. Fictional example: Taylor receives an irritating email and waits before replying. Ask what is observed and what remains uncertain.

10–20 min | Practice and compare

Rehearse stopping, stepping back in an accessible way, observing, and choosing the next effective action in a low-stakes example. Offer quiet individual work, a supported conversation, or an observing role. Compare two possible responses without evaluating people as right or wrong.

20–25 min | Reflect on meaning

What would help you pause without making the situation less safe? Ask what fit, what did not fit, and how culture, power, disability access, or external conditions affect the options.

25–30 min | Integrate and close

Invite one optional next step or support request. Orient to the current setting, allow an unfinished question to remain unfinished, and agree how to revisit it. End early or adapt if activation increases.

Adaptations

For a group, use fiction and no compulsory round-robin disclosure. For remote use, allow off-camera reflection and private notes. For brief use, keep one example and one question while retaining opening and closing choices.

Prompts for this resource

1. What outcome would make this practice useful?
2. What would help you pause without making the situation less safe?
3. What adaptation or follow-up is needed?