Explore – Offer – Explore (EOE)
A person is open to receive your information or message when they are ready, willing, and able to absorb, listen to, and understand what you say. The tool for giving information MI-style, otherwise known as Explore-Offer-Explore (EOE), is very good at encouraging openness to receive information or a message.
EOE can be used in conversations when giving information, feedback, advice, tips, explaining something, or delivering a particular message. The framework of EOE itself also promotes the other person’s autonomy because it focuses on their perspective first before allowing you to convey your perspective. EOE also supports autonomy by asking the other person for permission. Let us look more closely at the three steps of EOE.
Giving Information - Step 1: Explore (E)
First explore what the other person already knows about “what you want to say” (This is your message). In this step, you show respect for, and interest in, the other´s thoughts, opinions, and perspectives BEFORE you share your perspective.
Giving Information - Step 2: Offer (O)
Deliver, or offer, “what you want to say” (your message) in a respectful way. Step 2 begins with you first asking permission followed “what you want to say” (your message).
“Would it be OK if I told you what I am thinking?
“Would you care to listen to my suggestions?”
“Would you like to hear some ideas that I have?”
This step helps increase the other person’s openness while respecting their autonomy. You show respect for the person by not duplicating information they are already familiar with and by prioritizing your information based on what is most interesting to them.
Giving Information - Step 3: Explore (E)
Lastly, explore how “what you said” (your message) was perceived by the person. In this step, you are interested in getting feedback about “what you said” (your message), or the information provided in step 2 by asking, for example:
“How did it feel to hear this?”
“What do you think about what I have shared with you?”
“What did you make of that?
How do you help people take in what you have to say?
Did you know that my e-course and book are structured using the EOE framework?? If you want to deepen your knowledge of EOE, check them out.
Have a great day!
Jennifer