The structure of a good workshop

Phase 1: Opening and safety · 5–10 min

Goal: build trust and establish psychological safety guidelines. Introduce yourself by name, say where you're from and why you're here — personally, not institutionally. Establish safety guidelines. Normalise the topic. Run a short warm-up.

To open: "My name is Ania, I'm from Kielce, I've been working with people for fifteen years, and I'm here because I see more and more people losing money to scammers."

On safety: "This isn't a training session, and there won't be a test. No one is testing anyone. You don't have to memorise anything. You're here because you want to be, and that's enough."

To normalise: "Before we begin, I want you to know one thing. Scams affect everyone — doctors, lawyers, police officers. It's not a matter of intelligence. It's a matter of how sophisticated the criminals are."

Ready-made warm-up, "Detective of the Year": two large printouts — a real bank page and a fake one. Working in pairs, participants have one minute to decide which is fake. Gives a sense of competence, introduces the topic, and shows this session will be different from a lecture.

Phase 2: Story or example · 5–10 min

Goal: introduce the topic through a specific, human experience. Tell a real, anonymised fraud story. Then ask: "What in this story should raise suspicion?" Collect answers. Add to the list.

Note: tell it with respect for the victim. This isn't a story about "how someone got fooled." It's a story about how professional criminals operate.

Phase 3: Recognising manipulation · 10–15 min

Goal: move from a specific story to general recognition principles, introduce the Z-Z-Z rule, and formulate the first "if-then" statement. Start with the question: "How can you tell when someone is trying to deceive us?" Collect answers on a flip chart. Add to the list.

Key warning signs: time pressure — "you must act immediately"; strong emotion — fear, relief, concern for loved ones; a request for data — password, code, ID number, account number; a ban on consulting others — "don't tell anyone"; a promise of quick profit — risk-free, only today; unsolicited contact — someone reaches out themselves and demands action.

Introduce the Z-Z-Z rule: Stop, Think, Call. Write it on the flip chart. Repeat it three times. Ask participants to repeat it. Hand out a take-home card. Formulate an "if-then" intention together for the scenario discussed.

Phase 4: Situation simulation · 15–20 min

Goal: move from knowledge to skill. Practise responding in a safe environment. Introduce the situation, establish safety, run the simulation (3–5 minutes), move to the debrief. Details on running simulations are in Chapter 9.

Phase 5: Debriefing · 10 min

Goal: turn the simulation experience into knowledge and an intention to act.

The debrief is more important than the simulation itself. This is where the real learning happens.

Three questions, always in this order: "How did you feel?" (emotional phase) — "What did you notice?" (analysis phase, a question for observers) — "What would we do in a real situation, step by step?" (application phase). Finally: formulate an "if-then" intention for this scenario.

Phase 6: Safety tools · 5–10 min

Goal: give participants concrete, physical tools to take home. Escalation Card: step-by-step what to do (two paths: "I didn't give out data" and "I gave out data"). A reporting exercise: "Let's forward this text to 8080 together." Platform information: "There are videos and exercises at odyssey-project.eu. Type the address in by hand."

Phase 7: Closing · 5 min

Goal: reinforce the key messages and close the session warmly. Repeat the three key messages of the session. Not ten. Three. Ask: "What will you remember?" Thank everyone. Leave your contact information. Announce the next meeting. Stay for coffee.