1. Do you have a good sense of humour?

2. Do you sometimes hate small talk?

3. Do you like to be heard and want to be listened to?

4. Are you interested in improving people's mental health?

 

If you answered yes to any of the above yes are in the right place!!!

 

Have you ever played Cards Against Humanity? Well, this game is cards FOR HUMANITY, a game that's designed for deliberate dialogue around things that matter most to you. A.S.K Me | The Game is more than a game, it's an experience designed for people who are open-minded, open-hearted, and ready to break bread, break down and breakthrough for a more meaningful relationship

 

Hi, my name is Davis J Williams and I am an award-winning gangs worker and author from London, England. For the past 20 years, I have been working with young people and steering them away from knife crime, violence and dysfunction.

 

The last two years of my life have been a revelation. Putting the pain and trauma of COVID19 aside for a moment, COVID19 taught me a few things, it has taught me the importance of human connection.

 

During the worldwide lockdown, I created A.S.K Me | The Game to empower humanity & explore their highest potential. My single intention is to help the world to heal, one conversation at a time. People around the world are practising social distancing and self-isolation to curb the further spread of coronavirus, millions of people are feeling the psychological effects of a lack of human connection, feelings of loneliness and isolation. xxxx

 

This journey started in October 2021 when I asked a group of young people to participate in one of my workshops. The ages of the students ranged from 14-16 years old, and they all of them had 1 thing in common, their lives were in great danger. The students were victims of gang violence and Child Criminal Exploitation, they were misguided and vulnerable. The Youth Offending Service invited me to engage with them, to help steer them towards great success.

 

Being an experienced worker I quickly built a strong and honest rapport with the students. We joked, discussed their needs and explored their future. Five weeks of engagement had passed and the relationship was solid, progress was being made and there was a sense of synergy amongst the group.

 

Today I was feeling daring so I decided to introduce the students to a game called Undiluted Expressions (now called A.S.K Me | The Game).

 

The rules were simple, the teens were given pens and paper. I played some familiar music in the background to generate an ambience. After I presented the reasons behind this task I then gave them their mission;

 

"Anonymously, write down some questions that you would like to ask your parents or

close family member!

Questions that you are afraid to ask but the answer you are dying to know! Then fold up the question and place it into the box"

 

At first, the students were resistant as they said they were not used to asking questions like that but the game-like SAFE environment infused them with the courage needed to participate. The room became very tense, as the student's heads were down in their notebooks writing down their questions.

 

Once the students had written down the questions we got them to place them into a box anonymously. Every student was then asked to stand up and take 2 random questions each from the box so they can share what was written with the class.

 

The time came for the students to feedback, and they were very open and real. There were tears, laughter, disclosures, deep insights and moments of clarity, there was a great sense of release by asking the questions with one boy saying; "It felt like a great weight was lifted from my shoulders" with another saying "I hate my home because I can't ask any questions"

 

What motivated me to create A.S.K Me | The Game was the level of connection between the students. They realised that their closeness increased due to the questions asked. They also understood how relationships can decline when questions don't get answered or if they are not heard. The students explained that whilst growing up, they were never allowed to ask questions, no one listened to their worldview so they looked outside of the family home for that deeper connection. They spoke of how other peers welcomed their questions without judgment or persecution. The students also spoke of the negative impact of unanswered questions and the impact on their mental health and well-being, loneliness and depression, resentment and anger. During the session debrief, students explained that the game-like approach took away the fear and replaced it with a challenge, a quest, it became fun and daring.

 

It was at this moment that I decided to create this game.

 

A.S.K Me | The Game aims to;

• Improve relationships by initiating deeper conversations and nurturing meaningful connections
• Develop better understanding between individuals of all ages and backgrounds
• Encourage real engagement away from our phones and TikTok
• Building bridges of trust, love and empathy, reducing conflict and developing fresh perspectives

 

About me

I am the youngest of 3 children, my siblings are 9 and 10 years my senior so growing up sometimes felt boring as I had no one my age to bond with. I felt the love but I also felt invisible. I did not have that sense of belonging, so as I got older I sought that connection from outside of my home.

 

As a result, I quickly bonded with others who showed me interest, sometimes to the detriment of my well-being. I would do dangerous things for attention or act a fool to get a few likes from the cool kids. As time went on, I joined 'negative' social groups that shared my search for that deeper connection as they too had lost that connection with people from their safe spaces.

 

My past made me emotionally unavailable and detached and I was someone who lacked deep and meaningful connections with others. When I became a father I decided that for me to break the cycle I had to change. I enrolled on numerous self-development courses, started to redefine myself and found mentors who helped me find meaning in my life.

 

I am now a father of two amazing children, I am lucky to have such a truly magical connection with them. We ask each other all sorts of questions and the conversations are so deep it brings a tear to my eye. I just wish others had that type of connection too. Having that deep and meaningful connection is the cornerstone of ALL healthy relationships, but my heart bleeds when I look at my local community and see lost children looking for that connection in all the wrong places.

 

IT TAKES A VILLAGE TO RAISE A CHILD BUT WHAT HAPPENS IF THAT VILLAGE BECOMES DISCONNECTED?