SheChanges: Workshops

Read testimonials here!

Why circles? I offer learning experiences and group discussions in the form of a circle because I believe we all have something to teach and something to learn. Sitting in circles to share wisdom is an ancient and powerful way of honoring that belief. Within the context of my practice, women's circles emerged from a deep rooted belief that when you gather women together, amazing things happen. More and more, I hear the desire from clients to convene with other women - either socially or within a structured conversation. It feels as if women I'm encountering are hungry for some space, community and validation. Women's circles are my answer to that call.

CALENDAR

September 29, 2009
USM Center for Continuing Ed Women's Ways of Leading

In this changing and challenging economic climate, a new style of leadership is emerging - one that calls for leaders and organizations to operate more effectively within looser matrix structures. Leaders are being recognized for their intuitive abilities, keen listening skills, their proficiency at multi-tasking, reading people's needs and emotions, and building relationships. For women leaders, many of these skills are second nature. As a result, women leaders are increasingly being seen as a competitive advantage within organizations and are being leveraged accordingly. Building off of recent research and the experiences of leaders in the room, this highly interactive one-day session is an invitation for women managers and supervisors from all sectors to explore the strengths women naturally bring to leadership roles and to discuss ways to unleash and harness those skills to increase personal effectiveness and ultimately, organizational success. Participants of this workshop will spend the day consciously creating and honing their own leadership styles and perceptions and will walk away with a number of resources, concrete strategies, and specific techniques to support them as they seek to apply them in their business and leadership endeavors.

Register through USM at www.usm.maine.edu/cce/

October 1, 2009
Hardy Girls Healthy Women Working with Girls Coalition Groups: Training in Facilitation and Group Dynamicsf or Muses

This full-day experiential learning session is designed to offer both the experienced and the novice group facilitators a deeper understanding of the how the role of a muse in a girls coalition groups can help to shape and inform the overall experience for the girls. The entire experience for this highly interactive training will be set within the context of Hardy Girls Healthy Women's award-winning curriculum, "Adversaries to Allies". Participants will gain tips and techniques to further hone their skills while also practicing and applying their learnings in "real-time" facilitation opportunities within the session. Other topics include group dynamics, the three levels of listening, resistance as energy, and transparency.

Register through Hardy Girls Healthy Women at www.hardygirlshealthywomen.org/

October '09 - March '10
A Six-Month Women's Circle Series Answering the Call

Are you being called to step into something new - maybe something bigger or different or bolder - and it has you on the edge of your seat? Is the idea of answering that call a bit daunting, however engaging it seems? Are you wondering if you're up to the task or just crazy for entertaining the notion? You're not alone. Join this circle of five women like you who are all saying "yes" to the opportunity to explore, discuss and step into that part of themselves that is being called into leadership - however that might look in our lives, in our communities or in our work. At the heart of this six-month facilitated series for women leaders is an invitation to consciously, creatively and courageously move into a newer, bigger and bolder version of yourself, while getting motivation, inspiration and validation from other women who are on a similiar quest. Part reflection, part exploration and part traction, this series offers a group coaching experience for busy women to have a much-needed monthly respite from the context of their ordinary lives. Each monthly circle will be centered around a different theme (discovery, power inside and out, impatience and anger, stepping up and standing out, sabotage and fear, allies on your team) and is designed to offer a multitude of perspectives and considerations that serve as stepping stones for women to move forward on their path. As part of the experience, a different coaching tool will be introduced each month as a companion to the group dialogue. Additionally, each member of the group will receive a circle reader as well as three individual coaching sessions outside of the group format.
For more information, see the detailed description. To enroll, download the registration form (pdf). $850 for the series of six if paid in full at the time of registration through PayPal (click here) or $925 for the series of six if paid via monthly billing. 20% of your registration fee will be donated to benefit the Maine Women's Fund.

October '09 - March '10
A Six-Month Women's Circle Series On Being a Woman

Are you at a place in your life where you are craving connection with other women - to be seen, heard and understood? Do you wish to be both stimulated and validated, as you stretch your mind and soothe your soul? Are you ready to engage in a rich dialogue - the sort that has you talking about it for weeks; giving you insights about yourself and the world at large? Join this circle of five women as we go deep into conversation about what it is to be a woman. Monthly topics include: Reveling in Our Mysteries, Cycles & Seasons, Balance-Schmalantz, Doing It Right & Being Nice, Asking & Receiving, and Homecoming. Each month's topic will flow from the previous one, building a more familiar and safe community with each additional month. At the start of the series, participants will receive a "reader" containing relevant articles and chapters for each month offering women a chance to deepen their experience if they choose.
For more information, see the detailed description. To enroll, download the registration form (pdf). $550 if paid in full at time of registration via Paypal (click here) or $625 for the series of six if paid via monthly billing.

Fall/Winter 2009
Women of the Round Table

Throughout the course of 2009, I will be partnering with Elizabeth Stefanski of the Maine Women's Fund to conduct a series of 10 focus groups with women leaders all over New England. Through these 90 minute forums, Eli and I will be seeking to gain insight and research to inform our emerging theories on women leaders: their experience(s), their visions, their needs, their capacity and their gifts. As we compiling data after each round table, we will report the findings in our blog (www.womenoftheroundtable.blogspot.com), at which point women will be able to respond, validate, refute or expound upon what they read. If you're interested in participating (or hosting) a round table, please let us know . Here are some upcoming dates (more to come!)
Tuesday, September 22 6:30-8:00 Maine Women's Fund, Portland
Tuesday, October 13 12:00-1:30 Location TBD, Portsmouth, NH
Thursday, November 19 12:00-1:30 Location, TBD, Boston, MA

_____________________________________________________________

PAST EVENTS

March - May, 2009
Spring Cleaning Series for Women

Have you heard yourself say, "life is just moving too fast these days" or "if I only had more time" or "I can't keep going at this pace"? Sound familiar? You're not alone. As women, we can all too quickly get consumed by the many demands that fall at our feet. We do. We give. And we do some more. It is easy to get lost in the eddy of our lives, and yet somehow we lack the time to figure out a way to do it differently. Here is your chance! These three sessions were designed with you, the busy working woman, in mind. They can be taken as stand alone sessions or you can register for all three as a package at a reduced cost. Each session is held on a Saturday morning and will afford you the opportunity to do some efficient and effective "spring cleaning" for your life. You will be inpsired, energized and validated. It will give you the deep restorative breath you have been seeking in this season of renewal.

Each session is $65, the series of three is $150. To enroll, download the registration form (pdf). Invoicing through Paypal is available if you would prefer to pay by Visa/MC

March 28 9:30 - 12:00
Session 1: Busy Woman Working

This session is an opportunity for busy women to stop spinning long enough to acknowledge all that has us chasing our tails - the multiple and often competing demands of work and family, the expectations we have for ourselves, the "shoulds", and the sheer speed of our culture that can disorient and drain us. Throughout the course of two and a half hours, participants will be guided through a process designed to sift and sort through all the "work" in their lives - so that they can see more clearly the priorities, choices and decisions they are making - and come into better alignment with who they are and how want to live their lives. Women will walk away from this experience with a greater appreciation for themselves, more clarity and renewed commitment to creating a life that "works" for them.

April 11 9:30 - 12:00
Session 2: Working Women Slowing Down

In this session, women will explore and define their own unique expectations, practices and challenges of slowing down (however that looks to each of us) within the context of a culture that is addicted to speed, doing and being busy 24/7. Participants will be oriented to a number of difference reference points on the topic (Abby Seixas, Carl Honore, Byron Katie) as a means to deepen their learning and further validate their experiences. Women will be guided on a process that will identify patterns, thoughts and behaviors that enable us to resist slowing down. From that place of knowing, we'll then fortify our renewed intentions and refreshed visions of slow down by creating some individualized strategies that will support us in staying the course when we need it most.

May 16 9:30 - 12:00
Session 3: Easy Does It

This session will ask participants to grapple with the question: "What feels hard and how can I make it easier?" By giving the hard spots in their lives a name, women in this session will be taking a big step toward liberating themselves from the knots and tangles we can get caught up in. The catch for this conversation is that it can only be about you - not your circumstances, other people, or the world - and what you want. Women will be challenged (by yourself) to let go of what is outside your control and called forth (by yourself) to take responsibility for what is within your control to change. Along the way, participants will uncover outdated stories, assumptions or expectations and will make conscious choices to toss, keep or revise them to allow for more ease and less effort.

November 2008 - April 2009
A Six-Month Women's Circle Series On Being a Woman

Are you at a place in your life where you are craving connection with other women - to be seen, heard and understood? Do you wish to be both stimulated and validated, as you stretch your mind and soothe your soul? Are you ready to engage in a rich dialogue - the sort that has you talking about it for weeks; giving you insights about yourself and the world at large? Join this circle of 6-8 women as we go deep into conversation about what it is to be a woman. Monthly topics include: Reveling in Our Mysteries, Cycles & Seasons, Balance-Schmalantz, Doing It Right & Being Nice, How Women Will Save the World, and Homecoming. Each month's topic will flow from the previous one, building a more familiar and safe community with each additional month. At the start of the series, participants will receive a "reader" containing relevant articles and chapters for each month offering women a chance to deepen their experience if they choose.

November 12 12:00-1:00
Maine Women's Fund Stoking the Sisterhood

Robin Morgan, editor of the women's anthology, Sisterhood is Forever, offers a compelling invitation to feminists of all ages: "Lets get to work". Through two compelling letters - one to the "vintage feminists" and one to the "younger women" - Morgan bridges what has long been a generational divide between women with equal parts audacity and compassion. Join us for this informal and lively gathering of women as we seek to do the same. Building off of the letters Morgan offers in her anthology, we will offer and honor our respective perspectives and gifts in this multi-generational group of women. We will step in to conversation as feminists, and in doing so, will stand up and stand out - both individually and collectively - as the powerful forces for change we know ourselves to be.

October 2008 - March 2009
A Six-Month Circle for Women Leaders: Answering the Call

Are you seeking to create positive change as a leader but, for whatever reason, you're not doing it? Do you feel like it's your time to answer the call as a woman leader - to take action, be bold, stand up and step forward - but it's a daunting task, a lonely proposition or completely foreign to you? Do you feel a restlessness percolating in you and find you are becoming increasingly unwilling to go along, play small or follow uninspiring leaders? Become a part of this circle of 6-8 women leaders like yourself and become the leader you have been waiting for. Through question-centered monthly dialogue and individual executive coaching sessions, women in this circle will tackle the tough issues that can get in their way of being the leader they know they are capable of being. In a safe and courageous community space, we will explore our beliefs, behaviors, perspectives and attitudes as individuals with an eye to the feminine principles and culture we hold as women leaders. We will support, encourage and challenge each other as we explore where we get in our own way, where we sell ourselves short and what has us show up as less than we know ourselves to be. Women will emerge from this six-month experience with more clarity and perspective on what they wish to create as leaders as well as the fortification and self-authorization needed to make it happen. This circle of women leaders will call you forth to the powerful force for change you are.
For more information, see the detailed description. To enroll, download the registration form (pdf). $850. payable in a single amount through PayPal (click here) or via monthly billing.

November 4, 2008
USM Center for Continuing Ed Women's Ways of Leading

This one-day session is an invitation for women managers and supervisors from all sectors to explore the strengths women naturally bring to leadership roles and to discuss ways to unleash and harness those skills to increase personal effectiveness and ultimately, organizational success. We'll delve into the specific challenges (either self-imposed or culturally induced) women face as leaders and discuss strategies and techniques to address them. Participants of this workshop will spend the day consciously creating and honing their own leadership styles and perceptions and will walk away with a number of resources, concrete strategies, and specific techniques to support them as they seek to apply them in their business and leadership endeavors.

Register through USM at www.usm.maine.edu/cce/

October 24, 2008
Hardy Girls Healthy Women Working with Groups: Training in Facilitation and Group Dynamics

This half-day experiential learning session is designed to offer both the experienced and the novice group facilitator a deeper understanding of how their role can best serve a group's purpose. Participants will gain tips and techniques to further hone their skills while also practicing and applying their learnings in "real-time" facilitation opportunities within the workshop. Other topics include group dynamics, the three levels of listening, resistance as energy, and transparency.

Register through Hardy Girls Healthy Women at www.hardygirlshealthywomen.org/

April 9, 2008
Maine Women's Fund "Power Hour": A Working Mom's Dilemma: Exploring the Myths and Realities of "Opting Out" of the Workplace

It goes by many names today - "off-ramping", "opting out", "mommy-tracking"- but it points to the same thing: that ever-growing tendency of bright, high-achieving, and accomplished women leaving organizations. Is this truly a choice; a result of a highly personal decision? Or is it reflective of a larger systemic issue of outdated workplaces? What's a working mom to do? What's an organization who wishes to retain these women to do? Are we at an impasse or are there workable solutions? Come and share your insights as we explore this complex and highly charged issue and discuss where we go from here.

March 18, 2008
USM Center for Continuing Ed Women's Ways of Leading

This one-day session is an invitation for women managers and supervisors from all sectors to explore the strengths women naturally bring to leadership roles and to discuss ways to unleash and harness those skills to increase personal effectiveness and ultimately, organizational success. We'll delve into the specific challenges (either self-imposed or culturally induced) women face as leaders and discuss strategies and techniques to address them. Participants of this workshop will spend the day consciously creating and honing their own leadership styles and perceptions and will walk away with a number of resources, concrete strategies, and specific techniques to support them as they seek to apply them in their business and leadership endeavors.

Register through USM at www.usm.maine.edu/cce/

January-February 2007
Back Cove Midwives

Maternity Transition Series

This three-part transition series is designed to offer working moms an intentional pause in what can be a difficult time. Women will reflect upon the complex dynamics, circumstances and emotions they are experiencing as they return to work and will develop strategies and make conscious choices to support themselves in this transition.

August 29, 2006
Southern Maine Adult Education Association Annual Conference

The Eye of the Storm

In this highly interactive workshop, participants will learn strategies to navigate the turbulent waters that are created when you are pulled by competing demands. Participants will leave with skills and techniques to stay calm and keep their wits in the midst of chaos.