Where do you get your thrills ?

There are two types of work that really thrill me :

(i)  when diverse people come together and share perspectives so that new understandings emerge and new thinking is made possible

(ii)  when existing groups of people have really important conversations that they have never had before

Two examples I like :

A.  The local Rape Crisis Centre in Carlow has a wonderful project that raises awareness around abuse and sexual violence issues in schools.  As part of their evaluation and learning process, we set up a Café, where pupils and teachers from different schools were able to join with Principals, Rape Crisis staff and Dept of Education Managers to look at real life experiences of going through the programme.

Imagine the excitement of young people being able to tell people in authority about the reality of their experience and the wonderfulness of the special opportunity for those in authority to get out from behind their desks and hear first hand perspectives on how such an important set of issues could be addressed.

Loads of learning for everyone involved and some major steps forward facilitated for the evolution of the programme.

Lovely.

B.  A Transatlantic Leadership Initiative had gathered almost 100 young (ish) leaders and spent days working from a ‘head’ place with most people saying the things they always said about who they are, what they did, what’s needed in the world etc etc.

Imagine the liberation involved in creating and holding a space where the leaders could show up as complete human beings.  People who were more than just their roles; people with emotions, insecurities and aspirations.  Imagine the excitement of having amazing conversations with other people who care about the same things you do, but who see different pieces of the jigsaw (and who probably look at them through different coloured lenses too !)

There’s a buzz about a really great conversation that boldly goes places you’ve never been before.  We all get set in our ways – I love the work that breaks out of the usual patterns and helps people meet each other fully and full in the face of the realities of the contexts we are in.

It’s a privilege to facilitate such work; to be a witness to wonderful conversations that lead to lasting change; to support people in their growth and development, to be with people through the pain of unfamiliar territory.

If you want to explore the potential for wonderful conversations, growth, development and support through the pain of change – get in touch.