SESSION 1 - OCTOBER 23, 2017
I. CORE preparation MATERIALS
A. Check In Handout - We will use "Check Ins" throughout our program. Check Ins are a simple practice to center oneself and to get a collective sense of where people are before the start of a collective endeavor (meeting, project, class, event). It also invites people to go a level further than the socially safe 'I'm fine' when beginning to relate to one another. Check Ins processes can take 5 minutes, while other Check Ins may take 30 minutes. We will learn to play with them and I encourage you to bring them into your team leadership repertoire once you have tried them out in the AOC for a while.
B. Container Handout - We will often use the word, concept and reality of "Containers" in our work together. It is a somewhat strange word to use when talking about people and change, but think of the imagery of the container that is used to contain the molten steel in a foundry.
QUICK LINKS
Access Course Materials
- Agents of Change Materials Home .
- Getting Started To Do Checklist (not active for Alumnae) .
- Accountability Partners Page .
- Individual Coaching .
Connection Information
- Course Videocall Information (not active for Alumnae).
- Women Agents of Change Facebook Discussion group .
Need Help with Something?
- Email Dorian for questions or support
It is a container that allows the metal to change deeply from solid to liquid state and then be poured into molds of different forms and shapes, depending on the need. The real change is happening in the steel itself as the heat rises and then lowers, but the container is essential for the transformation process to be held and enabled. Thus with the AOC program as a 'container' of support, or the assumptions we hold in our mind as 'containers' of either support or obstacles to our intentions, etc etc
See the article Conversations that Change the World, by William Isaacs of Dialogos and ex-colleague and dialogic/systemic change mentor of Dorian's (Also in Item III - Supplemental Materials and Resource at the bottom of this page)
C. Creative Process - too often management and leadership and personal development literature fails to include the organic nature of change in their models, processes, and plans. We will learn to use the Creative Process spiral as an emergent change reminder for ourselves. Yes, it is imperative to have a goal and then put pragmatic plans in place to achieve that goal. But sometimes we also need to be deeply cognizant of the value of a more emergent way of holding our intentions. It may be that you are entering this program with a very clear action project idea. Give yourself the time and space for some Stillness before moving into the Connection phase of connecting to ideas, people, analysis, research and then to Action phase of making the idea come alive. But also don't forget to Celebrate the Results, be they good, 'bad' or indifferent. And to consider how you might need to Let Go Of of past achievements or activities in order to let a new phase emerge.
See video overview of the Creative Process (Also in Item III - Supplemental Materials and Resource at the bottom of this page)
II. SUPPLEMENTAL MATERIALS AND RESOURCES
Videocall Slides Session 1 - for those who would like a pdf of the sides used during the call, inclusive of the Check In questions used and the text of the 3 minute breathing meditation we used during the 9am videocall.
The Creative Process Video - 4 minute overview (no password required)
A 2017 article by Bill Isaacs of Dialogos on Containers - and their role in supporting change: Conversations that Change the World
We will use Journaling as a change practice in our program. For those who are skeptical about journaling as a leadership development practice, see this article for some how tos and to read about some of the benefits: http://nymag.com/scienceofus/2017/08/a-beginners-guide-to-keeping-a-journal.html
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