One of the few constants of the human condition, whether we like it or not (or whether we accept it or not) is that we are constantly changing. We know this is true physically. Our bodies change dramatically over the course of our lives - from infancy to old age and...
Navigating Emotional Safety in Relationships and Community
by Heather Plett | Dec 2, 2021 | Brave Space, Community, Holding Space for Others, Holding Space for Yourself, Safe Space
Authenticity and vulnerability – those are two buzzwords we talk about a lot in personal growth and community development work. Most of us know how important they both are, and so we strive to embrace them. But… there’s an important aspect that is sometimes...
Dancing with power
by Heather Plett | Aug 30, 2021 | Brave Space, Community, Complexity
I have an uneasy relationship with power. Even though I worked in senior leadership in government and non-profit, where I managed people and influenced politicians, I still go into resistance mode when I feel like too much power has been handed to me or I’ve...
Co-regulation – Is it possible in online spaces?
by Heather Plett | Aug 19, 2021 | Community, Holding Space for Others, Safe Space
A few weeks ago, I was in a FaceTime conversation with my friend Saleha, who’s just completed a master’s degree in counseling psychology. As we always do in our conversations, we were going deep into our past trauma, our families of origin, and the most recent...
Companionship
by Heather Plett | Jul 19, 2021 | Circle, Community, Family, Holding Space for Others
“Will you be my companion?” That was a familiar phrase in our household when I was growing up. As a farm family, my siblings and I all had daily chores that we had to do in the barn after school, and none of us wanted to do them alone. If one of us had a job we...
Are your people prepared for hard conversations around things like decolonization and racism?
by Heather Plett | Jul 7, 2021 | Brave Space, Community, Complexity, Holding Space for Others, Leadership, Oppression, Power, Privilege
(from the Holding Space Card Deck) After George Floyd’s murder, there was a huge spike in the amount of money invested in diversity and inclusion work across the U.S. According to one study which surveyed HR professionals, 85% have expanded inclusion activities...
Food for Thought: Beginning to Be Back Together
by Krista dela Rosa | Jun 12, 2021 | Brave Space, Community, Complexity, Holding Space for Others, Holding Space for Yourself, Leadership, Liminal Space
Listen to Krista read the post... There are days I know for sure that we are getting closer and closer to being able to be together in person again, and there are other days I despair that it will ever happen. Here, in my part of the world, we are still in the...
Holding Space in Organizations
by Krista dela Rosa | Mar 31, 2021 | Community, Facilitation, Holding Space for Others, Leadership
In 2019, our own Master Practitioner Candidate, Brenda Barritt, began a process of teaching the principles and tools of Holding Space to the organization she then belonged to. This is her story of how that journey began and her reflections on the process. by Brenda...
Holding Space and the Fine Art of Being Wrong
by Krista dela Rosa | Jan 10, 2021 | Brave Space, Community, Complexity, Fear, Holding Space for Others, Holding Space for Yourself, Leadership, Liminal Space, Shame
Listen to Krista read the post... You might be surprised to hear this, but one of the things Heather and I are in almost constant communication about is whether we could be wrong. Are we wrong about how we have approached something? Were we wrong in the way we...
Lessons in Holding Space Learned on the Seat of a Motorcycle
by Krista dela Rosa | Sep 23, 2020 | Community, Holding Space for Others, Leadership
We are delighted to share this guest post by our Master Practitioner Candidate, Emily Gillies. Emily completed Heather's Holding Space Practitioner Program (now called the Foundation Program) in 2018. She went on to serve as Assistant Teacher for the next two sessions...
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