Being in a diverse and dynamic community can be both rich and complicated. We will encounter moments of resonance, inspiration and connection, as well as, be confronted with our differences and discomforts. We believe that to create healthy and supportive healing communities, it is important to have certain basic agreements that allow us to grow and benefit from these journeys together. When you participate in the C2 community and activities, we ask you respect and follow these agreements1.
Try it on: Be willing to “try on” new ideas, or ways of doing things that might not be what you prefer or are familiar with.
Practice Self Focus: Attend to and speak about your own experiences and responses. Do not speak for a whole group or express assumptions about the experience of others.
Understand The Difference Between Intent and Impact: Try to understand and acknowledge the impact of your behavior. Denying the impact of something by focusing on your intent versus the impact of your behaior is often more destructive than the initial interaction.
Practice “Both/And”: Try to acknowledge and honor mutliple experiences and realities. Try substituting “and” for “but” when addressing difficulties and differences in experience.
Refrain From Blaming and Shaming Self or Others: Practice giving skillful feedback to explore difficulties.
Move Up/ Move Back: Encourage full participation by all present. Take note of who is speaking and who is not. If you tend to speak often, consider moving back. If you rarely speak, consider speaking up.
Practice Mindful Listening: Try avoid planning what you’ll say as you listen to others. Be willing to be surprised, to learn something new. Listen with your whole self.
Confidentiality: Take home learnings but don’t identify anyone other than yourself, now or later. If you want to follow up with anyone regarding something they said in a meeting or group, ask first and respect their wishes.
Right to Pass: You can say “I pass” if you don’t wish to speak.
- These guidelines were drawn from information from Visions Inc. ↩︎