Enhancing Capacities Program Session 1

Welcome to the Enhancing Capacities Program.

You have received a preparation package with some information to read, some forms and questionnaires to fill out, and questions to reflect on and journal.

The experiential learning program uses the “Kolb Experiential Learning Cycle.” The learning cycle is ongoing within and between sessions. Within sessions, we will sometimes slow down for you to reflect and journal and also design some actions for experimenting between sessions.

Introducing Participants

As a way of introducing ourselves, I invite everyone to share your goals for participating, your aspirations, your top three signature strengths, and maybe one or two of your lesser strengths that you would like to bring to the program to use as a development opportunity. <Preparatory Inquiry: Goals, Aspirations, Signature Strengths>

Let me go first; my name is Mustafa. My goals are to revitalize and grow in zest and vigor as I facilitate this cohort, to learn and grow in my capacities to care for and nurture others’ wellbeing, and to create meaning and hope for a local transformative practice. My aspirations are for us to connect to our generative source, flourish, and share the abundance we create throughout this program. Three of my signature strengths are Appreciation of Beauty and Excellence, Love of Learning, and Gratitude. One of my lesser strengths I consider bringing to the program is vigor and zest; another is teamwork.

So, please, who wants to go next? Just jump in and speak.

(5+ minutes of sharing from the participants)

I invite you, from time to time, when you notice using a signature strength, also notice how you feel about that, how it activates your motivation and interest, and also your energy level.

The Program Objectives.

Let me shortly introduce the three program objectives. <Enhancing Capacities Program Description>

First is the awareness component: seeing into the inner operations of your self-structures, how all your interests, character strengths, needs, available capacities that serve fulfilling these needs, and your internal and intrinsic motivations (how all these) are linked. (Awareness)

Second is enhancing positive capacities: We will focus on the importance of clarifying and choosing self-congruent, intrinsically motivated interests, how they create wishes and goals that are linked to your current life tasks and social tasks, and how these goals fuel relevant capacity development. (Understanding)

The third involves clarifying a concrete interest, pursuing that interest with appropriate skills, effort, and perseverance, effective goal-setting, and engaging hope and optimism while also developing self-efficacy and resilience. (Action)

So, for two or three minutes, reflect on these objectives, your initially stated goals and aspirations, and how they are aligned or if they need some alignment. So, take a moment, and then share, if you wish, what comes up or if any question arises.

(After a minute’s pause:) Anyone wants to share or comment?

(If sharing happens and questions arise, take five minutes before moving to the next step.)

Establishing Group Norms.

In your preparation package, you received my proposal for group norms to adhere to. <Group Norms> [from the preparation package also including the <Guidelines for Communication and Participation>].

If these are ok, we can assume everyone will follow the guidelines; if anyone wants to comment or amend the guidelines, you’re welcome to do so now or anytime you see appropriate and necessary in the future.

As a primary principle, I invite you to fully participate and engage in the whole experiential learning cycle, especially in the domains you are less comfortable with, within and between sessions.

To ensure psychological safety, it is essential that you do not share other participants’ names or sharings with others. You are free to share your own insights, revelations, and struggles with others but take care to protect the privacy of your cohort members.

Please be mindful that I am recording these sessions. You will get online access to these, normally after one or two days following each session.

The program aims to enhance your insight, understanding, and skills. We know that learning is greatly enhanced by learning relationships, so be a learning support for others and see if you can receive enjoyment and gratification for being supportive and caring.

End-of-Session Appraisals.

At the end of sessions, we will take five minutes to share learnings and appraise the session’s adequacy in providing what you needed and any recommendations for adapting future sessions or changes to improve them.

It is also a time to make concrete what you take away into your daily life and announce commitments to practice and apply learnings.

After the session closes, take ten minutes to journal your thoughts and appreciate your taking time and making an effort for your positive growth and wellbeing. See if you can contact the gladness that comes from caring for yourself. Stay with the positive feelings that arise; if any difficult feelings arise, let your heart welcome them and let them transform with self-compassion.

<End-of-Session Appraisal Form>

Grit and Self-Aspects.

We define grit as a sustained, ongoing effort and focused interest in pursuing meaningful long-term goals; the effort is enjoyable in its own right. The effort and interest are positively sustained during this period until one succeeds, attains positive results, or ends the pursuit without goal attainment. The goal pursuit is accompanied by a decisiveness to tackle obstacles and challenges on the path with stamina and perseverance, which leads to patience and passion instead of frustration and discouragement. The passion is fueled by consistent interest in the goal and its meaningfulness, as well as its content and its pathways for attainment.

Since interest and meaningfulness are internally linked to values and deep character traits, passion is fueled by the person’s inner self. Furthermore, personhood can be conceptualized as the three integrated aspects of the feeling, thinking, and acting individual emerging from the fourth aspect of sensing. Passion, then, becomes the interlinking web, or metaphorical fascia, between all these person dimensions.

Patience is an internally generated feeling of serenity in the face of adversity while approaching a desired end. It entails an assumption that the end is worthwhile and attainable and a belief that one is capable of effort to make progress while dealing with the challenges without gross harm. Patience activates perseverance which is a stance, an attitude that shapes action. The activating agent we might call self-regulation. Self-regulation is a master capability that serves many different self-aspects, including grit, hope, self-efficacy, curiosity, spontaneity, and courage.