a welcome from the heart
Portland Nonviolent Communication Study Group
With every choice you make, be conscious of what need it serves. ~ Marshall Rosenberg
A free, peer-led group for studying Nonviolent Communication together and connecting with others who practice it. We read, discuss, and practice NVC material, including Marshall Rosenberg's core texts and the work of other trainers.
Our Intention
Getting Good at Giraffe
When asked "How do we get good at giraffe [Nonviolent Communication]?", Marshall Rosenberg replied with three suggestions:The first thing for me is real consciousness daily about our own values. That is, how do we want to live? Unless we are highly conscious of that, unless we answer that question for ourselves, then we're likely to get easily swept along in whatever game the culture around us is playing. So each day, for myself, it's very important for me to start each day raising my consciousness about how do I want to live, how do I want to manifest that in my moment-by-moment encounters with other people. So the more time people take each day to begin with a consciousness of how they want to be, I find that that's probably the single most thing in helping them become better giraffe speakers.Second, after consciousness about our values. Second, practice, practice, practice. And this means, again, learning when we're not able to do it. When we're not able to speak giraffe, we catch ourselves turning into a jackal, make a note of it, and when we have some peace and quiet later on in the day, use it as an exercise to ask ourselves, "Now what was this other person feeling and needing that I wasn't able to hear at the time? How could I have expressed my own feelings and needs in a more open, vulnerable way than I did?" In this way, every error that we make becomes a learning opportunity.And the third thing that helps immensely in becoming a better giraffe speaker is to be a member in a giraffe community. And by that I mean a group of people who share the same values and who also want to learn how to communicate in a way that makes it possible for us to manifest these values. In areas where I go, where I see people forming such supportive communities, it's amazing how well they teach each other giraffes.
This study group exists to help build giraffe communities, provide opportunities for practice, and to inspire us to reflect on our values. We are a peer-led group, supported by enthusiastic practitioners of giraffe. All experience levels welcome.If you would like to join our study group, click Request to Join below.
Contact Form
Request to Join
If you would like to learn more and discuss joining the study group, please fill out the contact form below. As a new group, our present intention is to meet at least monthly on the first Tuesday of the month from 7:00pm to 8:30pm, in a meeting space located at a co-living house near Laurelhurst Park. If you would like to join, but that time does not work for you, please still reach out. As more individuals seek to join, we can continuously discuss additional meeting days.
In your message, we'd enjoy if you included responses to the following three questions:1) What first brought you to studying Nonviolent Communication?2) What's your experience with Nonviolent Communication so far?3) This is a free group led by enthusiastic practitioners, not by a CNVC-certified trainer. Does that match what you're looking for?
If the contact form does not work, or you'd prefer to email us directly, you can reach us using the email below. You can also find us on Meetup.
Meetup
thank you
Out beyond ideas of wrongdoing and rightdoing, there is a field. I'll meet you there ~ Rumi
Thank you for submitting a request to join our study group. Looking forward to meeting you out on the field.