Empathic Leader

Initial request:

The company partnered with us to provide emotional support for their employees. They needed to resolve long-lasting conflicts in the departments, train new leaders and introduce employees to non-violent communication.

What we did:

1. Gave several workshops on team building and non-violent communication.
2. Developed and organized a 6-hour training about non-violent communication for a whole department of 60 people.
3. Developed and taught a 24-hour course for new leaders.
4. Facilitated a 2-day session about teamwork for two teams from one department.

Results

"It was kind of scary to take the whole team to a non-violent communication training for 60 people. But My Room guys prepped the participants before the workshop and helped choose the most convenient format for such a large group.
We split into six groups of 9 to 10 people; each group had worked with a separate facilitator. This way, everyone had an opportunity to process their requests.
In two days, we did learn that talking about our feelings and expectations is okay. And we've got a formula for it, a ready-to-use instrument!
As the leader of a big team that includes many talented people with very different backgrounds, I definitely recommend it. When the most skeptical and complicated people receive a tool for effective communication, it's priceless."

Kate Khait,
Director of Game Platforms dpt. at Plarium Ukraine

Initial request:

The company contacted us to get effective tools for teamwork. They requested conflict resolution training, workshops on emotional intelligence, non-violent communication, leadership. Also, DevPro wanted coaching for People Partners so they would be able to train their teams themselves.

What we did:

1. Created a 21-hour "Train the Trainer" course for People Partners.
2. Conducted 9 hours of supervision about conflicts for People Partners.
3. Continue to mentor leaders on how to level up emotional intelligence and psychology skills.
4. Delivered a series of conflict resolution and teamwork seminars.
5. Give individual coaching on request.
6. Put together a recommended reading list for mentors, team leads and People Partners.

We're creating an environment where participants can meet as people, not functions. No, we're not going to get wasted for that. But we're going to teach you to open up here and now and see each other through fresh eyes.

We're going to form strong social connections, feel support, increase a level of trust to spend less time in conflicts and work effectively as a team. Love, honesty and warmth—because we all are delicate flowers deep inside.

How much:
3 hours, up to 20 people (can be customised for bigger groups), $750

Burn-out had become one of the most trending mental health problems connected to work. Every other person wants to leave their office job behind and run away, as far as possible.

We've been there, too. And we've gathered effective psychological and therapeutical practices to continue to love your work and, well, not die. To do so, we will evaluate where we give too much or receive not enough, which needs we do not see or satisfy. This workshop is the perfect space to cry, bitch, complain, free some space inside us to restore our energy. And survive this New Year.

How much:
3 hours, up to 20 people (can be customised for bigger groups), $750

What do I leave in 2021 and what do I bright with me to 2022?
Summarizing the work results of the outgoing year, but not for budgets, reports or just to check the boxes. Instead, we'll synchronize, get on the same page and get closure.

Every participant will reflex on their year and how it all went down. What was awesome? What could be different? And we, as facilitators, will gather all personal insights into beautiful group tango.
Look at it like this: we'll all sit together around the tribal fire, burn old conflicts, skeletons, stresses, and misunderstandings. After this session, you really can start a new life from Monday.

How much:
3 hours, up to 20 people (can be customised for bigger groups), $750

Raising questions about the incoming year, but not "what will Santa give to me?" but rather "what will I do for myself?". Together, we will want, plan, and dream as a team.

We will set goals for the next working year while paying attention to what feels alive, what drives us and what doesn't. Hearing voices of everyone and building a collective vision of the bright future we're heading to. Possible side effects include a feeling of satisfaction, enthusiasm, and a desperate need to burst into song in rare cases.

How much:
3 hours, $750

This is our deepest workshop about emotions.
Emotions aren't something we can leave at home when we come to work. The bad news is, we cannot turn them off. The good news is that there are no good and bad emotions. They're all our little elf helpers who just want us to satisfy our needs!
And if we learn to understand and express emotions, it decreases our stress level, prevents emotional burn-out and helps with team communication. Basically, we're going to practice being human—and being okay with it.

Digging into:

• Principles of safe space
• Basic emotions as physical reactions
• Difference between emotions and feelings
• How basic emotions are different and what they mean
• Separating your feelings from other people's feelings
• Managing our emotional state without getting dragged into any drama
• Using emotional intelligence in work dynamic

Format:
3 hours, up to 20 people (can be customised for bigger groups)

So, we have learned a great deal about our emotions, here comes the next level. Why the hell do I have to feel it all?
Emotions are bright markers of our needs. And we all have needs, even if some of them seem socially unacceptable. Deep down, we all want to feel safe, taken care of, acknowledged, or heard. And actually, unsatisfied needs can be one of the reasons of emotional burnout. Just saying.
During this workshop, we will practice to understand our personal needs. And we'll also tap into wishes and desires that drive other people—which, by the way, also helps to stop seeing them as selfless pricks. Because needs are behind our each word or action, and sometimes there are less twisted ways to express them.

Digging into:

• How to notice both your and your teammates needs
• Exploring connections between needs and emotions
• What happens when our needs are not satisfied
• Finding different ways to ask for what we want
• Making desicions based on personal needs and other people's wishes
• Motivating ourselves and others through desires

Format:
3 hours, up to 20 people (can be customised for bigger groups)

Some people don't pay attention to other people's feelings, others are affected too much by them. We can offer tools for both cases. You see, empathy is a muscle: you're building it to the point when you can use it mindfully and lift any heavy emotional weight.
We're going to explore how to feel and hear others and offer them support instead of uncalled advices. And as a bonus, during practice we'll feel supported and heard. Can't imagine anything better for a team building ❤️

Digging into:

• Three types of empathy: cognitive, emotional, and compassionate
• Three levels of empathy
• How emotions affect productivity
• How someone else's feelings can be reflected in our body
• Practicing listening, hearing and staying in contact
• Reacting to other people's feelings and supporting them
• Discussing how empathy helps with teamwork

Format:
3 hours, up to 20 people (can be customised for bigger groups)

Do you get annoyed by people who interrupt you while you speak, are instantly on their phones during your conversation or totally miss your point? Well, it has to end now, with our deep practical listening session.
This workshop gives +100 to team building, +150 to productive work communication, +300 to 1-on-1 meeting technique and -200 to emotional burn-out. Works like a charm: we will learn to be really present in dialogs and detect feelings and needs hidden behind words. We'll establish an attentive, warm, respectful space where everyone feels valued and accepted. Let's replenish our team pool of synergy to the max!

Digging into:

• Different types of listening: active, reflexive, empathic
• Patterns of communication that don't work
• How to stay in contact without dropping out
• How to give back to someone what you've heard from them
• Identifying people's needs behind their words and understanding them
• Mastering techniques for deep listening and instant reflection
• Mining the gold method—learning to hold a specific focus while listening
• How active listening affects group dynamics and work processes

Format:
3 hours, up to 20 people (can be customised for bigger groups)

There is a common misconception that non-violent communication is all unicorn hair, soft kittens, warm kittens, turning the other cheek kinda stuff. But actually, it's just a radically honest and direct way of communication. It allows you to avoid unnecessary drama, resolve conflicts, bring your team dynamic to the next level.
Basically, non-violent communication is both a philosophy and a tool for getting along with others—and yourselves. And we've constructed a deep 6-hour session about it.
If you already took our emotional intelligence workshop, we can dedicate more time to exploring real-life cases. If not, don't worry: we'll start with some theory and practice on basic emotions and needs.
In this workshop, we're not only talking about non-violent communication; we're developing this skill up until the point where you can use it naturally.

Digging into:

• Separating facts from judgments
• Practicing open instant feedback
• Asking vs demanding: where's the difference
• Practical and ethical tools to express your complaints
• Non-violence in real life: how to use, when not to use
• Role-playing real-life cases and non-violent responses

Format:
6 hours, up to 20 people (can be customised for bigger groups)

Since this is our first day, we'll start lightly: with some necessary theory about conflicts, merged with brainstorming sessions to analyze our own observations on this topic.
How do we notice conflicts? If two people near us start to yell at each other, that's a solid clue. Wanting to throw something at our colleague also is a good marker. But there are more subtle pieces of evidence: sarcastic jokes, passive aggression, snotty comments, procrastinating tasks related to a specific person. It depends on our unconscious behavior strategies, and on this workshop, we're going to start making them conscious.

Digging into:

• The nature of conflicts
• What kind of conflicts there are
• Reasons that cause conflicts
• Conflict markers
• How we feel inside or around open and passive-aggressive conflicts
• Karpman triangle: victim, rescuer, persecutor
• Our behavior patterns—what is helpful and what is not
• How to use conflicts for growth

Format:
6 hours, up to 20 people (can be customised for bigger groups)

Now that we’re ready, we’re going to turn conflicts into a game. We’ll role-play and observe ourselves from meta-position. If you aren’t sure what it is, don’t worry: we’ll show and tell. And then we’ll make clear what transference means!
All those things will help us understand ourselves and others better: why we flip out all of a sudden, why some simple situations can get so messed up, and what we could do differently.
A lot of practice, a lot of feedback, reflection and analyses. It might be hardcore, but gentle and caring hardcore. We promise.

Digging into:

• Ego states by Eric Berne: child, parent, adult
• When and why we fall into these roles
• Negotiating and resolving conflicts
• Hidden reasons behind our conflicts
• Meta-position to observe and reflect
• Transference and countertransference—what they do to us

Format:
3 hours, up to 20 people (can be customised for bigger groups)

This day, we’ll concentrate on strategies and tools. How to work together, and what stands between us? How do our agendas and personal interests affect our relationships?
So, we probably analyzed everything we could. We see our motives and patterns more clearly. What can we try to do differently? Which new strategies sound tempting and productive?
And, of course, we can’t leave you without some helpful tools and roadmaps for conflicts. We can’t and we won’t. Fear of conflicts shall not pass!

Digging into:

• Conflict resolution styles: competition, compromise, collaboration, accommodation, avoidance
• How we cooperate and why we betray each other
• Deep analyses of real cases
• Tips and tricks for conflict resolution
• Emotional regulation techniques
• Nonviolent communication principles
• What to do when you find yourself involved in a conflict: stop, take five, and talk it out

Format:
3 hours, up to 20 people (can be customised for bigger groups)