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How we communicate affects all our personal relationships and we typically learn this communication by example. Sometimes that’s wonderful. Other times – the times that bring you to a site like this one – it’s painful. We can struggle and repeat relationship patterns like blaming, yelling, hitting, avoiding, numbing, and coping as best we can using substances, and these ways of being can erode our relationships with partners, kids, friends, in-laws, service providers, or ourselves.

Fortunately, it is possible to find more ease and connection in our relationships by transforming our painful stories and judgments into clear requests for support and by building a culture of gratitude and appreciation into our lives. Which of these statements would invite your cooperation more?

“You haven’t done the dishes yet. Get these done, now!”  OR

“I’m tired. Could you clean up the dishes before 9 pm tonight so that I can relax?”

The first way expresses our needs through the lens of frustration, and it is tragic because, if you are like me, it is less likely to invite our co-operation. The second statement is a request to make our lives more wonderful in the style of Dr. Marshall Rosenberg’s Nonviolent Communication (NVC). Without compromising, we can create connecting shifts in the relationships that matter to us by trading motivation through guilt, shame, blame, punishment, or rewards for trust-filled and joyful collaboration where people choose to contribute to our well-being. Curious how this is possible? Find out a bit more in Elke’s video.

We would like everyone who is motivated to learn to be able to learn regardless of their financial resources. Please see information on our pricing philosophy for details.

Course Offerings (in addition to custom ones):

Getting Along in Family Life

16 hours, online or in person 
Afternoons over 8 weeks or 2 Saturdays (Times in MT (Edmonton))
Publicly available training or Private Group Booking.

What’s your go-to/default response when:

  • You do something that you regret?
  • Your child or partner says no to you? Is angry?
  • A family member brings up an old, unresolved argument?
  • You think someone is not picking up on your cues or hearing you?
  • An employee at a service organization cites policy in denying a request?
  • What you want and what someone else wants seem worlds apart?

Do you feel closer or less close to the person when you respond this way? If you feel less close, and you want to change that, this 16-hour introduction to Dr. Marshall Rosenberg’s way of communicating may be for you. This course can help you to:

  • Stop hearing what anyone says as criticism or as a “have to”
  • Understand what is at the heart of tensions so can find a shared path forward
  • Consciously respond rather than reflexively react so your relationships get stronger and you feel less stress as you fully express yourself
  • Get more buy-in so you do not have to revisit issues again and again

It is possible to create the quality of relationship where people want to do things because they enjoy contributing to us. Would you enjoy this kind of relationship? If so, and if you enjoy learning new ideas and practicing, I invite you to sign up to learn more. Transformation and inspiration await!

Class size: If there are fewer than 5 participants, the class may be postponed.

Facilitator: Elke Haggerty

You can join a scheduled online class (individual registrations) or arrange a private class that is only open to your family group, daycare, school group, friend group, or other group. 

Private bookings can be online or in person (contact us for any private booking). Private bookings for this course tend to be available on afternoons in two-hour sessions from 12:30-2:30 pm MT (Edmonton), on full or half week days, or on select evenings and weekends. To book a private online class at this time, contact us to book a time and then make your payment through the Stripe link you will be provided.  

Why Won't My Parents Listen?

4 hour training or 1.5 hour drop-ins, online
 Monday after school starting at 5:00 or 4:00 pm MT (Edmonton), respectively
Publicly available training, for youth 14-21.

Would you like your parents to be able to hear you? What if they sat and asked you what was important to you instead of threatening to take your phone away, grounding you for marks you didn’t get, telling you when to be home, telling you who you can hang out with, or banning activities and people you enjoy? Are you thinking they just don’t get it or won’t listen?

It’s easy to get sucked into downward spirals where no one is listening or seems willing to budge. However, adult/youth relationships do not need to bounce back and forth with reactivity like a pinball in a game called Ultimatum Hell or FU All.  You can influence the direction of the conversation and gain your own and others’ respect doing it.  In this weekly drop in series, you learn ways to:

  • Say what you want in a way that is more likely to be heard
  • Figure out what the bee is in others’ bonnets (what’s bugging them)
  • Build your self esteem, resilience, influence, and leadership abilities
  • Feel more empowered to build the life you genuinely want for yourself

You can do this by figuring out what people’s feelings and strategies suggest they might need (including yours), checking your guesses out with them, and asking for what you want. No shame. Lots to gain.

So, if you would like to have more choice in what you do, when you do it, and how you do it, come learn ways to negotiate that in this weekly drop in class (which you can also sign up for a month at a time after you try it) or a 4-hour session. We’ll work on issues that you and others want to share (or “fictitious” ones), practice conversations so you feel empowered to create change, and your facilitator will work in collaborative tips.  For youth ages 14-21.

The difference between the two offerings?  The 4-hour session gives you a stronger foundation for how the process works. It can be combined with the drop-in sessions.

Facilitator: Elke Haggerty

You can join a scheduled online single session, sign up for a month (you can pay less) and/or register for a 4-hour session that gives you more background on how to talk in a way that your parents are more likely to hear you.

How monthly registration for Monday Drop-Ins works:

Once you have registered here and completed the Calendly link where you pick the Monday you want to join, you can choose to pay for a calendar month at a time using the Stripe link you get in the payment notes of your single drop-in session.

Train One-on-One with a Facilitator

Prefer working one-on-one on your communication with someone in your personal life (such as a child, spouse, service provider, or yourself)? That’s possible.  Book a 55-minute one-on-one here. 

Book online

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