Conscious Communication Classes​​
Saturday April 5 & 19
10:00 - 4:00pm
at Stillwater Landing
in Panton, VT
​Conscious Communication is a set of skills that enable you to express yourself honestly and understand another person.
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They establish healthy boundaries and create the foundation for a nourishing relationship in which feelings are recognized and basic needs are met. These skills are essential to diffuse tension when emotions are charged.
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They work by interrupting your habit of competing with each other in order to see who is right.
Using the skills focuses your attention on basic emotions and needs instead of the story about
what happened. This enables you to maintain your connection when there is conflict, and discuss
your feelings and needs constructively.
When you let go of your story and stop defending your point of view, you can recognize what
each of you is feeling and needing right now. This allows room for understanding, and enables you to
explore solutions together that could meet both of your needs.​
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Conscious Communication utilizes
Supportive Listening and Assertion.
Supportive Listening
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How to understand and connect with others – even when you disagree
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When we listen, our mind is busy comparing what the other person is saying with our own ideas, beliefs, and experiences. This prevents us from hearing and understanding their experience and point of view. And this creates a separation between us that makes both of us feel more alone in the world.
Supportive Listening helps us to connect to other people by activating our natural capacity for empathy. It interrupts our habit of making everything about us, and expands our world to include other people’s experience. This skill is especially useful when you have conflict or misunderstanding with another person and want to find a way to stay connected.
Assertion
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How to be honest about your feelings and needs without blame or judgement
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When we are upset with another person, we usually argue over what happened and who is to blame. This feeds the tension and pits us against each other. And, it makes the situation more difficult
to resolve.
Assertion enables you navigate those difficult conversations when your needs have not been met in a significant relationship. It interrupts the habit of blaming others, and offers a way to give feedback without making them wrong. This makes it easier for them to listen and understand how their behavior impacts you.
The class on April 5th will focus on Supportive Listening.
The class on April 19th will focus on Assertion.
They will be interactive, small group classes (6 – 14 people). Skills will be explained, demonstrated, and practiced in role plays. You will leave with practical experience using the skills and able to apply them in your current relationships. The class location, Stillwater Landing, is a stunning, private nature retreat overlooking Lake Champlain and the Adirondack Mountains with fields, woods, a majestic waterfront landing, and spacious dock.
$90 tuition/class
*Register with a friend for a discounted price of $75 each
Registration deadline is five days before the course begins - limited to 14 people
​Led by Miles Sherts. Miles has studied and practiced Conscious Communication and Conflict Resolution skills since 1978, and taught since 1990. He is passionate about viewing conflict as a means to deepen relationships. His teaching emphasizes practical skills for re-orienting yourself from a competitive mind-set to a cooperative one.
Miles is the author of Conscious Communication, and Conscious Communication for Couples. He also is a teacher of Insight Meditation and a Couples Communication Coach.