How To and How Not To: Setting Up a Workshop
Have you ever wondered how to set up a workshop? At the end of a recent SoulCollage® class in my studio, my students asked to extend the class. I wanted to keep my Sunday afternoons open. What to do? I remembered what Alyson Stanfield had said about collaborating and asked for suggestions. One student who worked at a cancer center suggested using a space there. What a divine idea! I thought. "And you could offer it to cancer patients and their peer navigators." she continued.
Discovery #1•In need of new ideas? Collaborate with others.
My friend spoke to the outreach coordinator at the cancer center and soon, I had a meeting set up to discuss the possibility.
Discovery #2•Follow up on ideas pdq/asap/stat.
The next piece was a bit trickier. I planned to offer the class free to cancer patients and their peer navigators and charge a fee for other folks. Win-win: I would be paid and the cancer center would be able to offer a brand new service. The tricky bit: could I use their facility (which opens you to great publicity channels) and still charge a fee?
Discovery #3 (similar to #1)• If in doubt, ask until you get an answer with which you are comfortable. I ended up calling their compliance office and discovered exactly which policy allowed me to offer the class and charge for it. I also e-mailed all the students to find out if they were still on board. Here I met my first whoops. I'd assumed
I had enough participants so I had not done much outreach.
Discovery #4 Always do your outreach, no matter what. Seek out all possibilities for spreading your word. Even if, like me, you are an introvert who would sooner crawl under a rock than pick up the phone. So what to do now? I read Rebecca Crowell's post about an entire day spent working on upcoming classes. I flew into action, collaborating with my husband and other colleagues to make a great flyer. Ready to go? Well, almost...
At the same time that I created a flyer, I'd written an article for an on-line newsletter and now I heard from the newsletter editor telling me about an error in my dates.
Discovery #5: Check and recheck your dates. So now here I am, flyers corrected (and recorrected), article published, word spread and grateful for all the help I've received. We'll see what next week brings, but for the moment, I'm staying with this thought from Jack Canfield:"When you are in a state of appreciation and gratitude, you are in a state of abundance. You are appreciating what you do have instead of focusing on and complaining about what you don't have. Your focus is on what you have received, and you always get more of what you focus on." (p. 357, The Success Principles) Now I'll start working on my curriculum...
Top photo courtesy of Lynn Cohen
Discovery #3 (similar to #1)• If in doubt, ask until you get an answer with which you are comfortable. I ended up calling their compliance office and discovered exactly which policy allowed me to offer the class and charge for it. I also e-mailed all the students to find out if they were still on board. Here I met my first whoops. I'd assumed 
Great post--I hope you follow up on it in your blog--good luck!
ReplyDeleteThis is such a joyful reminder:
ReplyDeleteI'm staying with this thought from Jack Canfield: "When you are in a state of appreciation and gratitude, you are in a state of abundance. You are appreciating what you do have instead of focusing on and complaining about what you don't have. Your focus is on what you have received, and you always get more of what you focus on." (p. 357, The Success Principles)
I learned some wonderful checks and balances here for my summer schedule of studios at the Contemporary Art Center.
Thanks so much Hannah!! and congratulations on a really cool collaboration that will bring such gifts to the community you serve.
Bravo for setting up the workshop. Lots of work to get it going. But am sure it will be a huge success and many will benefit from it.
ReplyDeleteEnjoy the journey!
Thanks for the credit for my photo too. ;-)
Glad you can still use them.
Go Hannah !!!......I'll bet it will be a great success ...Good luck and enjoy ....xx
ReplyDeleteThanks Diane--I'll write about whatever transpires. Creating the structure was an interesting process Iona and Lynn. I'm used to setting up classes in my studio or at the request of an organization--but this was a much more nebulous process. After all my actions, the words from Jack Canfield helped me simply rest in the knowledge that I've done my part and the rest will be "beshert," (a Yiddish word meaning meant to be). That is, whatever happens next will be beneficial. It's a new experience (in my work setting) to let go, uncurl my hand and open to possibility:)Thanks for your encouragement Lorna!
ReplyDeleteNice post Hannah! very useful for newbies like me :) I want to know more about the class.. so keep posting!
ReplyDeleteGreat post, Hannah! I am interested in starting to teach art classes so this was definitely food for thought. How did you get involved with Soul Collage?
ReplyDeleteClaudine, I was introduced to SoulCollage® some years ago by a therapist friend who was working with Seena Frost, the originator of S.C. She urged me try it so I took a workshop with Seena and loved it. When they started giving facilitator workshops, I signed up and have been teaching workshops utilizing this technique on and off since then. The simplicity, the directness and the depth of the process are very appealing to me.
ReplyDeleteGreetings Hannah,
ReplyDeleteThis post has stood out for me and especially for a friend I know who is struggling to find a careful balance that you discussed. I sent her your link and I know she will appreciate your insight.
From your roaster I see that Drozda and you are known to each other as I was going to include a link to her site in my last email to to.
Wishing you all the best,
Egmont
Thank you Egmont. Now, at the end of the class I can say it was worth the juggling and--I'm ready to do it all over again. The kind of insight that I saw as students created and spoke about their art work was food for my soul.
ReplyDelete