New Year’s Day workshop: ‘The Power of the Talking Stick’, with Richard Mills.

New Year’s Day workshop:
‘The Power of the Talking Stick’.
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New Year’s Day is a special day for me. I see NYD’s date as arbitrary – just down to how we organise the calendar numerically, rather than, say the Solstice – but it does have resonances for me, some uncomfortable and some welcome.
I am inviting you to this workshop. Details as below.

1st January 2026, 4.00pm – 5.30pm (UK time).
Online group, on Zoom.

This is a sophisticated process but with a very simple framework: whoever holds the Talking Stick may talk, whilst the others may not talk then, and they do their best to listen.

•    If you are holding the Talking Stick, you don’t have to talk all the time! 
•    Start when you are ready.
•    Give it up when you are ready.

In an in-person group there’s just one stick in the middle. As we are on Zoom, bring your own stick or other object to represent the Talking Stick: when the space is open, indicate clearly that you are taking the stick when you want to talk. Likewise, when you are done, indicate clearly that you are giving up the stick.

•    There will be a very brief check-in at the start, so that we’ve heard everyone’s voice, and a very brief check-out towards the end. 
•    4-minute comfort break around half-time.

What to talk about?... Examples:

•    What’s on top?
•    ‘What I want you to know about me is…’
•    You could address what you’ve been touched by in the meeting.
•    You might use the list of sample questions below as a prompt:

What do you celebrate? 
What do you regret? 
Where are you from? 
Who loves you?  
Whom do you miss?
How are you in this here-and-now?
… etc

NB: This is not a group for processing of interpersonal stuff, so we avoid opening up conversations: this group is more about ‘This is who I am.’

The amount of time each single person takes is not timed, so whilst it’s not ‘equal time’, I’m sure it’ll work out well as we’ll be sensitive to the fact that the group time is shared.

Who may attend?
Any CCI co-counsellor may attend. I am also inviting two trainee co-counsellors whom I already know well. If they attend, I will first satisfy myself that they have a sound understanding of the following things, which I view as both necessary and sufficient for this workshop:
•    Free Attention
•    Client responsibilities
•    Counsellor responsibilities
•    Confidentiality (in a co-counselling context)

Numbers = 6-12

Booking
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Please send me a message.

Richard Mills