DC Area OD Practitioners CoP
Topic: Can Mindfulness Practices Enhance Your Use-of-Self?
Description: It may a hot trend these days but people have been practicing mindfulness for thousands of years either by themselves or as part of religious and secular traditions. Proponents claim its effectiveness in nearly everything from treating mental and physical health conditions, to improving schools, to being better parents. Research shows that many of the claims are valid. Might mindfulness practices enhance OD practitioners’ capability to use themselves as instruments of change? During this session we will talk about what mindfulness is, look at natural connections between mindfulness and use-of-self, and ponder the question: Can mindfulness expand our ability to bring our whole selves to our work? You will have a chance to engage in several mindfulness practices and explore ways to apply them in your life—at work and beyond.
Presenters: Aimee Hill and aLex Levin
Aimee Hill is an independent OD consultant, trainer, and coach. In her practice, Hill Consulting, she has been helping organizations, teams, and individuals learn and change to achieve their personal and professional goals for over 20 years. She is a graduate of the AU/NTL MSOD program, and holds certificates in coaching from the Coach Training Institute and training & development from the University of Maryland. She has been practicing mindfulness and meditation for several years and currently is exploring ways to bring mindfulness to her work and the field of OD at large.
aLex Levin is yoga teacher, mentor, and coordinator of the teacher training program at Sun & Moon Yoga Studio in Northern Virginia. Ever orienting toward freedom, joy and ease in our everyday activities and endeavors, she’s inspired by teachers who point to the support, options and unlimited potential available in our direct experience in any given moment. Guiding group and individual yoga practices since 1998 and currently folding in Yin Yoga and Feldenkrais principles, she invites us to explore that whatever we seek might be available right here and now through: relaxed awareness coupled with curious attention to our senses and all of how we “know”; inquiry that engages mind, body, heart and breath; pauses long enough to yield clear answers; and then allowing those insights to guide how we relate in the world.
Aimee and aLex have developed a Community Dialogue workshop that teaches mindfulness practices, whole body awareness, and dialogue principles to help people with disparate worldviews have conversations with each other that build bridges rather than burn them.
CoP Leader: Mark Sachs, ma.sachs@verizon.net
Cancellation Policy: Registrants should contact Mark if they need to cancel. Due to the room size, registrations will be limited so please contact Mark soonest if you register but are then unable to attend so others can register and attend instead.
Additional Notes: A $5.00 per person contribution is requested to help pay for rental of the room.
