Exploring Endings and Beginnings

Exploring organisational endings and beginnings 'slantwise', through the lenses of death & dying, nature, systemic constellations & ritual.

What might we see when we put aside the traditional /classic ways of considering endings and beginnings in our organisational work - and look instead through some decidedly non corporate lenses?

I've been wanting to develop this workshop for ages. Now, 18 months into a training as an end-of-life doula I can see so many ways that an exploration of death and dying, and the field of palliative care, can be really helpful when considering endings (and beginnings) in organisational life. When I add that to my experience with shadow work, an abiding interesting in the natural world, my training and work with systemic constellations, my training in grief tending and more ... then some ideas for a workshop started to form.

I ran a short online version of this workshop exploring these themes in Feb, and now this full day workshop gives us the chance to go wider and deeper and include lots I wasn't able to in Feb.

This one day in-person workshop will give space to explore and think about:

· your own relationship with endings and also beginnings, and how that shows up in your organisational practice (becuase we lead, coach etc out of our own autobiography)

· what's ending and what's beginning in our close and immediate lives, as well as in wider macro life - and the extent to which we can ever consider a ‘small’ ending or beginning without putting it in its biggest global/mythic context

· practically, what makes for a good ending and a good beginning - and how might we know when things are beginning or ending

· ‘In the beginning …’ and the importance of the stories we tell about our origin and about what’s emerging, as well as falling away

· The emotional life of transitions and in particular how an understanding of grief is so important

· Portals and thresholds: how we mark endings and beginnings and the role and importance of ritual in our working lives.

I’ll be drawing on models and frameworks that are ‘organisationally familiar’ but that go beyond the Change Curve - as well as many that are not organisational at all. They include:

• my current training in end-of-life doula work, as well as 2 years of exploring death and dying
• several years of being interested in 'collapse' thinking via the work of poeple like Meg Wheatkey and Jem Bendell
• the wisdom and practices of systemic constellations
• Francis Weller and Sophy Banks’s work on grief and loss
• What nature and regenerative practices can teach us about ending and beginning ...

As ever in my workshops, there will be short writing bursts; ideas and input from me with breakouts to explore for yourself what I’m offering; back in the large group to share what feels insightful or useful; and (inevitably) some poetry and beautiful words from other people.

You might be particularly interested in this if you’re:

· In the middle (muddle?) of your own endings and beginnings, whether personally or professionally

· Interested in doing endings and beginnings well or better, or at least attending to them more than you might do now, for yourself and in organisational life

· A coach or consultant wanting some new / practical ideas for working with transitions in your client work

· In a leadership role and want to help your teams feel a little more ‘held’ as things are changing around them

Notes

• I'll send you some pre work/reflection work ahead of time - not much, just enough to prime the day
• I’m keeping the fee relatively low but please do get in touch if cost is a barrier and we can explore what might be possible.
• If you’re a consultant in a client system, this would be a very good session to book two tickets for and bring someone from that client system with you so you can work on things together and have a shared understanding in your ongoing work.

Helena Clayton

· 25 or so years working in organisations in all sectors – leadership development, organisational development, change and culture change, team development.

· Coach and coach supervisor.

· Pioneering work since 2018 exploring love and the role it could and arguably should play in organisations and beyond - research, writing, workshops.

· Parallel track of deep personal growth and organisational learning, including shadow work, grief tending, systemic constellations, end of life doula training and more.

· Website here and LI profile here.

Hope to see you there.

Helena x

(pic: Laina Geetah)