top of page

yoga, HR & people leadership ramblings




I enrolled in a Master's degree and I was ready to go! The allure of studying again was incredibly tempting (maybe a bit of ego involved in the idea gaining a second Masters) - but then put it on hold. Why? I was busy learning other things…


Instead, over the past three years, I have:

  • Completed my Yoga Teacher Training, becoming a yoga facilitator in vinyasa, yin, yoga nidra & trauma-informed yoga

  • I completed the Boston Centre for Trauma Research's Certificate in Traumatic Stress Studies with Bessel van der Kolk

  • I am halfway through the incredible Trauma Centre Trauma Sensitive Yoga Facilitation Level 2 teaching program (TCTSY) - one of the most (if not the best) well researched and evidenced therapeutic yoga programs available, specifically designed to work with survivors of trauma.

  • Left my traditional career to start a social enterprise to tackle the lack of evidence based learning and organisational design available to small nonprofits and volunteers - particularly in the trauma-informed practice and evidence-based leadership space.


Funnily enough, this different learning journey path really just started with picking yoga back up because stuffthatworks.com told me it was excellent for mental wellness (which it is - highly recommend), it has morphed into something that has changed the way I live my life and do many things, including how I approach my career.


Learning more about trauma-informed practice, and better understanding the body's somatic responses to stress has a massive correlation with understanding how to create psychologically safe environments for adults to learn new concepts, apply them to their existing frameworks, and enact subsequent changes in behaviour (aka all good/sustainable organisational learning, change and leadership).


The impact of this learning in my work has been huge - but the real benefit for me has been in better understanding how people can be brought together for a common goal, and the importance of creating safe spaces and human connection in environments to aid in collaboration and honesty. 


Making every effort to take ego out of the equation, asking for feedback, and then acting on it are absolute requirements when it comes to walking the talk. Great leaders create safe environments - creativity and innovation need a place where teams can collaborate and fail safely.


Recently I've been working with emerging models championing lived experience and trauma-informed approaches at a organisational design/senior leadership level specifically around providing trauma-informed context to those leaders when making business decisions, and HR models that put a trauma-informed lens on processes like investigations. This is really exciting - but far from where many P&C Leaders are able to spend their time. Amid funding squeezes, more competition for top talent, increasing regulatory requirements and more frequent restructures, the time needed to adequately approach leadership and organisational design with a trauma-informed lens is hard to find.


Reflection prompts:

  1. How do we continue to centre person-centered, trauma-informed, and evidence-based change when organisations, regulation changes and external forces are asking us to move faster?

  2. How do we continue to challenge 'conventional wisdom' and the ego in helping leaders engage their teams better and create psychologically safe places to work?

  3. What is one thing that you can commit to as a leader to create safer spaces for others?

  4. How can you personally better your understanding of being trauma-informed and infusing that into your leadership practice?


7 views

Kommentarer


be the first to know when new
learning and resources launch

you can opt out at anytime

  • Instagram
  • LinkedIn
  • linktr
bottom of page