Together in the Reconciliation Workshop

If you are planning to participate in the Reconciliation Workshop with someone you already know, let me suggest the following considerations.

Shared language and tools: The workshop teaches a set of attitudes and approaches that can be a powerful aid to deepening our relationships. When we all speak the same language, the tools can be even more effective. This is quite attractive.  On the other hand...

Self-disclosure: The format of the workshop invites a deep level of self-disclosure. This is usually fairly easy to do with those we don't know already, but becomes more difficult when we know others and especially when we have an existing relationship that we are urgent to preserve. When we are anxious about how we appear to the other, this anxiety can get in the way of the process of the workshop.

Conflict intensity: When we have durable patterns of conflict in significant relationships those conflicts will tend to surface in the workshop. When the relationship is with someone present in the room, the conflict can erupt in a visible expression of the intensity of the conflict and may be beyond what the parties can handle comfortably. While this may be a great boon to the relationship allowing it to address important issues, it can also be a distraction to the work that others in the workshop are trying to do.

For these reasons we urge you to consider carefully the impact that your relationships with others in the workshop will have on the workshop as a whole. Please let Dr. Robinson know about any existing relationships when you register.

Back to the description of the Reconciliation Workshop