Registering now: Mental Health First Aid Courses, with LeaderShift and First Third Ministry

Dear one,
LeaderShift is partnering with First Third Ministry to offer three Mental Health First Aid training courses - and registration is open now. 

For Young Adults in Leadership with Youth and Peers

Please make a point of sharing this opportunity to Young Adults in your networks.

  • Two-Day Course, Offered Once: Saturday February 5 and Saturday February 12, 2022. 2-6pm Pacific/3-7pm Mountain.

  • Online via Zoom

  • For people 18-35

  • $100 (financial support is available)

For Ministers, Staff, Church Volunteers in Contact with the Public

  • Two-Day Course Offered Twice: Offering 1: Tuesday March 8 and Wednesday March 9, 2022. 9am-1pm Pacific/ 10am-2pm Mountain. Offering 2: Saturday March 12, 2022, 9am-1pm Pacific/ 10am-2pm Mountain, and Sunday March 13, 2022, 1-5pm Pacific/2-6pm Mountain.

  • Online via Zoom

  • $150

Both LeaderShift and Chinook Winds Pacific Mountain First Third Ministry have a deep commitment to providing training for church staff and leaders, so that they can be confident when it comes to managing mental health crisis. It is very excited to also include a Young Adult-specific training!

We believe that Mental Health First Aid is just as important as being able to respond to a physical injury. Upon completion of these courses, you will be certified in the Mental Health First Aid course of the Mental Health Commission of Canada.

Full details on the course offerings and trainer are here on the LeaderShift website. We are thrilled that Dr Julie Clayton of Tipping Point Counselling Services is facilitating these courses. Julie is a certified MHFA teacher, a highly skilled counsellor, and holds a Master of Divinity and years of experience as a congregational pastor.


Faithfully,

The LeaderShift Team


Allison Rennie - Director
Jes Beckerley - Temporary Administrative Assistance
Rob Crosby-Shearer - New Communities / Church Planting Project
Tressa Brotsky - Communications

Sometimes we don't yet know

Friends,

Sometimes we don’t yet know

I receive blog posts from a recent training, and though focused on leadership development in the corporate world, this week’s message is so relevant to us in church leadership - specifically this:

 

“…effective leaders often recognize that they don’t have all the answers and, importantly, admit as much. It’s an attitude that could serve leaders well now. “The most powerful decision a leader can make is to say, ‘I just don’t know,’” says Dan Kaplan, a Korn Ferry senior client partner in the firm’s CHRO practice. 

That humility and the willingness to admit uncertainty haven’t always been visible over the last few months, as many companies set specific dates for return-to-office plans and other projects. “Everyone wants to be definitive, and it makes them look clownish,” Kaplan says.

People look to leaders for four things: trust, compassion, stability, and hope, says Margie Warrell, a Korn Ferry senior client partner in the firm’s Board & CEO Services practice. Her advice: “Communicate clearly, make quick decisions, and articulate the ‘why’ behind those decisions.” At the same time, she says, leaders should be focusing on their companies’ long-term strategies.

 

Here’s what we do know

LeaderShift embraces four key words from the excerpt above: trust, compassion, stability, and hope. We’re deeply committed to the practices of discernment and evaluation - not just in what we offer, but also in how we make decisions as a team.

Somethings have changed this month, and some things are steady, and some things are emerging - in the midst of many unknowns, we’re rooting down into what sustains and is sustainable. You are warmly invited to join us:

Faithfully,

Allison
LeaderShift Director

Announcing a Discernment Program for Church Boards - February 2022 →

Congregational boards have the important work of oversight and discernment about the mission of the local community of faith.  How equipped are you for this discernment role?   

Most congregations rely on rational decision making to guide their leadership choices. Liminal seasons invite us to shift out of rational decision-making mode and into a more discerning mindset. Discernment is an attentiveness to God that, over time, develops into a shared sense of God’s intention for us and our community now. This year long program will equip you and your board for deepened group discernment practices.

PARTICIPANTS IN THIS PROGRAM WILL:  

  • Enter a three-way conversation engaging God, the soul of the leader, and the soul of the institution.  

  • Challenge the default position of most congregations to resort immediately to group decision making.  

  • Deepen their skills as group discernment facilitators.  

  • Learn how to structure a group discernment process and where to locate discernment activity in the life of a congregation.  

  • Develop a toolbox of practices for opening to God and listening to one another.  

With Susan Beaumont

Susan has worked with hundreds of congregations and denominational bodies across the United States and in Canada.  She is known for her ground-breaking work in the leadership dynamics of large congregations. 

Before establishing her own practice, Susan worked for nine years as a Senior Consultant with the Alban Institute. Susan has also served on the faculty of two business schools, teaching graduate level courses in leadership, management and organizational behavior.   Susan brings her experience as a trained Spiritual Director to this organizational level learning and work.

And Allison Rennie

Allison is a gifted educator, animateur, and team mate, deeply passionate about nurturing leadership and spirituality of people all ages. Allison has been engaged in raising and shaping leaders for over 30 years. With experience at all levels of the United Church, Allison is currently Director of LeaderShift for the Pacific Mountain and Chinook Winds Regional Councils.