The Women’s Leadership Collective Communication Agreement

The Women’s Leadership Collective will be using the East Bay Meditation Center’s Agreement for Multicultural Interactions, as our communication agreement during all meetings and interactions among participants, mentors, and guest speakers. Brieanna O’Duinn was given permission to use this framework, as a certified teacher by Mindfulness and Meditation Teacher Training Certification Program.

All program participants will learn how to use the practices found in East Bay Meditation Center’s Agreement for Multicultural Interactions. We will also be weaving in Equity & Inclusion training and practices into the program to support members, mentors, and facilitators in their learning process to become more aware of racial conditioning, privilege, and power dynamics.

Foundational mindfulness practices will be shared to support us all in having deeper dialogue with each other.

 
“Being mindful means moving with delicacy around everyone’s experience. That is the loving nature of awareness...

When we are in a group of people, when we are in community, mindfulness invites us to be aware of our impact on others. Even though we might intend to treat people well and fairly, the reality of our collective unconscious does not always match our intentions. ”
— Larry Yang in "Awakening Together"
 

Practices for Mindful Dialogue

  • Call on the presence that can arise in our embodiment practices as you intentionally create a mindful and caring container to speak with each other.

  • Allow for a pause between shares. By slowing down the process, we can become aware of what is arising within us. 

  • Speak about what’s alive for you in this moment from your heart and your own experience. Refrain from intellectual or philosophical sharing or long storytelling. 

  • Listen deeply, notice what arises within you as you listen, and also be aware of what arises as you speak. 

  • Be lean of expression, meaning be mindful to stay on point versus going tangential. This serves those who are listening and leaves time for others to be heard. 

  • If you’ve already spoken, give others a spacious opportunity to share a first time before you share again. 

  • Please refrain from offering advice unless it is specifically solicited. This creates safety in sharing. 

  • Please honor confidentiality. If you need to share with others outside of this circle, please share from your own direct experience and not that of other members in the program. 


Adapted from Awareness Training Institute’s MMTCP Guidelines for Mindful Dialogue