Focusing Roundtable - Being Present: Mindfulness, Interaction & Connectedness

Friday, September 17, 2021 - 12:00 pm - 2:00 pm EDT (New York - US)

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If any of the words in the title inspires you, then you belong in this Roundtable. Many of us work with, inhabit or experiment with practices that foster mindfulness. There are many differences between these practices, but also commonalities. We may go from one practice to another, or intuitively integrate them, or they exist side by side.

In this Roundtable, we expect there will be a mix of experiences. Focusers, of course, as well as people who are interested in mindfulness but not very experienced in Focusing. Meditators, of course, but not just meditators. We welcome people who have different mindfulness practices, as well as people who think of Focusing as a form of meditative practice.

The Roundtable is an opportunity for all of us to come together and compare our experiences. We want to be become more aware and conscious of how these practices can work together, or understand what happens inside us when we are drawing on one or another to both. Our goal is to understand the wells we are drawing from and how we are drawing from them in a deeper way.  In other words: our inner process.

The common thread to our exploration will be paying attention to what these practices have to do with mindfulness in interaction. In particular, we will discuss how they foster a sense of connection to self and others.

Note: The idea for this is Roundtable is coming out of several conversations we’ve been having on this topic. One of them is a recorded conversation which is part of the “Focusing Conversations” series, and is also available as a video at http://activepause.com/rudnick-zen/

Who might be particularly interested in attending this Roundtable?

Anyone who would like to explore this topic.

CONNECTION>CONVERSATION>COMMUNITY

What to expect from Focusing Roundtables: Each Focusing Roundtable is designed to promote informal peer-to-peer conversation. Rather than acting as expert presenters, the Hosts will serve as conversation moderators to encourage sharing and exploration of the topics from the participants’ own perspectives.  All participants’ sharings are welcome and valuable, no matter what level of experience or knowledge you have on the topic. To preserve the nature of informal conversation, the program will be offered live only and no recordings will be available. Registration is limited and on a first-come, first served basis. Participants are encouraged to create follow up opportunities for connection among themselves after the Roundtable.

The TIFI Membership Committee is pleased to offer this series of Focusing Roundtables designed especially for members of the Institute. This program will afford members a valuable opportunity to engage in casual peer-to-peer conversation with other members who share Focusing-related interests.  If you are not a member, please join at http://www.focusing.org/membership, then return to this page to register.

About your hosts:

Serge Prengel is a Focusing-oriented therapist and a co-founder of the Integrative Focusing Therapy online training program. He wrote The Proactive Twelve Steps: A Mindful Program For Lasting Change. He invites you to explore creative approaches to mindfulness and Focusing with him at ActivePause.com.

Susan Rudnick LCSW is a longtime FOT practicing in NYC. She has recently published a memoir, Edna's Gift: How My Broken Sister Taught Me To Be Whole. Her writing journey took 10 years and was a transformative healing experience. Focusing informed her whole process, enabling her to connect in a vivid way to her childhood closeness with Edna and find the narrative thread that shaped her whole work.