Articles

At a recent practice group the metaphor of a tennis court came up during an exploration of someone’s feelings and needs about a particular relationship. We drew a picture of a tennis court on our white board and used it to get clarity about which side of the court is ours to play in a relationship.

It brought me back to when I was first learning NVC. The workshop facilitator asked me about my needs in a situation. I said something like, “I just want to understand why he’s angry and says such nasty things to me.” And the facilitator tried again, “and when that happens, what needs do...

Long ago, when I was 19 years old, I was in my college cafeteria, going through the buffet line with my tray. A young man in my German class, a person that I had admired, asked if he could speak with me for a moment. My heart leapt. Now maybe the experience of making friends, maybe even of having a boyfriend, would begin. I liked him. Maybe he liked me.

I took my tray to his table, anticipating good things. Instead, the young man told me that I was difficult to have in class, that I was moving too fast, taking too much of the teacher’s attention, and hindering the rest of the class...

There are many ways to make the world a better place and you likely have one or two favorites. For your favorite cause you have likely researched the topic, attended groups or workshops, and done your best to live by the tenets of that cause.

Perhaps the more you learn, the more you see how extensive the problem is and how important change is if we are to avoid disaster. You may feel angry, frightened, grief stricken, and desperate wanting to make the world safe and healthy. Hopefully you receive empathy for your pain around the situation and seek the wisdom of others about what...

We are excited and inspired thinking of the thousands of people throughout Oregon and Southwestern Washington sharing, learning and practicing Compassionate / Nonviolent Communication -- all of us seeking a world where everyone's needs matter and are met!

In 2017 we will reach out to all of you to see if we can get a "census" that will give us an idea of just how many people are being touched by NVC through practice groups, classes, workshops, presentations and other forms. More information will be in our upcoming newsletters. We hope you will be willing to collaborate.

With...