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Organizing a School of Spiritual Psychology Workshop
Nearly every week we get requests asking if the School of Spiritual Psychology is doing a course in their region. The School goes to places where a group of people become interested in the work of Spiritual Psychology and come to a point where they want to organize a workshop. We thought it might be helpful to send out the following notes for those interested in arranging a workshop. The School offers a wide variety of workshops. Typically, these workshops begin on a Friday evening and end on Sunday afternoon. Among the offerings are:
- Foundations of Spiritual Psychology I, II, III
- Freeing the Soul from Fear
- Soul Retreats (the Soul Retreats typically begin on a Thursday evening and end Tuesday at noon)
- Spiritual Psychology of Love
- Spiritual Psychology of the Apocalypse
- Spiritual Psychology of Forgiveness
- Spiritual Psychology Hope
- Spiritual Psychology of Faith
- Soul Economy
- Spiritual Psychology and the Destiny Experience
- Spiritual Psychology of Relationships
- Spiritual Psychology and the Gospel of St. John
- Dying Awake: Preparing for the Great Life
- Heart Aches: Spiritual Psychology of the Broken Heart
- Spiritual Psychology of Service
- Beloved Soul of Silence
- Living the Twelve Virtues
- Spiritual Psychology of Emotional Life
- Dante's Divine Comedy: The Inferno: The Purgatorio; The Paradiso
( a course in three segments)
Here are guidelines for organizing a course in your region:
- Is There Sufficient Interest?
About 8 months from when you want to start the workshop begin discussions in your local group to determine the interest for a program. Contact Cheryl Sanders at the School of Spiritual Psychology (336-437-1178) once you feel there is sufficient interest to proceed. Determine from the courses she indicates are available which one you decide would be the best. Determine Robert Sardello's and Cheryl Sanders' availability and together work out a time for the workshop. In order to come to your location, we need around thirty people confirmed as coming to the workshop.
- Who Will Carry the Initiative?
If sufficient interest seems present, ask for volunteers to be the local organizers of the course. One person needs to be the primary contact with Cheryl and Robert, one person needs to be willing to be the local Registrar, and one person needs to be willing to arrange mailings. The same person can be all three - but that takes quite a lot.
- Get Ready for the Initial Mailing
Arrange with Robert and Cheryl to have specific brochures printed for your local course, with course description, dates, location, and costs. Set the following understandings with Robert and Cheryl: the minimum full pay registrations that make the course viable, the maximum number of people that will be accepted into the program, how scholarship requests will be handled, and any other details you can think of in advance. Prepare a registration from that can be mailed either to the local Registrar or directly to the School of Spiritual Psychology. This form should include all relevant information such as deposit (usually $50), total costs (usually $200 tuition plus board and room if out-of-town people are invited, plus meal costs), place, dates, deadlines for registration, cancellation refund policies, etc. Then procure mailing lists. To get 30 people signed up, unless you have an intact group, plan to mail at least 1000 brochures to people who you think would be interested. Work closely with Cheryl and Robert on this mailing as the School's mailing list is divided into regions of the country and can be part of the mailing. Make arrangements for the location that will be used for the program.
- Procure the Goal Number of Full Pay Registrations
Four months before the workshop, do the first mailing. Set a goal of having the minimum number of full-pay registrations in hand two months before the program. You should not consider a person registered until you have a completed registration form and a check for the deposit in hand. Although scholarship people may receive reductions in the course fee, they must submit the same deposit check as the full pays. If response is poor to your first mailing, if for example, you only have 5 registrations one month after the mailing - take immediate action! Do a second mailing, call your friends, speak to groups, do whatever is necessary to get a minimum number of full pay registrations. See yourself as a farmer who is plowing the ground - getting the conditions correct so that this wonderful program can occur.
- Make a GO or NOGO Decision
At two months before the program, if you do not have the minimum number of full pay registrations, consult with Robert and Cheryl to determine the next step - usually deciding whether to go ahead or re-schedule. If you do have the minimum number of registrations, then set a hospitality committee. This group will be the hosts of the local program, arranging the details for the comfort of the people attending the course. This includes fresh flowers, paintings for the walls, snacks for breaks, etc.
- Relax and Let Your Heart's be Strengthened
Your labors to prepare the way for a program to occur will be very rewarding indeed! Once a program has taken place, the School will usually return at least once a year to do further workshops. The workshops after the first one pretty much go on their own.
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