Intensive Journal® Workshop – FAQs Part 2
Your Questions Answered cont…
Who leads the workshops?
Intensive Journal® workshops are conducted by trained and certified leaders (also called Journal Consultants) under the auspices of Dialogue House. The function of the leader is to guide you step-by-step through the process using the workshop guidelines provided by Dialogue House. They stay in the background, serving as a supportive and non-judgmental guide. Their role is to help you connect with your inner process, free from distractions in the workshop room. Therefore, our leaders do not use their personality to dominate or influence your process; they serve in a behind-the-scenes role to help you enter your process.
Our leaders come from a variety of backgrounds. They are teachers, artists, counselors, and ministers, to name a few of their occupations. While they may share some of their background and experiences with participants, they are not introducing their own philosophy. They are representing the philosophy of Dr. Progoff, as incorporated into the Intensive Journal® program.
Training and quality control are important components of our program. To become a certified instructor, our leaders must complete training in Dr. Progoff’s philosophy of psychological growth as well as attend many workshops. Their work is reviewed on an ongoing basis.
If you are interested in becoming a leader, Click here for more information.
Why does the price of a workshop vary by location?
Prices vary depending upon the cost of hosting the workshop at a certain location, the length of the program and whether meals are included. We try to offer reasonably priced programs and to be responsive to the needs of participants.
What happens at a workshop?
At your first workshop you receive your Intensive Journal® workbook. Not all of the sections will be used in the Life Context and Depth Contact workshops. These will be used in later modules of the Intensive Journal® series.
The workshop leader will guide participants through a series of journal sections based upon the structure developed by Dr. Ira Progoff in At a Journal Workshop. This structure is set up so that the sections complement each other and a continuous flow among them is achieved. The leader will explain each section and then allow time for participants to write in their workbooks.
Throughout the workshop the leader will allow time for questions about either the method or about the direction of a participant’s writing. This may be done one-on-one in order to protect the person’s privacy. The leader will also allow time for participants to read their work aloud. This is not meant to foster discussion about a person’s writing, but is for the purpose of connecting the reader to and evoking his or her emotions.
Try a Sample Intensive Journal® Exercise
Now you can begin to experience how the Intensive Journal® method works through a sample exercise. It is important to do the exercise in a setting of complete silence, with pen and paper (not computer), when you can relax and take your mind off your daily life. Record what comes to you; do not edit or censor. Write the date at the top of the page and the name of the exercise, “Period Log.” You should allow about 45 minutes to complete the exercise.
How can the Intensive Journal® method help deal with a specific issue?
Some people attend our program because they are facing important issues in a particular area of their lives. They hope to deal with or solve these issues during the workshop.
The role of the workshop is much broader – to help you connect with the multitude of experiences and emotions that comprise your unique life. Through this process, you can gain awareness and perspectives about the direction and continuity of your life, as well as realize strengths, interests and capacities. Then, after developing a foundation on your life, you may work through specific issues over time within the context of your entire life. We urge you not to place forced deadlines or pressures upon yourself. Sometimes, awareness occurs indirectly and at unpredictable times. We do not want to establish artificial expectations that would hinder the natural unfolding of awareness.
How do you proceed in the Intensive Journal® method after a workshop?
After you attend a workshop, it is recommended that you periodically work in your Intensive Journal® workbook. This use will help you become skilled in using the method as well as develop the material that you have begun in the workshop.
There are no set rules with regard to how often the method should be used. Some people find that it is helpful to set up a regular time to use the method. There may be times when you use the method frequently, and other times when you use it less. Your life will tell you how best to proceed.
You may also choose to attend another workshop of the same module or the next module in the series to further your knowledge of the Intensive Journal® method. The workshop provides the group atmosphere and discipline for using the method.
Using the method is a cumulative process with the benefits coming over time. Dr. Progoff states:
Since the principle underlying Journal Feedback™ is that of cumulative movement, maintaining the Journal work has a multiplying effect if it is allowed to continue over significant units of time.. The key to working with the Intensive Journal process productively lies in the quality and quantity of the method that we feed into it….the Journal can feed back to us in self-transforming ways the material that we have recorded in it.
At a Journal Workshop (rev. ed), p. 368
Shared from the Dialogue House Intensive Journal® website.
