Laird Schaub
Laird has lived 38 years at Sandhill Farm, an income-sharing rural community in Missouri that he helped found. He is the main administrator and one of the creators of the FIC, the host organization for this Art of Community event.
In addition to being an author and public speaker about various aspects of community, he’s also a meeting junkie and has parlayed his passion for good process into a consulting business on group dynamics. He’s worked with over 60 different groups, many of them multiple times. His specialty is up-tempo meetings that engage the full range of human input, teaching groups to work creatively with conflict, and at the same time being ruthless about capturing as much product as possible. In 2003, he pioneered a two-year training in Integrative Facilitation that he’s delivered five times and is now offering across the continent.
Laird has been authoring a blog since 2007: http://communityandconsensus@blogspot.com
To contact Laird: Laird(at)ic(dot)org
During Art of Community Laird will be facilitating the following workshops:
The Essentials of Dynamic Facilitation; How to Get Through the Agenda and Build Energy at the Same Time
Good meeting facilitation can make the difference between pain and gain. We’ll look at the basic qualities needed to become a full-service facilitator, the process agreements needed to spread your wings, and how to recognize those magic moments when passion can be harnessed to transform binding into bonding.
Conflict: Fight, Flight, or Opportunity?
Does conflict mean your group is sick, or just paying attention? Starting with the premise that conflict is healthy and normal, we’ll explore options for unlocking its potential using the whole person–rational, emotional, and intuitive. Rather than talking about “I” statements or being nice, we’ll focus on what happens and what can be done when things get hot, concluding with a four-step plan for constructive engagement. Special attention will be given to the advantages of working in a group and in the dynamic moment, facilitated by those not in the stew.
Should You Start a Community or Join One?
For some people hungry for community life, this can be a fundamental fork in the road. While starting your own group may look like the clearest pathway to getting what you want, we’ll explore the brambles you’ll find along the way, and lay out the pros and cons of joining versus starting. There’s more here than you might think!
Economic Leveraging Through Income Sharing: Living the Life You Want Without Chasing So Many Dollars
Very few people choose to live in income-sharing communities. Yet many wish their lives were more economically sustainable. This workshop will explore the incredible economic leveraging available through sharing income. It’s not just for families any more! Not only do you have more control over how you spent your time, you can more easily select work in line with your values and–through the miracle of sharing–you won’t need nearly as many dollars to achieve a satisfying quality of life.
Getting Up and Moving Around: It’s Not Just for Breaks Anymore
There are three primary modes for information intake: aural, visual, and kinesthetic. While most meetings do a fair job of offering a full course meal for the first two, those hungry for physical movement to get traction on the issues are typically on a starvation diet. In this session we’ll offer a tasty smorgasbord of techniques you can use to get participants out of their seats and working on issues using something more than just their eyes and ears. Action on the issues no longer has to be confined to what happens after the meeting.
