Description:

This is the first of three modules that explore the process of change. Each module blends together essential tools and information about Interpersonal Neuroscience, change theory, and ecopsychological practices that support the intentions and motivations of the nature-connected coach. The information provided will greatly enhance your ability to listen, establish trust, create awareness, and guide learning. It will also deepen your understanding of what change is and what it means. This will help you avoid getting stuck in the “fix it” trap by meeting your client right where he or she is in self awareness and formulating questions that encourage appropriate and effective steps towards growth. When we as coaches can grasp how change occurs in the brain and how Nature supports that change for the greater good of the individual, the depth behind our questions and the choices we make in sessions are on a deeper level. These modules will develop your “x – ray” vision as a coach, providing you with the ability to better understand what is happening in the brain as your client engages with the coaching process and with Nature. This first module is focused on setting the foundation for a much greater discussion about nature’s effect on our nervous system and how to collaborate with nature to support transformation. Here we will focus on the definition of the mind, understanding basic brain anatomy and processes that are useful for our work, how mind and brain come together, Prochaska Stages of Change, and how the mind directs transformation through story, myth and ritual.

REQUIRED READINGS for all three Brain Modules

• Pages 138-184- Review, My Stroke of Insight, Taylor, J.B. (2009). Plume, NY. *Check program resources to download a PDF of this reading if you do not have the book
• Chapters: 1 – 4, 8 – 9, and 16 – 17, Pocket Guide to Interpersonal Neurobiology: An Integrative Handbook of the Mind, Siegel, D. J. (2012). W. W. Norton & Company.
• Chapters: 1, 3, 7, and 9, Your Brain on Nature: The Science of Nature’s Influence on Your Health, Happiness, and Vitality, Selhub, E. M. (2012) Wiley Publishers.
• Chapters: 1, 4, and 5, Why God Won’t Go Away: Brain Science and the Biology of Belief, Newberg, A., d’Aquili, E., Rause, V. (2001). New York, NY: Ballantine.
• Chapters 1 – 2 – Encouraged: Part 2, Changing for Good: A Revolutionary Six-Stage Program for Overcoming Bad Habits and Moving Your Life Positively Forward, Prochaska, J., Norcross, J., Diclemente, C. (2007) William Morrow Paperbacks., *Check program resources to download a PDF of this reading if you do not have the book
• “Self, Soul, Spirit: A Current Working Model for Understanding Human Development”, Strachan, R. T.,  Reid, M. (2011). Center for Creative Choice. http://www.centerforcreativechoice.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/05/Self-Soul-Spirit.pdf, *Check program resources to download a PDF of this reading

SUPPLEMENTAL READINGS:

Start reading these books and incorporating them into your posts and process.  There will be no assigned readings for them, but it is essential that you read them.  They are directly applicable to every Toolbox module

• Mindsight: The New Science of Personal Transformation, Siegel, D.J. (2010). Bantam Books.
• Untethered Soul: The Journey Beyond Yourself, Singer, M. (2007). New Harbinger Publications