The Importance of Verbal and Nonverbal Communication in Women’s Groups

Most women’s groups involve the members getting together and meeting somewhere on a regular basis. It could be once a week or once a month. Regardless of the regularity and frequency of the meetings, when the group gets together there is a great deal of interaction. During these meetings, most if not all of the members likely spend a great deal of time chatting with each other. 

It is important to be aware of the non-verbal communication that may often come out during these meetings as well.

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How to Love Your Changing Body

Throughout history women have mainly focused on their bodies and how they look to the outside world.  With so much attention to the body, how do we meet the challenge of the constant body changes? 

When you look at your body, what do you think?

Intellectually, we all know we get older and we all know we are getting older, yet our emotional life is in an uproar when our bodies don’t look the same.  Have you ever looked into the mirror and thought “who is that person?”  In your head you are still quite young, yet the body that reflects back from the mirror is an older, less familiar version.  Do you scrutinize every grey hair or potential wrinkle on the horizon, or have you simply stopped looking?

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Your Purpose – Why Do You Want To Start a Women’s Group?

An excerpt from our book “Essentials for Starting a Women’s Group“…(see sidebar for all of the details)

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Step back and think about why you want to start a women’s group. There are many approaches to this question. 

Start by thinking about the problems you face in your daily life. Perhaps you are a mother who faces issues raising your children. Maybe you want to have greater control over your finances; or possibly you want to lose some weight, start exercising and lead a healthier lifestyle. Maybe you work from home and want to connect with other work-at-home moms.

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What’s Your Meaning of Wellness?

Are you burdened with so many roles in your life that you don’t have time to think about your personal wellness? Yet you have a nagging feeling that you are not happy, physically well or emotionally satisfied. Is it possible that wellness could be a priority for you? Let’s look at what wellness is all about.

What does your personal wellness include?

Wellness is holistic in nature as it includes physical, spiritual, emotional and financial aspects, as well as surrounds the relationships we have in our lives.

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Do You Prefer Giving Advice or Getting Advice? Why?

Do you give or get?  Or do you do both?

Is there a divided line between the givers and the takers of advice giving? On what side of the line do you feel more comfortable?  We all have our comfort zones and for a lot of people, giving advice is safer.

Advice giving is a daily activity and a significant way we communicate with others.  We have many forms, such as the phone, email or texting to transmit our pearls of wisdom.  So, what service does advice provide in our world?   How much of the advice we give or receive is actually heard?

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Rituals Solidify a Group

A great way of forging bonds within a women’s group is to create group rituals. These rituals are reminiscent of the “secret society” rituals we all participated in as young girls, and they make group members feel like part of something special. When we all participate in a group ritual, we feel a greater connection with the other participants, especially if the ritual is something meaningful for us. And it’s something that is unique to our group and only we experience it together.

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Dispelling Those Time Management Myths

A year from now you will wish you had started today.  Karen Lamb

Interested in joining a women’s group, but don’t think you have the time to devote? Are there important things you want to do and projects you want to start, but can’t seem to get to them? To help you find the time to do the things you want to do, let’s take the time to dispel some commonly held beliefs about time management.

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Plant the Seed and Watch It Grow

Spring is a perfect time to plant seeds…

Whenever you gather women together, it’s a way to honor female relationships. The group’s energy is powerful and developing this energy with a solid vision can build stronger lives for everyone. A group can accomplish more together than individuals can do on their own. The world has more possibilities when we join together as a group to nurture ourselves and others.

In its early stages of a group, you may not be aware of all the tiny seeds of interaction that are being planted to help form the group. Over time, these seeds of connection, watered with commitment and respect, blossom into strong and nurturing relationships within the group.

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The Essence of a Women’s Group is Trust

Trust – Firm reliance on the integrity, strength, ability, or character of a person or thing.

In a successful women’s group, the members must all trust each other enough to be able to open up and share their experiences freely. As we know, without sharing there will not be growth. But how can women in a diverse group learn to trust each other? How long before they can open up honestly?

The secret to building a trusting relationship is to start small. Begin with small acts and gestures of trust and build it up from there. It will take awhile, but there will come a time when the members of your group will not hesitate to open up to one another.

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Listening Is An Essential Skill

Listening is an absolutely essential life skill. It’s even more important as a skill for someone who is part of a successful women’s group.

Listening is a way of building rapport. When you listen to someone, you learn more about them. You understand what’s going on in their life, how they think, where they’re coming from, what experiences they are drawing on and more. In turn, the person you are listening to feels that you understand them better; they are thankful for the support and the empathy you are providing them, just by being a good listener.

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