Our committee is looking at how we can use the new Leadership Training Course and hope that we can facilitate the course for interested members. We are also considering the need for mentors for new leaders. If you have any questions or comments, contact Pam (see Leaders List).
Here is an outline of what is being offered:
In 2022, Bushwalking NSW did a social and market research project with clubs to determine the reasons for widespread difficulties in recruiting and retaining activity leaders. That research led to:
- The creation of videos featuring Caro Ryan:
- Team Spirit: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qZdAPeKo2_U&t=41s
- Volunteering is Rewarding: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ys-sT6S7HO4&t=4s
- AND an online Leadership Training Course that has just been developed. It’s hot off the press – also ‘hosted’ by Caro Ryan!
- The 2022 research fed back that while gaps in technical knowledge, such as navigation, are some of the reasons for difficulties in recruiting and retaining activity leaders, actually the real issues lie in the psychological stuff – managing difficult situations and people.
Therefore, the recently developed course focuses on that psychological material:
- Knowing what kind of behaviour is aligned with team spirit and what is not; what’s reasonable and what’s not
- Managing difficult situations
- Managing difficult people
- Building inner strength
- Developing resilience
- Building strong club culture
- Breathing exercises / managing emotions
- Nature Connectedness: which is about deepening people’s connection with nature to:
- build team spirit even more,
- encourage pro-environmental behaviour &
- enable mental health and well-being.
Bushwalking NSW could not fit everything into this course, so focused on the material that clubs teach less – the psychological material – and less on what clubs teach more – like navigation, safety etc. Rest assured however, that this course is deeply grounded in science and psychology. One of its main writers is Dr Les Higgins, former associate professor at the University of Sydney, with expertise in education, psychology & health promotion:
Bushwalking NSW believes that this course is relevant to all club members – both experienced and less experienced members. We hope it inspires all who do it to lead activities, create thriving club culture and foster health and well-being.
We also encourage doing the course slowly… like a 15-minute ‘me time’ treat each day. So much more will be gleaned from the course by savouring it.
We welcome any paid/financial member of affiliated clubs to do the course for free. Each club will receive a ‘token’ to pass onto their members who do the course, to ‘identify’ that person as an affiliated club member.
Non-members of clubs can do the course but for a fee of $1000.
We hope you enjoy it…
Bushwalking NSW Inc.