Summary: This week on the Strocel.com Podcast I’m speaking with Kate Sutherland. She’s a self-described change artist and the author of two books: Make Light Work, and the recently released Make Light Work in Groups. I was excited to chat with her about embracing change, and improving group (and family) dynamics. During the podcast Kate and I discussed change, including what makes it scary and how to accept and live through it. We talked about connection, with ourselves and others. And we talked about groups and how we can make those relationships flow more smoothly. What do you do when someone triggers you? Why do groups create scapegoats? These are some of the issues that Kate discusses during the podcast. We all interact with groups, whether we work in a traditional job or not. We live in families and have groups of friends. We may volunteer with our daughter’s Brownie group, sit on the PTA at school, belong to a book club, or attend church. Anytime that we interact with others, group dynamics are at play. This is one reason that I wanted to have Kate on the podcast, even though I no longer interact with groups in the same way that I did when I had a traditional job and held several volunteer gigs. One of the biggest questions that I had for Kate during our podcase was how we know when belonging to a specific group serves us, and when it doesn’t. She shares lots of tips for making group dynamics better, but one of the things I wrestle with often is whether I should invest the work in improving something, or recognize that it’s time for me to move on to something else. Knowing when to stay and when to go isn’t always easy. Kate talked about how she makes that decision for herself. She’s absolutely not advocating for staying in a toxic situation. She’s offering tips to make every group situation better, so that if it does serve your interests to be involved, you can accomplish as much as possible as you work together. Whether you could use some help handling change in your life, deciding where to invest your precious time and energy, or making your relationships better, you’ll want to take the time to listen to the podcast: I’m still working on my interview for next week, but I promise that whatever it is, it will be worth tuning in for. Subscribe to the Strocel.com Podast in iTunes and you won’t miss a minute!
