I bring to the conference my ability to listen, not just with my ears, but with other senses too.
I bring curiosity and interest in what other people do in their lives, an interesting practice and the ability to ask difficult questions.
Listening has been part of my life for as long as I can remember. From the ‘listen, do as you are told’ I have now arrived in a place where I am asked to speak, and I am listened to. I have also become much better at really listening to what others say, not just hear them.
In my professional life I listened to learn the techniques to diagnose and to treat (often control) the outcome. I knew what had to be done.
Slowly I started to listen to what the ‘patients’ told me and explored with them what they thought might help. I had to learn to observe, to try, to reflect and to find new ways of observing and reflecting.
I learned to trust my hands, to listen with them, rather than see, and reflect on what they did after the act and then connect it with what I knew.
In the conference I hope to share and extend my listening skills, listening to the experience of other people and adding new experiences and reflection to my way of working.
I very much enjoyed the form the conference took last year and I am looking forward to create a new form with other participants
