Episode 116 - Forest Educator Spotlight: Navigating the Inner Barriers of Visionary Work
Forest Educator with Ricardo Sierra | A Podcast for Revolutionary Conversations about Nature-Based EducationShow Notes
It's one thing to have a 'vision' or idea that is inspiring and exciting and full of hope and promise. It's also a WHOLE other thing to actually bring it into the real world, grounded and fully expressed and achieving outcomes.
When we take that leap into the unknown, it's scary, risky, stressful and even wonderful; a lot of intense emotions all rolled into a kaleidoscope blender that most of the time, we are not fully prepared to handle.
Sometimes, we even have unexpected 'inner barriers' that show up, with hesitation, procrastination, tangible fear in sharing something from the heart, rejection sensitivity and anxiety. These inner challenges are no joke, and they can stop our visionary work in its tracks if we don't figure out how to navigate and work around them.
In this episode, we explore these issues and more, with an emphasis on solutions and strategies that can help us keep going.
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More from Forest Educator with Ricardo Sierra | A Podcast for Revolutionary Conversations about Nature-Based Education
Today's Forest Educator Spotlight is all about the best-kept secret for Forest Educators: the Natural Advantage. When we implement this three-part framework in our programs, we can have the biggest impact.
Some of my favorite ages to work with are middle schoolers, anywhere from 10-14 years old. Some may say those ages are some of the most challenging, but I really like that age group for so many reasons. I love to help them find their passion and excitement, and to watch them build an inner foundation for themselves and a personal belief that they know who they are, and begin to believe that they can do hard things. In this episode, I'm exploring the different developmental ages and stages during this period of kids' lives and some of my best tips and strategies for working with them effectively. From emotional development, friendship, trust, and self-reflection to skill-building, I hope this episode will help you feel excited about working with this age group, too.
The first rule about 'bonding' is like Fight Club:
The paths we take in our journey as educators are incredibly diverse and unique to each of us. We all have different origins, with mentors, teachers, opportunities and our communities all influencing how we do what we do.
An aspect of nature education that I believe is greatly overlooked is the ability and benefit it gives young people to 'Do Hard Things'. This happens when we learn to climb a steep hill, climb a tree, master carving knife safety or learn to think of others in our groups! It happens when we learn to be safe and respectful about campfires. It happens when we begin our studies in wild foods, birds, animal tracks, trees or bushcraft skills. (This list could be very, very substantial!)