Felt Sense Collective Focusing Principals
Welcome to the Felt Sense Collectiveas a companion listen carefully to the focusers requests.
as a focuser, take time to listen in to what would support your practice and feel free to ask for it.
if the focuser wants reflections, start with reflecting back the last thing the focuser said and any body sensation or emotion
reflect back if the focuser says something twice
match the focusers tone if you can
start your reflections with presence language (you’r sensing, noticing, remembering etc)
relax as much as possible, remember we want a relaxed companion and empowered focuser
To help us create a space that welcomes and respects the diversity of Focusing experiences, please familiarise yourself with the following guiding principles and keep them in mind as you engage in partnered practice.
❋ Dodon’t say the Focuser name when Focusing
don’t help the Focuser. Remember as a companion you don’t need to be wise or clever or have all the answers, you just need to be a human being, witnessing another human being, your presence is enough.
under no circumstance, talk about the content of what the focuser has shared. Even though you might have been moved, or you want to help. Focusing only works if anything and everything can feel seen, heard, accepted and witnessed, with no agenda to help or fix.
❋ Don't❋ Agreement for SafetyYou might also want to read the Agreements for Safety that are assumed in the Felt Sense Gathering
And remember the diversity and inclusion statement from The International Focusing InstituteAn important aspect of the ethos of Focusing is to respect all persons as individual human beings. The heart of experiential listening is to put aside assumptions and pre-conceived ideas as much as possible, in order to respect a person for who they are. Each person is influenced by their various identities, situations and communities, but never defined by them. There are many groups that are discriminated against in many contexts. Historically, this has included discrimination based upon sex and gender, race and ethnicity, national origin, economic status or caste, religious affiliation, and physical ability or disability. We recognize that none of us is immune to biases which make us elevate one group above another. Therefore, we strive to be ever more conscious of our individual and group prejudices.