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We don’t rise to the level of our expectations, we fall to the level of our training

CAREERS

‘So what are you doing after the HSC?’

It's a question your students are no doubt sick of hearing. Pressure from parents, their peers and school is unrelenting, but what would really help students is some practical advice from someone who’s been through it recently.

Our ‘Careers’ course is designed to achieve a few things. Firstly to give students a practical framework for helping them make decisions. Secondly, to relieve some of the pressure they feel by sharing the often meandering paths others have taken that have nevertheless lead to success. And thirdly, to start a conversation about some of the bigger questions we need to discuss about the world of work, including;

What makes a good job?
What's the relationship between money and happiness?
What do I do if I don’t know what to do?
How do I manage a career?
How do you be good at a job?
What qualities are employers looking for?
How do I nail a job interview?

This email from a prospective applicant went viral because of its authenticity. The attitudes this persona demonstrates are exactly what students need to show in their careers

We give students a practical framework designed to help them think about their choices after Year 12 in a more structured, methodological way

The ‘jobs for life’ of 30 years ago don’t exist anymore. Students’ careers will be characterised by disruption and change like never before. We emphasise the importance of building skills, connections and credentials that are flexible if and when students change their minds about what they want to do in the future, and show them how.

We are stronger when we listen, and smarter when we share

HEALTHY RELATIONSHIPS

Consent is not about seeing what you can get away with until the other person says “no”. It is not about knowing what you can and can’t do before you get in to trouble. It is about seeing each other as human beings, first and foremost.

Whilst most contemporary men and teenage boys are compassionate, empathetic and ethical, recent examples show toxic masculinity remains an urgent problem.

But how often do we get to have a conversation about gender and sex without fear of blaming or being blamed, or without discounting or invalidating the experiences and feelings of others? How do we move past a “politically correct” understanding of gender and inequality to develop a transformative, empathetic and practical appreciation of human difference and diversity?

Gilette’s ad proved controversial when it was launched. But why? We explore how media and popular culture reflects and shapes our attitudes towards masculinity.

Students will have more insight into their own feelings, needs, boundaries and options. They will connect sex education to personal experiences, personal pleasure, and emotional validation, rather than a purely biological approach that focuses on reproduction and sexually transmutable diseases. By re-humanising this process, young people will be better able to identify when they are coerced or forced to do something that does not feel pleasurable or right, and therefore speak out about it.

This course is designed for both all-boys and mixed gender schools. We’ve found including girls in such an important discussion creates an open dialogue and a greater understanding and appreciation of each other’s perspectives that yields benefits far beyond the classroom.

In this course, students will:

Examine beliefs about gender, privilege, justice, and free-speech and how these beliefs shape behaviour and perception.
Begin recognising and identifying micro-aggressions that may be benign in their intention but ultimately perpetuate systemic inequality and implicit bias.
Develop a method of engaging in challenging conversations on gender and sex and learn how to draw in different perspectives to explore solutions together.

The Man/Woman Box

Students will explore and critically analyse the traits and behaviours we traditionally put in the ‘man box’ or ‘woman box’. Does being a man mean;

Self sufficiency?
Acting tough?
Heterosexuality and homophobia?
Hypersexuality?
Aggression and control?

What are the limiting beliefs we hold about women?

When awareness is brought to our emotions, power is brought to our life

EMOTIONAL INTELLIGENCE

Developing greater emotional maturity is a challenge many adults struggle with, yet something we implicitly assume students will manage on their own.

But talking about our feelings is complex and messy and hard. It requires authenticity and vulnerability from young people in the midst of defining their sense of self and trying to fit in.

We create an environment of psychological and emotional safety by normalising dissenting opinions, and giving permission for students to open up by sharing our own heartfelt stories. By peeling away their masks and connecting with their authentic selves, students can connect with each other through empathy, understanding and an appreciation of similarities each other’s inner world.

Emotional intelligence isn’t ingrained, we can become smarter with feelings through conscious understanding and deliberate practice. The benefits of doing so are wide reaching.

Not only are emotionally intelligent students happier and more resilient, they share stronger relationships with their friends, family and teachers, make better decisions, communicate more effectively and perform better at school.

Value for Participants

Activity Showcase 1.

No matter how painful your weekend marking or what’s happening in your personal life, you’re still going to come to school on Monday and be professional in front of your students and colleagues.

We all put on these masks to veil how we’re really feeling, and shape them to fit the environment we’re in.

These masks are important. They protect us when we’re feeling vulnerable, help us be who we need to be, and keep us emotionally safe.

But we must also recognise they’re just masks. They don’t help us process the emotions we’re really feeling on the inside, and can prevent us from connecting authentically with others.

In our ‘Masks’ activity, students identify the masks they wear on the outside, and how they differ to their real feelings on the inside. We architect the opportunity for them to anonymously share and connected with each other’s authentic selves, where they recognise their deepest, toughest feelings are unknowingly shared by their friends too.

By modelling emotional authenticity and the strength of vulnerability through sharing their own stories, our facilitators safely take students to the depths necessary to affectively engage and meaningfully connect with this activity, and each other.

Below are some examples of the worksheets students have created:

Why Emotional Intelligence?

It was Albert Einstein that said “if you judge a fish by its ability to climb a tree, it will live its life believing it is an idiot.”
Emotional Intelligence is one of the best predictors we have for long term success; not just financial or career success, but subjective satisfaction with the quality of our friendships, our family life and general wellbeing.
In fact, it is a far stronger predictor than our IQ.
The good news is unlike IQ, EQ is a skill we can improve, with understanding and practice.

We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence is not an act, but a habit.

ROUTINES & HABITS

From a regular day at the office to the launch of a new product in front of millions, Steve Jobs would wear the same black skivvy and blue jeans to the office. Every. Single. Day. His reasons teach us something we can all use in our own lives too.

Students have a lot going on. Between assessments for all their different subjects, sports, hobbies and making time for family, friends and themselves, keeping on top of everything without getting stressed out is a huge challenge.

Having a strong routine is often the difference between students who can handle it all and those that can’t. Our routines and habits keep us grounded, help us manage adversity and are the foundation from which we build both personal and academic success.

This class introduces students to the routines and habits of successful people, and why they work. We discuss the importance of sleep and finding a healthy balance between work and play, as well as how we can defeat procrastination. We examine what habits can help us be happier, which ones are better for academic success, and those that can help with anxiety.

By examining the dopamine reward system in our brains, we can gain a better understanding of how habits are formed and normed, and how we can use simple methods to give us the best chance of maintaining new habits.

““You’ll never change your life until you change something you do daily. The secret of your success is found in your daily routine””

— John C. Maxwell

Rather than taking a ‘one size fits all’ approach, we use tools and activities to help students understand what habits are holding them back, and which ones will serve them best. They will leave with a practical framework for implementing healthy new habits into their own lives and the motivation to do so.

never ruin an apology with an excuse

PEOPLE SKILLS

65% of teenagers don’t feel comfortable engaging with someone face to face. As more of our world moves online, students are no longer developing the critical ‘people skills’ they’ll need in life. Our ability to influence others, be charismatic, make new friends and speak with confidence in public has been shown to have a stronger correlation to our long-term success than our IQ.

Number of hours per week spent online by the average teenager — Number of **hours per week** spent online by the average teenager

80% of all communication comes from non verbal signs — **80%** of all communication comes from **non verbal signs**

Being a good listener is a crucial part of good people skills, but not one of Dwight’s strenghts

Being a ‘people person’ is a skill we can learn like any other. Books like ‘How to Win Friends and Influence People’ and ‘The Charisma Myth’ have brought simple, easy to adopt strategies to the lives of millions for years, and this class does the same, in a format that’s easy for students to understand.

Students will learn;

Interpreting and using body language
The importance of eye contact while talking
Listening, versus just waiting to talk
Being persuasive without arguing
Using their personal strengths to develop a charisma style of their own