AURORA Workshops
128A Copper Road Y1A 2Z6 Whitehorse, YT, Canada

We have a public workshop coming up next week!

Knowing what is happening in your brain when you practice something can help you overcome resistance and frustration. Read (or listen!) all about it here. https://www.auroraworkshops.com/blog/what-is-practice

Your brain burns energy. Check out how these mental athletes (grandmaster chess players) train for the gruelling physicality of working their brains.

Great points here! We may not have just lived through an attempted coup here in Canada, but we are after all still in a pandemic. "But that imagined, perfectly optimized worker is . . . never too sick to work, never too sad, never too besieged by familial obligations, never heartsick, never traumatized by the images that surround them, never existentially fearful for the future of the planet, but endlessly resilient, endlessly striving . . . " https://annehelen.substack.com/p/how-to-work-through-a-coup

December can be a tough time even in a normal year. That makes it all the more important to take care of ourselves. This blissful moment in the sun happened last week during a walking meeting with Stephanie, Leigh, and me (Fawn). It was so helpful to connect face-to-face (at a distance) and take in some light while discussing some of the challenges that have come up at this darkest time of year. This year, we had to rethink our approach to delivering workshops. We learned a ...lot of new skills in the process, and we even launched a new workshop to help people develop their own workshops and training. That has been satisfying and meaningful, though it has also been a whirlwind. I realized that some re-balancing was necessary to make work feel manageable. I'm grateful to the team for helping me do this. How are you taking care of yourself in December? Photo by Stephanie Hammond.

LAST FREE WORKSHOP OFFERING OF THE SUMMER! Wednesday, July 8 from 10 to noon We have some spots open for our popular COMMUNICATION STYLES FOR COLLABORATION workshop next week.... In this workshop: Identify different ways that people communicate information. Develop awareness of communication preferences and challenges. Tips and strategies to get your message across -- even on Zoom! (Try out some fun and effective Zoom tools that will change your online meetings for the better.) To register, email Leigh at [email protected].

AURORA Workshops held its very first virtual workshop today! We did Communication Styles for Collaboration, which is our oldest and most familiar workshop -- a great one for us to start with. We learned some things doing it. (And we hope our participants did, too!) I happened upon this video this afternoon, and besides giving me some much-needed laughter, it wonderfully illustrates some of the perils of written information. (How could the written information be made clearer?) Enjoy!

Here's a glimpse of another remote work reality! AURORA marketing gal Fawn's transition to work-from-home provided the motivation to finally clean the filing off her desk. Here's a view of the "office" section of her open-concept kitchen-dining-living-room space. With two kids (and a cat!) at home, plus two other adults working from home in the apartment downstairs, it's a full house. Everyone is learning how to respect each other's needs for quiet time while still fitting in exercise, music practice, and homework questions. We'd love to hear about your remote work situation. What's working well and what are you finding challenging?

We liked this article about how teams are maintaining important connections while working remotely. At LDAY Centre for Learning, we've been using Slack for easy back-and-forth chatting, including a channel called "LDAYpets" for sharing the antics of our furry co-workers. We've long been known for having office dogs, of course, but now there are office cats, as well. What are some strategies your team has used to collaborate while working remotely?

LDAY Centre for Learning team members are working from home! It has been an adjustment for everyone. AURORA Workshops Coordinator Leigh is learning to work from home in what used to be her sewing and art space. She's at home with two roommates and two cats. They seem both thrilled by the increased attention and upset that they can no longer get away with lounging on the dining room table in the sun during the day (the cats, at least). (Just out of frame: carpet cleaner from d...ealing with frequent cat vomit, piles of tax documents, and a large bag of seed potatoes.) Are you working from home? Share in the comments!

Today is LDAY’s Open House! We’ll see you at 128 Industrial Rd, 11:30 - 2:00

LDAY's Jamie-Lee put together this fantastic raffle basket. It includes a gorgeous cutting board from Discovery Woodworks, bright placemats from Guatemala, sweet treats for both humans and dogs, music, and a cozy reindeer blanket. Tickets are on sale at the LDAY office from Tuesday, December 10 to our Open House on Thursday, December 12, $2 per ticket or 3 for $5. All funds raised go towards our camp programs!

We're having an open house! Pop by to meet the team, check out our resource library, and join in some merriment, a festive basket raffle, plus our annual pulled pork bunwiches! https://www.facebook.com/events/575067546574081/

Why Curiosity Matters https://hbr.org/2018/09/curiosity

If you think you're "not creative", try the word "curious".

LDAY Centre for Learning is hiring in Dawson City https://www.yuwin.ca//24985993-adult-learner-facilitator-a

Executive function skills are our highest cognitive functions, the skills for which humans are most uniquely evolved. The part of the brain responsible for these skills doesn't mature until around age 26. Read on to find out what those skills are, and how to support them in children. (But really, many of these are applicable to adults, too!)

Clever visuals alert! Recently, Air North, Yukon's Airline announced some great news for Yukoners. But what we especially love was how they depicted the new route with this visual representation of the communities they'll be flying to. Imagine every city with an airport had a distinctive icon. What would you draw to represent Whitehorse? What about Dawson City?