Jun 2-4, 2006
Have you ever felt a pang of envy hearing someone say, “Ever since she was a kid she knew just what she wanted to be.” Do you feel like a dilettante, a jack of all trades and master of none? Does that one job, that one position that will define you, keep eluding you? If your answer to any of these questions is Yes, you know the frustrations and self-doubt from constantly being asked to narrow your choices, but narrowing choices does not have to be your fate. As a Renaissance Soul, you don’t have to choose one part of yourself, one interest, one passion. In fact, this workshop will help you design a life that goes with, not against, your Renaissance nature.
Who are Renaissance Souls? We have several key characteristics: we’re interested in so many things that we refuse to be pinned down; we proceed by widening options rather than narrowing goals; we prefer variety over concentration; when we achieve mastery and success, we want to begin something new. Mozart wrote great music when he was a wee child, but for our role model, we love the multifaceted Benjamin Franklin.
This workshop provides eye-opening metaphors and new paradigms to free our Renaissance Soul energy. Using a process that’s gentle and supportive, as well as effective, practical, and energizing, Margaret shares solid, down-to-earth wisdom. When Renaissance souls get together, it’s transformational. Instead of feeling like the one-of-a-kind ugly duckling, we’re in a room full of fellow swans! “You do that too? I thought I was the only one!” In this highly experiential workshop, we’ll learn from others, though no one will be put on the spot. Laughter is central, the ahas! will keep happening, and the energy will be magical!
We’ve known Margaret Lobenstine for over 25 years and know she walks her Renaissance Soul talk. We stayed at her lovely bed and breakfast when she pioneered in that field. Then she went on to become the Regional Master Trainer for the Commonwealth Literacy Corps, after which she started her own life design and problem-solving business, Alternative Approaches. All the while she was a political activist, working to make the world more just and peaceful. Her groundbreaking book The Renaissance Soul: Life Design for People With Too Many Passions to Pick Just One has just been published. Having helped hundreds of Renaissance Souls like herself, Margaret is a dynamic workshop leader known for her warmth and contagious sense of humor. By the end of the workshop, you’ll be ready to use her handouts to continue this growth on your own.
“My work with Margaret showed me I’m a Renaissance Soul. What an energizing paradigm shift away from my old unwanted identity of being `scattered!’ It is an expansive concept that leaves room for lots of divergent interests and talents, yet provides me with a framework for staying focused. For the first time I feel the whole of my experience in all of the parts.”
— Leslie Scott, Amherst, MA
“The Renaissance Soul is the consummate Social Artist, embodying the complex interests and open hearts that are needed now in the global world. Today, when the world mind is taking a walk with itself, we require a consciousness that can encompass the many realities we face. This work gives us the tools that enable that needed growth in consciousness.”
— Jean Houston, senior consultant to the UN Development Program
“Wow! Where was The Renaissance Soul when I needed it during my five career changes? Benjamin Franklin would be proud!”
— Julie Jansen, author of I Don’t Know
What I Want, But I Know It’s Not This