Free live training with Brooke Elliston
Reading the Room vs Holding Space
Holding space is the presence that allows people to have their experience. Reading the room is the skill of recognising what's happening beneath the surface as it unfolds, so you know how to respond.
Tuesday 24 November, 7pm AEDT (8am UK)
Holding space is where most trainings stop
Most of us were taught to hold space by staying present and allowing people to have whatever experience arises. That quality of attentiveness is essential, but on its own it doesn't show you how to recognise what's happening for the person in front of you, or whether the practice you've chosen is appropriate for their baseline breathing patterns or the state they're in.
It's why a session can feel strange even when you did everything you were 'supposed' to do. You can find yourself driving home wondering what actually happened in the room, and whether you could have responded differently.
I hear this so often from facilitators. "The practices were gentle, even subtle, but something felt off in the room and I didn't know what to do."
Reading the room is a skill you can learn. With a clear framework for interpreting what you're observing, you can make more informed decisions while a session is unfolding, rather than trying to make sense of it afterwards.
In this session
- The difference between holding space and reading the room, and why facilitating breath safely and confidently requires both
- The Four Questions I teach inside the Advanced Breath Instructor Training to help you read the room before, during and after a session, whether you're offering classes, workshops or retreats, or working one-to-one with clients
- How to recognise the state someone arrives in and understand what you're trying to shift, so you can choose practices that suit the people actually in front of you
- Why even gentle practices can be dysregulating or mismatched to the individual, and how to make sense of those moments when something feels off in a session
- A short guided practice so you can experience the framework in your own body
Everyone who registers receives the Four Questions worksheet. Can't make it live? Register anyway and the replay will be sent straight to you.
You'll receive the Zoom link, the worksheet and a few emails about the training. Unsubscribe any time.
About Brooke
I'm a breath educator and the founder of the Advanced Breath Instructor Training, where I train facilitators and therapists from around the world to read the person in front of them and personalise what they offer.
My own way into this work began as a lawyer, in a hospital emergency department, when years of chronic hyperventilation I didn't know I had finally caught up with me. I'm the author of The Breath Reset Plan and host of the television series The Breath Reset.