Renée’s Revelations and Why She Developed the RTA-Certified Training Program

Originally I had envisioned women around the U.S. picking up The Mother’s Guide and very naturally and effortlessly starting Personal Renewal Groups without any training, much like the way women now use and lead groups around author Julia Cameron’s The Artist’s Way.

Four insights surfaced for me after the book’s release that changed my perspective.

First, I witnessed some of my former PRG members start Personal Renewal Groups on their own, without the support, guidance, tools, and resources we now offer. Often, the groups would fizzle out, become purely social or would fall apart due to lack of leadership or structure. I realized there is truly an art and science to facilitating sacred women’s groups and when the key elements are in place, magic happens!

Second, I remember how strongly some of the women reacted to an exercise I introduced during a PRG meeting several years ago. I asked each woman to write a letter to her thirteen-year old self, reflecting on a photo she had brought to the meeting. This brought up a wide range of unexpected feelings and emotions for many. It was clear to me that each woman is showing up at her PRG with her own unique and fragile “Pandora’s Box” (her life stories and childhood experiences, her own insecurities and fears, and her personal feelings/emotions around motherhood and parenting, etc.). Because of this, it is the responsibility of the Facilitator to create a safe and supportive environment for the members, be available to offer them support resources AND be cognizant and sensitive to how powerful this material can truly be–particularly if PRG members are new to personal growth work. This is why we place a heavy emphasis in RTA-Ceritified Facilitator Training on what I call “The Inner Work.”  It all starts with you.

Third, in working with coaches and other small business owners, I learned how passionate many women are about leading groups/retreats and how beautifully this can support the growth of their small businesses and client base. Yet many of our clients were unsure about how they should structure or market groups and how they go about making them profitable. We already had all of this in place, so this was a wonderful opportunity for me to share all the business knowledge, marketing savvy and wisdom I had amassed over the last 20 years around facilitating successful women’s groups and retreats at centers like Kripalu and Omega Institute.

Fourth, while many women email us about how deeply The Mother’s Guide has touched their lives on a personal level, I really believe this work is most powerful when explored in a structured group coaching program. Jean Shinoda Bolen, MD, author of The Millionth Circle says that groups are powerful vessels for healing and transformation; that they have the potential to shift culture and bring about world peace. I agree. So, we have created a beautiful structure/flow for the PRG meetings, which really supports women in getting the most from a group setting.  You can read below for more information on the Power of Groups, as well as checking out the links in the left sidebar.

Are you feeling called to facilitate renewal groups/retreats in your community?  We would love to have you join our RTA-Certified Facilitator Training Program.

The Amazing Power of Groups

Why join or start a group? Why not just read The Mother’s Guide to Self-Renewal on my own?

You certainly can work on the exercises in the Guide on your own and benefit greatly from them, however, RTA-Certified Facilitators* share that group work is particularly powerful because it:

• Provides the opportunity for members to receive validation.
• Decreases feelings of isolation.
• Provides the opportunity for connection around shared experiences.
• Provides members with regular, ongoing emotional support.
• Provides a safe venue and an opportunity to take your own “work” deeper.
• Gives members the experience of being part of an intentional circle.
• Challenges you to open your heart.
• Makes things more “real”: group members often serve as one another’s mirrors.
• Accelerates personal and spiritual learning/growth.
• Provides a place of unconditional acceptance.
• Holds the “space” for possibility for its members.
• Provides the opportunity for us to connect with our “oneness.”
• Provides an intentional setting for reflection and meaningful dialogue.
• Allows each group to experience and create a unique dynamic/energy all to itself.

To read testimonials from Personal Renewal Group participants, click here.

* Please note that under United States and international copyright laws if you charge members to join a Personal Renewal Group but are not officially trained through Renee Trudeau & Associates, this usage of the book constitutes infringement upon the intellectual property rights of the author.  To clarify, you are welcome to lead free/no charge groups around the book, however, if you desire to charge group members for their participation, you must be officially trained through Renee Trudeau & Associates.