HOW TO HOST A MARGINS JOURNAL CIRCLE

Journaling is an essential part of the Margins self-awareness process. Margins has a free online journaling course to help you journal. You can do the program individually or you can start a journal circle and complete the online journaling program with a group of people. The benefits of doing the course as a collective is; you can discuss and improvise the journaling steps to suit your unique context, you can motivate each other to journal, you can share your journal posts and get the support we all so desperately need, you can monitor your own progress through your circle members and help each other grow as you learn from the past and collectively create a beautiful and bright future.

Here are some guidelines for hosting a journal circle. You can host a circle with people you know such as friends, family, work colleagues, or members of a shared social group. You can also place an ad on any of the Margin’s social media platforms or use our online forum. Journal circles can be hosted in the comfort of your home, a public place, or online. If you are hosting a circle with strangers, please make sure you exercise safety. Here are some steps to guide you through the process:

The first meeting will set the tone for the rest of the journaling process. The aim is to get all the people to feel safe enough to come back. Get people to introduce themselves and break the ice. Make your circle feel comfortable. A little bit of small talk can go a long way.
Explain the Margins journaling process. The host should have already done the online program.
Circle meetings should be held weekly, bi-weekly, or monthly. You want to give circle members time to work through one step at a time and get properly acquainted with the journaling process.
At the start of each meeting touch base. Find out how people are. Find out how they felt about the last step that was covered. Get them to read their journal entries- if they want. The key is to share, share, share.
Introduce the next step and discuss what the step means to each of you and how you plan to approach it.
Improvise! The journal circle process is a guideline. It is not set in stone. Please add or take away as you see relevant and share your experiences with our online community on all of our social media platforms. We will use your feedback to improve our programs and build future ones.
Build. See the circle as the beginning of building a community that will support one another as we all go through the ups and downs of daily life.