Online practice sessions will meet on specified Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday evenings (Central Standard Time or CST). All practice groups are meeting online until further notice, and are offered by your hosts in Madison, Wisconsin USA. Please join us from wherever you are!
Join Us for Practice
Our various practice groups are listed below. There are groups to support every level of practice, and you are welcome to join us for any and all practice groups that match your needs and experience level.
Join our Zoom meetings using this link. See additional details for instructions on how to join via the Zoom website or by phoning in.
Reminders are sent via email for each practice group meeting. If you would like to be added to our mailing list, or if you have any questions, please contact us. You can also find us on Facebook.
In addition, please check our Calendar page to confirm dates and check for exceptions to our regular schedule, such as holiday breaks.
We also invite you to review our Group Agreements.
Please visit this page often to find the latest details on practice group sessions, including dates and times, handouts, resources, and any advance preparation that may enable you to participate more fully.
About Our Practice Groups
Level 1: Experiencing the heart of NVC
Offered the second and fourth Tuesday and first and third Wednesday of the month, 7–8:30 pm Central Time (CT)
Level 1 practice group is intended for every Nonviolent Communication (NVC) practitioner, regardless of prior experience. These sessions will benefit practitioners at all levels, from beginner to advanced.
If you are new to NVC, you will learn and practice skills that will bring NVC to life. If you are an experienced practitioner, these sessions provide a wonderful opportunity to share your experience with others and deepen your own practice.
We use the book Nonviolent Communication by Marshall Rosenberg as our text for this study and practice group. We will go through this book chapter by chapter. Although there is much to be gained by studying each chapter in sequence, you are under no obligation to participate each time.
Please note that Level 1 is a pre-requisite to Level 2 for those who are new to our communities of practice. When Level 1 concludes, participants will receive an invitation to join us for Level 2.
Completed Level 1 sessions
Chapter 1 Part 1: Giving from the Heart
- Worksheet Chapter 1 Part 1: Giving from the Heart
- Video of the week, The Basics of Nonviolent Communication 1.2 with Marshall Rosenberg (9:10). Hear about the woman who hates to cook. (Trigger warning: Holocaust reference.)
- Group Agreements.
- Chapter 1,”Giving from the Heart,” in Marshall Rosenberg’s Nonviolent Communication
Chapter 1 Part 2: Giving from the Heart to Oneself
- Worksheet Chapter 1 Part 2: Giving from the Heart to Myself
- Chapter 1, “Giving from the Heart,” in Marshall Rosenberg’s Nonviolent Communication
Chapter 2: Communication that Blocks Compassion
- Worksheet Chapter 2: Barriers to Communication
- Chapter 2, “Communication that Blocks Compassion,” in Marshall Rosenberg’s Nonviolent Communication
Chapter 3: Observing without Evaluating
- Worksheet Chapter 3: Making Clear Observations
- Chapter 3, “Observing with Evaluating,” in Marshall Rosenberg’s Nonviolent Communication
Chapter 4: Identifying and Expressing Feelings
- Worksheet Chapter 4: Sorting Thoughts and Feelings
- Handout Chapter 4: Thoughts Disguised as Feelings
- Chapter 4,”Identifying and Expressing Feelings,” in Marshall Rosenberg’s Nonviolent Communication
Chapter 5: Taking Responsibility for Our Feelings
- Worksheet Chapter 5: What’s Needed Here?
- Chapter 5,”Taking Responsibility for Our Feelings,” in Marshall Rosenberg’s Nonviolent Communication
Chapter 6, Part 1: Requesting That Which Would Enrich Life
- Worksheet Chapter 6, Part 1: The Three-Step or Four-Step Request
- Chapter 6, “Requesting That Which Would Enrich Life,” in Marshall Rosenberg’s Nonviolent Communication
Chapter 6, Part 2: Request or Demand?
- Worksheet: Chapter 6, Part 2: Request or Demand?
- Chapter 6, “Requesting That Which Would Enrich Life,” in Marshall Rosenberg’s Nonviolent Communication
Chapter 6, Part 3: Mourning: When You Get a “No”
- Worksheet: Chapter 6, Part 3: Mourning: When You Get a “No”
- Video of the Week, The Toilet Seat Argument (10:53)
- Chapter 6, “Requesting That Which Would Enrich Life,” in Marshall Rosenberg’s Nonviolent Communication
Chapter 7: Receiving Empathically
- Worksheet: Chapter 7: Would You Listen
- Video of the Week (2:00): Why Empathy with Catherine Cadden
- Chapter 7, “Receiving Empathically,” in Marshall Rosenberg’s Nonviolent Communication
Chapter 8: The Power of Empathy
- Worksheet: Chapter 8: Witnessing with Presence
- Video of the Week (5:12): NVC in Action: The Mugger
- Chapter 8, “The Power of Empathy,” in Marshall Rosenberg’s Nonviolent Communication
Chapter 9, Part 1: Connecting Compassionately with Ourselves
- Worksheet: Chapter 9, Pt 1: Self-Forgiveness When I’m Not Perfect
- Chapter 9, “Connecting Compassionately with Ourselves,” in Marshall Rosenberg’s Nonviolent Communication
Chapter 9, Part 2: Connecting Compassionately with Ourselves
- Worksheet: Chapter 9, Pt 2: Have To vs. Choose To
- Chapter 9, “Connecting Compassionately with Ourselves,” in Marshall Rosenberg’s Nonviolent Communication
Chapter 10: Expressing Anger Fully
- Worksheet: Chapter 10: You made me angry! Welcoming the Jackals
- Video of the week (2:14): Roy Kent speaks at a press conference (Ted Lasso)
- Chapter 10, “Expressing Anger Fully,” in Marshall Rosenberg’s Nonviolent Communication
Chapter 11 or 12: The Protective Use of Force
Wednesday, June 21 & Tuesday, June 27. 2023, 7–8:30 pm CT
- Worksheet: Chapter 11 or 12: The Protective Use of Force
- Chapter 11 (2nd edition) or 12 (3rd edition),”The Protective Use of Force,” in Marshall Rosenberg’s Nonviolent Communication
Chapter 12 or 13, Part 1: Liberating Ourselves and Counseling Others
Wednesday, July 5 & Tuesday, July 11, 2023, 7–8:30 pm CT
- Worksheet: Chapter 12 or 13: Where Do I Put My Attention: Life or Pain?
- Chapter 12 (2nd edition) or 13 (3rd edition), “Liberating Ourselves and Counseling Others,” in Marshall Rosenberg’s Nonviolent Communication
Chapter 12 or 13, Part 2: Liberating Ourselves and Counseling Others
Wednesday, July 19 & Tuesday, July 25, 2023, 7–8:30 pm CT
- Worksheet: Chapter 12 or 13: Where Do I Put My Attention: Life or Pain?
- Chapter 12 (2nd edition) or 13 (3rd edition), “Liberating Ourselves and Counseling Others,” in Marshall Rosenberg’s Nonviolent Communication
Chapter 13 or 14: Expressing Appreciation in Nonviolent Communication
Wednesday, Aug. 2 & Tuesday, Aug. 8, 2023, 7–8:30 pm CT
- Worksheet: Chapter 13 or 14: Expressing and Receiving Gratitude
- Chapter 13 (2nd edition) or 14 (3rd edition),”Expressing Appreciation in Nonviolent Communication,” in Marshall Rosenberg’s Nonviolent Communication
Upcoming Level 1 sessions
Preparation note: In most sessions, we will use the Feelings and Needs chart in our practice. Please have this chart handy. If you have “Grok Cards” from Grok the World, feel free to use those instead.
Level 1 practice for the 2023-2024 year will begin on October 18, 2023. See our Calendar page for details.
Level 2: Moving from doing NVC to being NVC
Offered the first and third Thursday of the month, 7–8:30 pm Central Time (CT)
In the Level 2 practice sessions, we will continue to develop our understanding through the lens of NVC and conscious communication. The curriculum is based primarily on the work of Marshall Rosenberg and Robert Gonzales, founder of the Center for Living Compassion and author of Reflections on Living Compassion.
We will practice staying present and grounded in self-connection and self-responsibility. This can bring clarity to our choices.
Please note that completion of Level 1 is a pre-requisite to Level 2, regardless of one’s prior experience elsewhere with NVC. In order to explore the embodied practice of Level 2, we will rely on the shared vocabulary and experiences of Level 1 as a foundation.
Completed Level 2 sessions
Welcome to Level 2: What Do You Want to Learn?
October 6, 2022
Level 2: Beauty of the Need
October 20, 2022
Level 2: Jackal Party: Reveal & Connect
November 3 & November 17, 2022
Level 2: Awakening
December 1 & December 15, 2022
Level 2: Mapping Role Plays: Making the Unconscious Conscious
January 5 & January 19, 2023
Level 2: Beauty of the Need
February 2, 2023
Level 2: Awakening
February16, 2023
Level 2: NVC Role Play for Jackals
March 2 & March 16, 2023
Level 2: The Protective Use of Force within the Context of NVC
April 6, 2023
Level 2: Use of Force: Owning Rather than Justifying
April 20, 2023
Level 2: Beauty of the Need
May 4, 2023
Level 2: Awakening
May 18, 2023
Level 2: NVC Role Play for Jackals
June 1 & June 15, 2023
Level 2: Thursday, July 6
Celebration and Mourning Group Practice
Level 2: Thursday, July 20, 2023, 7–8:30 pm CT
Upcoming Level 2 sessions
Level 2 sessions will resume on October 19, 2023. See our Calendar page for details.
Continuing Conscious Communication Community of Practice
Offered the second and fourth Wednesday of the month, 7–8:30 pm Central Time (CT)
Meets second Wednesdays in person at Friends Meeting House, Madison WI
Meets fourth Wednesdays online via Zoom
The Continuing Practice Group will begin meeting again on October 9, 2023.
This practice group is intended for experienced practitioners who have completed at least a year of NVC practice with a group or the equivalent. We assume knowledge of the basic principles, steps and parts of NVC, as well as practice applying these in your own life.
Unlike Level 1 and Level 2 practice groups, these sessions do not follow a set curriculum or follow a single text. We may choose to explore a key concept together, or we may engage in a practice suggested by a group member.
If you would like to participate in our Continuing Practice Group, please contact us for more details and to be added to the mailing list.
Practice Groups Based Elsewhere
For information on other practice groups meeting in Wisconsin, please visit the website for the Wisconsin Empathy Guild.
The Center for Nonviolent Communication provides of list of practice groups that are practicing Marshall Rosenberg’s principles of Nonviolent Communication (NVC) throughout the world.
How to Join Us Using Zoom
Three ways to join:
- Click on: Join Zoom Meeting
- Click on: http://zoom.us (Meeting ID 605-813-6586)
- One tap mobile:
+13017158592, 6058136586# US (Germantown)
+13126266799, 6058136586# US (Chicago)
Sign in early (at 6:45 pm) to familiarize yourself with the basic functions of Zoom. You may have to download Zoom in order to enter the meeting. If the “join meeting” button doesn’t work, look below it for a link to download.