~The IMCW Meditation Practice Mentoring Program~

Welcome to The IMCW Meditation Practice Mentoring1 Program!   We are currently accepting applications for those interested in volunteering to serve as mentors~

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~The Five (5) Keys to Mindful Meditation Practice Mentoring~

1. Strategic Questioning – Ask questions that help you assess the student’s current practice, what (s)he is experiencing, where the challenges might be and what resources (human, written, audio) might be helpful~

2. Skillful Listening – Make eye contact, don’t interrupt, be empathetic (tune in to what the student is saying) and restate the student’s problem from his/her point of view.  Most important, be sure to honor and validate the student’s intention, sincerity and capacity to awaken~

3. Share the Wisdom of Past Experience – Nothing resonates more than the truth of one’s own experience, so share yours~

4. Offer Productive Feedback – Ask for permission to offer feedback but make the feedback specific, helpful and timely~

5. Collaborate in Designing a Daily Practice – Based on the information you gather: a) offer suggestions that might serve the student’s practice experience; b) explore together what might best work; c) take some time after each meeting to assess how the student’s practice is unfolding; and d) continue to creatively explore what would most be helpful by asking questions like how their practice feels, what is difficult, what is easy?
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If you are interested in becoming an IMCW Meditation Practice Mentor, you must meet the preliminary criteria, which are:

• A  valuing of Buddhist Vipassana (insight) meditation and an interest in helping others on the path~
• A daily sitting meditation practice for the past two (2) years minimally~ and
• Completion of at least one (1) residential retreat or five (5) daylong retreats in the past two years~

If you meet the preliminary criteria above, take the steps below:

Step 1: Contact an IMCW teacher and ask for a letter of recommendation~

Step 2: Complete the following online application and send it along with your IMCW Teacher Letter of Recommendation to IMCW, Attention: Trudy ann mitchell-gilkey, P.O. Box 212, Garrett Park, Maryland 20896~

If your application is approved, IMCW will begin the process of matching you with potential students.  If you are successfully matched with one or more students, you will receive a welcoming letter and will be instructed to sign up for the IMCW Meditation Practice Mentoring Training Day (to be announced).  If you are not successfully matched with a mentee, you will be notified and, if desired, your name will be reserved for future meditation practice mentoring opportunities, which will become available approximately every 3 months~

Thank you for your interest~

[1] The purpose of The IMCW’ Meditation Practice Mentoring Program is to support the deepening of meditation practice for new and more experienced meditators, and through mentoring relationships, enhance our experience of spiritual community.