Dr. Sobers specialties in leadership development, CliftonStrengths / positive psychology, resilience, women’s empowerment, career preparation, and supervisor development. Each workshop session is customize for the audience, organization, department, or institution. Below is a listing (in alpha order) of some of the workshops already developed. Check out my upcoming events. Contact to inquire about a workshop session facilitation, professional development series, keynote, or consultation.
CAREfrontation: Navigating Conflict & Difficult Conversations
Session Description: This introductory session explores a variety of conflict styles and communication styles. During the session participants will have opportunities to discuss and try-on techniques for mediation, communication, compromise, and collaboration.
Time: 1 – 3 hours depending on number of participants and activities selected
Note: This session pairs well in a series with Effective Communication
Chipping Away at the Iceberg: An Introduction to Identity, Culture, and Creating Spaces for Belonging
Session Description: This session is a new twist on the typical icebreaker and get-to-know-you activities you may have experienced. This session is a journey beyond the “tip of the iceberg” to dig deeper in understanding of both our own and our colleague’s below-the-surface identities and cultures that are not apparent at first glance. During this session, you will engage in activities and reflection that help you discover new perspectives and paradigms, which can be tangibly applied as you work alongside your diverse colleagues and community.
Time: 1 – 3 hours depending on number of participants and activities selected
Note: This session pairs well in a series with Effective Communication and Navigating Conflict & Difficult Conversations
CliftonStrengths®: On the Road to Discovering Your Strengths
Session Description: This introductory session is an overview of the StrengthsFinder tool and the Positive Psychology Philosophy. Participants will learn about the 34 CliftonStrengths talents through intentional small and large group discussion, worksheets, and/or activities.
Time: 90 minutes – 6 hours depending on number of participants and activities selected
Prerequisite: Participants will get the most out of this session if they have already taken the StrengthsFinder 2.0 assessment.
“Shauna’s ability to help Student Affairs team members learn about their own and others strengths enabled the team to build more effective working relationships with the goal of providing exemplary programs and services to students.”
~Dr. Jeanne Ortiz, Dean of Students / Vice President for Student Affairs, Loyola Marymount University, Los Angeles, CA
“Dr. Shauna Sobers is the consummate professional, combining a deep and strong knowledge base with a passion to help others. She graciously offered to walk my new team of counseling professionals through a StrengthsQuest journey . We grew immensely both as individuals and as a team. Her tender invitation, coupled with enthusiasm and empathy, led us to share ourselves with vulnerability in a safe space. If you need to strengthen your team, problem-solve challenges in a group or even develop your own individual leadership, Shauna is just the person to help you….”
~Dr. Rebecca Romberger, Psychologist/Director, Student Counseling Center, Whittier College, Whittier, CA
CliftonStrengths®: Level Up Your Understanding of Talents
Session Description: This intermediate session will develop an individual’s understanding of the 34 CliftonStrengths® talent themes. During this session participants will explore how others define and experience their own top 5 signature talent themes. This exploration will be based on the dynamic between the other talent themes as well as the individual’s culture, upbringing, and intersections of identity.
Time: 1 – 4 hours depending on number of participants and activities selected
Prerequisite: Participants will get the most out of this session if they already know their StrengthsFinder 2.0 results and have read the theme report or been through an introductory session.
“Dr. Sobers has shown us that knowing our strengths helps us know our worth. Understanding how others operate has allowed our area to build a solid community and serve roughly 2,000 diverse residents who reside in the Whitis Area.”
part of National Residence Hall Honorary nomination for Residence Life Staff Member of the Month, October 2017 submitted by Estrellita “Star” Longoria Steward, Assistant Complex Coordinator, Housing and Dining, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX
CliftonStrengths®: The Weaknesses of Our Strengths
Session Description: “A leaders biggest mistakes often occur within their area of strengths” Bringing awareness to where talents (how you naturally think, feel, and behave) can trip you up or be perceived negatively can make the difference between falling flat on your face and striving as a leader. During this interactive session you will learn how the very thing that you may be suppressing, may have been teased about, and may have been told to stop doing might very well be the thing that can set you apart if you learn how to harness and manage it rather than fixing it.
Time: 1 – 2 hours depending on number of participants and activities selected
Prerequisite: Participants will get the most out of this session if they already know their StrengthsFinder 2.0 results and have read the theme report or been through an introductory session.
CliftonStrengths® based Approach to Supervision
Session Description: This session is an opportunity for supervisors / managers to learn some promising practices of how to incorporate a strengths-based approach to supervising and employee development. During the session Dr. Sobers will share tangible resources and tools that supervisors / managers can use in the workplace to go beyond getting the results of the Clifton StrengthsFinder assessment tool.
Time: 1 – 2 hours depending on number of participants and activities selected
Prerequisite: Participants will get the most out of this session if they already know their StrengthsFinder 2.0 results and have read the theme report or been through an introductory session.
CliftonStrengths®: Exploring the “Weaknesses” of Your Talents
Session Description: “Often leaders make their biggest mistakes in their area of strength” because too much of one talent could cause a blind-spot. This intermediate session explores what makes each of the 34 signature talent themes tick and how each talent can be manifested in a raw and mature state (also referred to as genius and shadow-side or balconies and basements).
Time: 90 minutes – 3 hours depending on number of participants and activities selected
Prerequisite: Participants will get the most out of this session if they already know their StrengthsFinder 2.0 results and have read the theme report or been through an introductory session.
“…Dr. Sobers showed us the power of ourselves in a very unique and under-appreciated way… Dr. Sobers made it a goal to recognize each and every staff member in the Duren and Whitis Court area… Dr. Sobers was adamant that every person and every strength is equally as critical in a team setting… Before our staff meeting, we all viewed Dr. Sobers as an expert in the field of housing… Little did we all know she was an expert in StrengthsQuest too!…”
part of National Residence Hall Honorary nomination for Residence Life Staff Member of the Month, February 2017 submitted by Evan Garcia, Resident Assistant, Housing and Dining University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX
CliftonStrengths®: Learning to Intentionally Use Your Talents
Session Description: This intermediate session explores theme dynamics, strategic partnerships, as well as how to apply talents to achieve goals and/or difficult tasks.
Time: 90 minutes – 3 hours depending on number of participants and activities selected
Prerequisite: Participants will get the most out of this session if they already know their StrengthsFinder 2.0 results and have read the theme report or been through an introductory session.
Dance of Leadership: Leadership Lessons from Latin Partnered Dance
Session Description: Leadership is not always the most straightforward, or a one-size-fits-all concept, and that’s where dancing comes in! In this workshop, we leave the PowerPoint presentations back in the office and get on the dance floor! This session is a dance lesson that highlights the tenants of communicating with any partner on or off the dance floor (a solid foundation, boundaries, integrity, as well as the ability to communicate and adjustment to change).
Time: 90 minutes
Prerequisite: No dance experience and no partner necessary!
Resource: This session is based on the content from the “Leadership Lessons from Dance Blog” started in January 2017 and the TEDx Talk delivered in February 2018.
Effective Communication
Session Description: This is a introductory session that explores topics such as: varying communication styles, active listening skills, perspective checking, delegation, running meetings, managing up, email etiquette, and/or holding people accountable.
Time: 1 – 4 hours depending on foci and the number of participants
Note: This session pairs well in a series with CAREfrontation
Employee Engagement: Providing Feedback & Performance Evaluation
Session Description: So often it is said that employees don’t leave jobs or companies but supervisors. This session explores what supervisors can do to improve employee engagement through goal development, supervisory structures and templates, progress reviews, intentional conversations, touch points, career strategy sessions, and providing affirmations in addition to areas for improvement.
Time: 1-2 hours
Audience: Supervisors, managers, peer leaders, mid-level managers
Exploring Your Leadership Style
Session Description: This introductory session helps leaders learn about different leadership style, explore their leadership journey, and identify next steps to developing their style and working with others whose styles may be different.
Time: 1 hour – 90 minutes depending on the number of participants
Audience: This is a great session for newly formed staffs or executive boards of student organizations.
“Thank you so much for making our retreat so informative. Your time has been invaluable and will certainly prepare us to lead in the future. Absolutely loved the interactive and team building activities. You did an amazing job of tailoring your talk to our student organization”
~Detrick Manning, 2018-2019 President, Associated Students of Whittier College (Student Government), Whittier, CA
Interview Preparation: Talking About Transferable Skills & Competencies
Session Description: This introductory session shows participants how skills/competencies gained from student organization leadership, jobs, or specialized functional areas can be leveraged in job interview. Participants will learn about the S.T.A.R. method of interviewing or behavioral-based and practice talking about their transferable skills.
Time: 1 – 2 hours
Resilience Tree: Strategies for Success for Black Women Aspiring to Senior Leadership
Session Description: This interactive session shares 4 tenants of the Resilience Tree model created from my year-long qualitative research. During the session, audiences are provided structured time to reflect and discuss in small and large groups what components they have in their lives currently and/or how mentors, supervisors and coworkers can support the Black women in their lives to navigate the risk factors that often limit progression to senior leadership.
Time: 1 – 3 hours depending on activities selected
Note: The Resilience Tree Model was featured during the Student Affairs Speaks (TED Talk Style) session at the 100th NASPA Annual Conference, Philadelphia, PA.
Social Responsibility: An Introduction to Identify & Privilege
Session Description: This is an introductory session for student leaders to explore different aspects of their own identity and learn how to create a comfortable environment for others to share elements of their identity.
Time: 2 – 4 hours depending on size and engagement of group
“As serious and emotionally challenging as the social responsibility activities were, I think it was the most beneficial activity for all the OAs. We learned what experiences we share and talked about how we can better understand one another. Because of this, I feel a lot closer to my fellow than I did before, and I know these connections will benefit both ourselves and all the incoming students.”
From 2018-2019 University of Texas at Austin Orientation Assistants (OAs), provided by the Office of New Student Services
“I think that the most valuable portion of the retreat was the discussions that were facilitated by Dr. Sobers. Not only did they make me more aware of my own identities, but also encouraged me to be aware of others. I think it helped us form a better connection. I didn’t feel super connected to the entire group prior to Saturday.”
From 2018-2019 University of Texas at Austin Orientation Assistants (OAs), provided by the Office of New Student Services
“I think that Dr. Sobers gave the a large sense of community and openness.”
From 2018-2019 University of Texas at Austin Orientation Assistants (OAs), provided by the Office of New Student Services
“The Social Responsibility really helped me understand differences within the and the different experiences and identities I might encounter as an . It also helped me to break down personal prejudices as well as analyze ways we all experience marginalization.”
From 2018-2019 University of Texas at Austin Orientation Assistants (OAs), provided by the Office of New Student Services
“The social responsibility really helped me feel more comfortable with my fellow OAs and helped me understand more of how people behave and feel.”
From 2018-2019 University of Texas at Austin Orientation Assistants (OAs), provided by the Office of New Student Services
Supervisor Development
Session Description: The role of supervisor is often made up of people who were the hard workers on the team and got promoted. In this session, I reassess how the transition from employee to supervisor can be better developed. For example social and emotional intelligence training or coaching training can occur before an employee is placed in charge of managing people. Training such as this will go a long way in cutting down on employee mismanagement and therefore complaints, transfers, and departures.
Time: 1-2 hours
Note: This session can be developed into an interactive workshop or a keynote presentation
Supervising and Advising with a Strengths-based Mindset
Session Description: In this introductory session, I share an overview of positive psychology specifically the 34 CliftonStrengths signature talent themes and the VIA character strengths. I provide examples of how the theory/perspective can be used in supervising and advising, as well as resources and recommendations for future development.
Time: 1 – 2 hours depending on size and engagement of group
Note: This session can be developed into an interactive workshop or a keynote presentation
I felt had strong personal and workplace use/application.
Shared by a graduate student of EDUC 241: Student Identity Development Theory, University of the Pacific, Stockton, CA
was awesome. Applying strengths-based in a deficient society was a stand out take-away. Dr. Sobers is an amazing human being. Her positivity and enthusiasm was contagious!
Shared by a graduate student of EDUC 241: Student Identity Development Theory, University of the Pacific, Stockton, CA (session done via Skype)
Targeted Staff Selection – Behavioral-based Interviewing with S.T.A.R. Method
Session Description: The best predictor of future behavior is past performance therefore the best way to select employees is by assessing them through a behavioral based interview process. Some
call this the S.T.A.R. method or a specific Situation or Task, the Actions that person took, and the Results. The heart of the interview process are the questions (leading, open-ended, and/or inadvertently disclosing assumptions or favoring one type of experience over another). This session centers around transferable skills and competencies desired in the position and how to reduce potential subjective opinions about the prospective hire.
Time: 1-2 hours
Note: This session can be developed into an interactive workshop or a keynote presentation
Using Assessment as a Student Affairs Practitioner
Session Description: This introductory session provides practical examples of using Bloom’s Taxonomy to establish development learning goals for student organizations leaders, for assessing programs, staff training, and departments with tools other than surveys, for analyzing and reporting out survey data already collected, for scaffolding department or individual project accomplishments to department, division, and institutional goals, and for establishing an assessment culture into your organization.
Time: 1-2 hours depending on size and engagement of group
Note: This session can be developed into an interactive workshop or a consultation session
“Shauna is an expert on assessment. She possess extensive knowledge on the mechanics of data collection and providing evidence of outcomes achieved. Her approach in teaching assessment includes various frameworks that are as simple as using info graphics to a more detailed template that is descriptive of processes and outcomes.”
~Dr. Faraah Mullings, Director of Commuter Services, Mount St. Mary’s University, Los Angeles, CA
Value Added: Exploration & Development
Session Description: This team building workshop includes exploration of individual values, CliftonStrengths® themes, motivations and how they influence decisions, goals, and the team.
Time: 1-2 hours depending on size and engagement of group
Note: This session is best for teams or staffs.
For a list of my upcoming events visit: www.shaunatsobers.com/events