How to end homeless encampments.
This week’s live training is an interview with Iain De Jong on how communities can reduce or end encampments. During the interview, we discuss Iain’s five step plan for compassionately ending encampments: Iain concludes our discussion with the top mistakes that communities make. To manage expectations, this session is NOT for: This session IS for: […]
Teens take 28% more risks in groups than alone?
I want to share an interesting research project on the teenage brain. Researchers had teenagers play a driving simulation game inside an fMRI machine that scanned their brains. They also had adults do the same game. The main task was to decide whether to stop at a traffic light when it turned yellow or to […]
De-escalation skills are worthless if…
DISCLAIMER: This email is blunt. I am currently working on developing a new way to teach how to de-escalate someone who is angry. I have spent weeks on it. Something just isn’t right, though. Yesterday, the problem became obvious: I was trying to figure out how to teach conflict de-escalation to people who don’t want […]
Do you work with traumatized teens?
If you work with teens who may have experienced trauma, you should really know about “Adverse Childhood Experiences” (ACEs). The basic idea is that the more “bad things” that happen to a person between the ages of 0-17, the more at risk the person is of having behavioral issues, depression, and worse. It is easy […]
Paper Rules vs. Concrete Rules
You can learn a lot about your rules from speeding in a Chicago school zone. According to the official City of Chicago website: Wait? What? Is the speed limit 20 MPH or 26 MPH? The answer is “Yes.” Paper Rules vs. Concrete Rules A Paper Rule is what the policy manual says the rule is, […]
The first time I saw someone with Fetal Alcohol Syndrome.
I remember the first time I saw someone who likely had fetal alcohol syndrome. There are characteristic facial features: I was 21 years old and had only been working at a homeless shelter for a few weeks. I knew something “wasn’t right” about the behavior, but I couldn’t identify it. She was an adult, but […]
How do you keep up staff morale during tough times?
This Thursday we are doing a free webinar on staff morale. It was a panel discussion with three seasoned leaders of organizations. We made a one-page handout of the best takeaways. My favorite is at the bottom: “Immediate answers are NOT always required.” You can download a PDF of the infographic (or register for the […]
“If you don’t do something about Joe, we will!”
Mike didn’t look happy as he worked his way through the crowded shelter dining room heading towards me. Mike had been homeless for several years. I knew him well. I knew the conversation we were about to have wasn’t going to be pleasant. “If you don’t do something about Joe, we will,” Mike hissed at […]
The problem with de-escalation…
De-escalation has one MAJOR problem. The problem is NOT that it doesn’t work. The research is clear that de-escalation works: No, the problem with de-escalation isn’t its effectiveness. The problem is that someone has to go first. In conflict, someone has to go first… and lower their volume. Someone has to go first… and genuinely […]
“Dementia Acquired Racism”
I have a confession: I made up the term “Dementia Acquired Racism.” The term may not exist, but the concept is very real. Many people think of Alzheimer’s and Dementia in terms of “forgetful old people.” Reality can be far more challenging. Dementia generally—and Alzheimer’s specifically—can cause a person to behave in ways that are […]