Stepping Up, Stepping Out New Zealand BodyTalk Association
Printed from http://www.bodytalksystem.com//learn/news/article.cfm?id=962 on Mar 19, 2024.
Sep 25, 2015
By Anna Freeman
Right from the beginning New Zealand has
played a pivotal role in the history of BodyTalk. For it was here that John
Veltheim got the first concepts for the earliest techniques and it was whilst
living in New Zealand that he developed a great deal of the fundamental
courses. As John himself says "New Zealand is probably the birthplace of
BodyTalk".
So it seems fitting that New Zealand is the place where the world's first local BodyTalk association was established. In 2005 newly minted CBP Jane Gruebner asked why there was no national association? A group of enthusiastic BodyTalkers met for lunch and the New Zealand BodyTalk Association (NZBA) was formed. The Association's primary role was to showcase BodyTalk alongside other alternative health modalities in NZ to mainstream it in the consciousness of the general public. It also became a strong support group for practitioners and students and created the foundation for a growing BodyTalk matrix.
Each year NZBA members come together for our Annual General Meeting and Conference. And so it was this year, on a beautiful but chilly August morning with a stunning view of the Tauranga harbour, that a room full of passionate BodyTalkers joined together to re-energize our focus and our intention to the NZBA matrix, to BodyTalk, to our businesses and ourselves.
The day started early with the Annual General Meeting (AGM). For members only, this is where the more formal business aspects of running an association are addressed. Year-end financial statements were presented, changes to the constitution voted on and a new committee elected. Each new committee brings a new energy and focus with them and build on the solid foundations established by previous committees. We are very fortunate this year to have six talented committee members who are passionate about showcasing BodyTalk and the NZBA in New Zealand.
The AGM is also a great opportunity to
formally reflect as a group on the accomplishments of the previous year and
turn our focus to future goals. With a great new website now in hand our focus
for the coming year is on innovative ways to achieve our aims of supporting our
members and raising the profile of BodyTalk in New Zealand.
Our Conference then followed which was open to all health practitioners. This year our theme was 'Stepping Up, Stepping Out'. Too often as practitioners we feel uncomfortable with marketing ourselves and we hide our light under a bushel. However a lot of people in the healing industry are feeling the call to be more visible to the general public about what they do. The aim of the conference was to inspire and empower people to step up and step out into this new space.
The Conference opened with a pre-recorded video message to the NZBA from John Veltheim. John spoke about the role of New Zealand in the development of BodyTalk, the history and evolution of BodyTalk and gave some great advice for taking our practice to the next level. And of course there were a few Kiwi jokes thrown in too J.
This was followed by three interactive workshops with high-calibre speakers each covering a different aspect of our theme. Linda Guirey, the 'Choice Champion', presented on the art of communication; Malcolm Nicholls, Leadership Specialist and Hellerwork Practitioner, advised us on effective use of social media to promote our businesses and how we can market our business in an authentic way. To finish the day our very own Linda Shaw, CBP and Animal Advocate, spoke about the lessons she has learned in setting up a holistic business.
It was a fantastic day of learning, sharing and networking.
http://www.nzbodytalk.org.nz/