The ART of Being Human

In 2017 I was introduced to a group of individuals practicing a ‘radical’ (not actually radical) form of communication… it was called, Authentic Relating. The principles of which invited you to consider sharing your actual experience in the present moment with another human being. As I showed up to these informal (yet structured) gatherings in community spaces around the Seattle area, I got to know the facilitators and leaders of this work and through them, received an invitation to attend a weekend long authentic relating workshop.

It was this article called The Three Levels of Conversation which provided a road map towards more intimate dialog that convinced me to register because I desired more meaningful interactions at the Relational Level. From this place, I could “guide a conversation toward deeper levels to cultivate more connection and intimacy” and these tools have upleveled the quality of relationships I now enjoy with family, friends, colleagues and collaborators.

As of 2022, I am a Certified Leadership Facilitator (Level 4 Graduate) of this work for ART International and I use these skills to deliver the same curriculum to inmates serving time behind bars with the nonprofit Realness Project.

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I am profoundly grateful to the ART International program founders, Ryel Kestano and Jason Digges, for their passion and dedication to this work, and to my friend Randy DesRocher for opening the door and being my gateway back in 2017.

AUTHENTIC SEATTLE

In addition to my training and facilitation with ART International, I joined the leadership team of Authentic Seattle at the start of 2020 to lead weekly online gatherings. Here I ran Authentic Relating games and circling activities with the intent to foster human connection skills.

Speaking & Consulting Topics

GET OUT OF STORY AND INTO YOUR TRUTH

This topic champions equanimity, to find the balance between humility and dignity where you can more clearly state your needs. The gift of slowing down, honoring self and teaching others how to treat you, is that you can show up in your truth, instead of your story.  One of the core practices of Authentic Relating through ART International is to “Own Your Experience”. This is a challenging ask. It requires you to let go of the reasons (and excuses) for the circumstances of your relationships (at work, at home, with family and friends) and take accountability for what you allow in.

THE GIFT OF FEAR IS COURAGE, USE IT

This topic invites you to leverage your fear to call in courage and leap into something that lights your soul on fire. The metrics of success are subjective. Who decides? You can’t put a price tag on lessons that come with challenges, when they expand who you can become. The idea that we might limit ourselves, to stay safe, to not fail in the eyes of others, is a lose/lose game. The world misses out from experiencing the *more* of you, while your soul receives a message of self-doubt. The feelings associated with fear are critically important. I don’t want you to be fearless, I want you to use fear, take advantage of it, to leap with courage.

SETTING CONTEXT TO PLAY THE GAME OF LIFE

The topic of setting context is so powerful, I have experienced the transformative magic within my own career, community and family having intentionally enrolled others in the game of life I want to play. I used to think the rules were fixed, we even had a board game of LIFE that I played growing up. Pink was for females, blue was for males, marriage included one of each. Your education dictated the financial rewards of your career, and you were supposed to want children to win in the end. There are systems in place that benefit when we believe this, but what happens when we, the individual citizen, do not benefit? Setting context begins with sharing your WHY. Together, we can redefine what’s possible.

Sheri Hauser has 20+ years experience in the graphic design, advertising, communications, branding and marketing industries, working as a team leader, account director, producer, sales professional and entrepreneur. During that time, she guided national, international and local clients through massive rebranding efforts, retail product launches, milestone anniversary campaigns and through all levels of growth opportunities with budgets upwards of 10M.

Since then, she has been practicing how to be human and invites others to do the same. Her origin story for building intentional community began at age 3. Today, after resigning from her previous career, she leads groups in the art of connection using communication tools studied through ART International, where she is a mentor, coach and certified facilitator. Her public platform, PiNK NOiSE, is a Radio Show designed to amplify the voices of individuals who are following the thread of aliveness in their life. It’s a weekly, hour-long program that launched September 20, 2020 and streams as a podcast on Spotify and Apple Podcasts.

To learn more about Sheri's history, visit the ABOUT page. Career highlights can be found on LinkedIn.