The Strength in Community Workshops program delivered by the Manitoba Women’s Enterprise Centre Inc.

The Centre for Women in Business (CWB) is proud to partner with the Manitoba Women’s Enterprise Centre Inc. (MWEC) as they deliver the Strength in Community Workshops (SCW)!  

The Strength in Community Workshops program (SCW) is a three-phase series of workshops created for self-identifying women, non-binary, and gender-diverse individuals who are in the earlier stages of business, from inception to about five years.  

SCW is a coach-facilitated, interactive program, with each series of online workshops comprised of five 2 1/2-hour sessions over five consecutive weeks. It is not a graduate program – so participants do not have to take 1.0 to take 2.0 or 3.0—each series stands alone.  

We recently interviewed SCW facilitator, Geraldine De Braune, an Integrative Coach with MWEC and fellow entrepreneur owner of GDB Coaching. Here is what participants can expect if you take part in this program. “The real value (and magic) of SCW comes when participants engage with each other in small and large group discussions, built into each session. We learn about each other and ourselves through sharing our successes and failures, fears, and joys. We develop connection with other women to garner a larger and new sense of community and belonging. ToGetHer Stronger.”  

“We live in a culture that is highly individualistic and the truth is, we don’t get through entrepreneurship alone. It’s impossible, yet so many of us struggle to ask for help, we chastise ourselves for believing we must know it all and do it all efficiently and perfectly all the time, every day, by ourselves. Impossible. In community, impossible becomes I’m possible.” 

Why did MWEC decide to partner with CWB to deliver this program in Nova Scotia?  

“When we first connected with Tanya Priske, Executive Director and Nora Perry, Manager of Programs and Special Projects at the CWB we were delighted that they were interested in hearing about what we offered. They shared with us how they felt SCW “filled a gap” in their offerings and that it would be a great opportunity for their members, clients, and community. For MWEC this new collaboration with CWB is not just about SCW, it’s also a bright new horizon for the potential of future partnerships—in teaching, facilitating, information sharing, and other collaborations.”  

So, what makes the SCW unique? “Where SCW shines, is that it’s a live delivery, and sessions are not recorded. We do this to create a container for each cohort where trust can be built through listening, sharing, laughing, and learning.”  

“Folks will not be lambasted with a firehose of information, it’s not a unidirectional delivery of content. The workshops are designed to be dynamic and to engage participants, so that everyone gains from the collective wisdom in the room. It’s about taking the time to slow down long enough to connect and integrate.”  

 “Entrepreneurship is a wild ride. Being well-resourced and having a community of peers can be the fuel you need to flourish. Every time I’ve had the privilege to facilitate a group of women, I’m astonished (as are they) that we always have more in common with each other, than we think. It’s such a beautiful thing.”  

Learn more about the Strength in Community Workshops delivered by the Manitoba Women’s Enterprise Centre Inc. here!