Self-Advocacy: Be Your Own Champion
What you'll learn
- Define self-advocacy and its value in work and life
- Differentiate between passive, aggressive, and assertive communication
- Discover your typical communication style
- Practice a method for setting and achieving goals
- Recognize self-advocacy bad habits that may be holding you back
- Identify strategies to communicate more assertively
- Establish when and how to say no
- Identify how to find a sponsor
Requirements
- There are no prerequisites for this course.
Description
Have you ever said yes to something you really wanted to say no to? Have you ever kept quiet when you should have spoken up? Do you want to discover ways to stand up for yourself, confidently assert opinions, and get more of what you want?
I'd bet that you said "YES!" to one or all of those questions! All of the situations mentioned above require self-advocacy, the ability to advocate successfully for your own wants and needs. Self-advocacy is an essential skill in work and life. You are the one person best suited to look out for your own interests. The more you can speak up for yourself, using your voice to communicate confidently and assertively with others, the better conditions you will create to achieve your goals.
So we all need to self-advocate. But how do we get there? In this course, you'll:
Define self-advocacy and its value in the workplace
Create a self-advocacy goal to focus on what you want to achieve
Determine and reflect on your personal communication style
Differentiate between passive, aggressive, and assertive communication
Discover The GROW Model, a framework to help you set and achieve goals
Recognize self-advocacy bad habits that may be holding you back
Identify strategies to communicate more assertively
Establish when and how to say no
Identify how to find a sponsor
I built this course with plenty of activities so you can put what you're learning into practice. You'll spend some time reflecting on who you are, figuring out what you want, and creating a plan to make it happen. By the end of this course, you'll have a toolkit of assertive strategies to effectively advocate for yourself.
In my career, I've seen firsthand how important self-advocacy can be. You can't simply wait for things to happen - you need to make them happen by expressing yourself and standing up for what you want. Depending on where you're starting on your self-advocacy journey, this may seem daunting. And that's ok! But as your instructor, I'm here to tell you IT IS possible. You CAN be your own champion.
Please join me in this course to found out how!
Who this course is for:
- Entry to mid-level employees who would like to build assertive communication skills in the workplace
- People who want to learn strategies to effectively self-advocate for their wants and needs
Instructor
Shelley Osborne is passionate about creating corporate learning cultures that enable continuous skills development and nurture a growth mindset to drive employee engagement and company performance. She has over fifteen years of experience across the education, consulting, and corporate sectors.
Recently, Shelley was the Vice President of Learning at Udemy, where she led the company’s learning strategy and continuous upskilling of employees globally. In her work, she often leverages innovative technologies and fresh approaches like virtual reality and gamification to drive lasting engagement. Before Udemy, Shelley was the Vice President of Learning & Development at Farside HR Solutions, where she advised early- and late-stage companies on learning and talent strategy, skill development and leadership programs. Before moving into the professional learning and development space, Shelley had a successful career as a classroom teacher in Canada for almost a decade.
Shelley speaks regularly at industry events such as TEDWomen, ATD International Conference, DevLearn, and Unleash. She contributes to numerous publications, including Entrepreneur, Fast Company, and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation. Shelley has also provided expert commentary in The Wall Street Journal, CNBC, Cheddar TV, Inc., and more. Drawing from her experience, Shelley is the author of the McGraw Hill book, The Upskilling Imperative: Five Ways to Make Learning Core to the Way We Work, which examines how companies can create, implement, and maintain thriving learning cultures.