Customer Reviews

Calling the Circle: The First and Future Culture

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The Council of Grandmothers Planning Committee for the Annual Gathering of October 1999 in Oracle, Arizona made a commitment to use Christina Baldwins "Calling The Circle", along with "A Guide to Peerspirit Circle" by Christina Baldwin and Ann Linnea as the foundation of their Gathering. Creating a center for safety, placing our sacred objects, using a talking piece to lovingly speak our truths, the importance of the timekeeper, using a bell to go within, the self monitoring, and the listening, really listening, worked and it was rewarding and magical! The evaluations of these women on their small circles of 12 to 13 along with the large circles of 50 include words such as "supportive, empowering, want to continue them in my other life, very harmonious, non-ego dominated, very compassionate group, good as a teaching tool for this kind of process." I recommend Christinas' Circle book for any organization, corporation, school or group, any age and all ages, male and female. It successfully brought women who had never met before to a level of sharing, working and bonding, previously not realized at our Gatherings. Thank you Christina and Ann! Judy O'Leary, The Weaver, Council of Grandmothers.

Baldwin's "Calling the Circle" is by far the best book and methodology out there on using the "circle" as a form of bringing people together into communities and teams with clear intention(s), respect, compassion and openness. This process is also marvelous in helping people in conflict situations to be able to hold those "challenging conversations" with honesty and integrity. A truly outstanding piece of work that is a must read for today's business and community leaders who need to deal with so many critical issues with very diverse communities of people.

This is a book for our times. Christina provides a much needed paradigm - a new container within which human interaction can happen in a spirit of respect and tolerance. It is an important answer for anyone who has ever wondered how to be a peace maker in their own lives and in the world. I have used what Christina teaches, and it enhances every interaction all the way from talks with my spouse to large organizational meetings. It is useful at every level of life. It is beautifully written, and it leaves you with highly useful tools in your hand and hope in your heart.

I read this book and started my own circle of older women. We call ourselves the Grandmother's Circle. Using the simple and yet profound structure of Christina's work, we are finding ways to support each other in all issues that face us. The circle is what holds our concerns and provides enough safety for people to share with each other. Christina talks about the circle in a lot of different settings, this is the one that is most meaningful to me.

Christina Baldwin's Calling the Circle is a book that offers information critical to our survival as a human community. How do we break through our cultural barriers and relearn how to treat one another with respect and honor the collective wisdom that we so desperately need at this time in our history? Read this book to find a proven methodology, a way of being together that, when practiced allows us to connect on a heart level, to honor and understand one another even though we may disagree. We need this information now more than ever.

This book has been waiting for us to get ready to do something really different-- speak honestly and heartfully and listen compassionately. I've been looking for some way to help elicit the level of conversation that is missing all around us, and calling the circle is an essential tool that needs to come back into the mainstream. Baldwin's book is not the only one out there, but it's a classic, and when you look at her website she's been walking her talk a long time...PeerSpirit is what she calls her circle methodology-- it's highly adaptable. Try this at home. Then try it at work. Then try it in your neighborhood. We will surprise each other with who we really are!

As the millenium ends, many of us are searching... searching for spiritual and social awareness. Christina Baldwin shows that we may strengthen both our spiritual and social ties through the circle. She links the circle back to prehistoric camp fires, but also shows its usefullness in the quest for better software development. Her circle has three components: rotating leadership, shared responsibility, and a reliance on the spiritual. Whether you are planning a one-time business meeting or seeking a long-term group bonding, you may find your Calling in the Circle.

Baldwin's book provides easy to follow guidelines on how to use circle methodology in a variety of settings. You can do some of the pieces or all of the pieces and they apply in multiple settings. I often facilitiate meetings with clients and found Calling the Circle to be one of the most valuable tools I have for taking a group beyond the flip chart and multi-voting.

This is an excellent introduction to the use of shared leadership techniques in groups of all kinds from business to spiritual groups.

This book is a must read for anyone that is serious about creative problem-solving. The author introduces an ancient concept called "Calling the Circle" that has a proven success rate over the centuries and very skillfully demonstrates how the principles and practices of forming communication circles will eventually lead to strong resolutions for complex social issues in the 21st Century. The book provides a blue print on how to listen to each other in the "circle" without prejudice or the desire to dominate the discussion. The process elimimates social tags and labels such as female/male, race, class, political or religious affiliation all in an effort to give everyone in the "circle" an equal opportunity to contribute, listen, learn and be understood. Politicians all over the world need to read and totally absorb this concept!