Hope in Action
Ending Poverty through Systemic Change
Developing Relationships
& Supporting Change
© 2013, National Council of the United States
Society of St. Vincent de Paul, Inc. This copyright
covers all materials in this presentation except
where otherwise noted.
Vincentian Family – Hope in Action:
People-Oriented Strategies
 Listen carefully to needs and hopes
 Involve the individual directly in needs
assessment and goal setting
 Educate, and encourage spiritual well being
 Build self-confidence in the participant
Hope in Action…ending poverty through systemic change
Building Relationships
 Accept others as they are
 Affirm their individuality
 Be objective
Hope in Action…ending poverty through systemic change
Mankind was made for relationships
 Our love of God – who we cannot see – must be
expressed by our love of neighbor – who we can see
 Only in relationship can love manifest itself
“Teacher, which commandment is the greatest? He said: “You shall
love the Lord, your God, with all your heart, with all your soul, and
with all your mind. This is the greatest and the first commandment.
The second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. The
whole law and the prophets depend on these two commandments.”
(Matthew: 22: 36-40)
Hope in Action…ending poverty through systemic change
Developing Relationships
 Monitor unspoken language (yours)
 Have a positive outlook
 Have patience & don’t get discouraged
Hope in Action…ending poverty through systemic change
What do we see?
Appearance
Actions
Situation/Context
Motivation
Healthy Relationships
 Relationships take time to develop
 Relationships are built on trust
 Politics & Religion vs. Advocacy & Beliefs
Hope in Action…ending poverty through systemic change
Relationships with people of
different cultural backgrounds
 Learn about their culture
 Take a stand against their oppression
Adapted from The Community
Toolbox http://ctb.ku.edu
Creating Relationships
Deposits
Withdrawals
Seeking first to understand
Seeking first to be understood
Keeping promises
Kindness, courtesies
Clarifying expectations
Loyalty to the absent
Apologies
Open to feedback
Breaking promises
Unkindness, discourtesies
Violating expectations
Disloyalty, duplicity
Pride, conceit, arrogance
Rejecting feedback
Adapted from The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People. (1989). Stephen Covey.
Maintaining Relationships
 Pay attention to them – check in regularly
 Communicate openly
 Appreciate each other
 Extend yourself
 Challenge each other to do better
 Back each other when things get tough
Adapted from The Community
Toolbox http://ctb.ku.edu
Listening Skills

Reflect what you hear:
 It sounds like …It seems like …
 So you think …You feel …

Your interpretation is only a guess and may not
match what was actually meant.

Questions can be roadblocks. Instead of asking
questions, compare and contrast two statements
to encourage the person to continue clarifying.
© aha! Process, Inc.
The Empowerment Dynamic
Drama Triangle:
 Victims place blame on
Persecutors
 Victims need Rescuers to solve
problems for them
Empowerment Triangle:
 Creators are outcome-oriented,
focused on long term goals
 Challengers force clarification
of our goals
 Coaches ask questions to help
individual make informed
choices
Hope in Action…ending poverty through systemic change
Change Is Hard
“The need to act overwhelms
any willingness people have
to learn.”
–Peter Schwartz
“The healthier you are
psychologically, or the less you
may seem to need to change, the
more you can change.”
–Richard Farson
© aha! Process, Inc.
Encouraging Change
 Change – it’s not easy – understand potential barriers
 Stages of change
 Motivation – theory & advice
Hope in Action…ending poverty through systemic change
Barriers to Change:
Generated by Poverty
• Crisis living / “Tyranny of the Moment”
• Lack of “resources”
• Not knowing how to plan
• Co-existing problems
• Not knowing hidden rules of economic class
• Giving up self-image / identity is threatening
© aha! Process, Inc.
Barriers to Change:
Agencies and Organizations
 Clients perceived only as “needy”
 Talents, skills, gifts, and abilities to solve community
problems unrecognized
 Program theory / design based on middle class mindset
 Organizational change difficult
© aha! Process, Inc.
Motivation
GOAL:
 The participant makes the argument
for change, not the mentors.
STRATEGY:
 Help them to understand the degree
of discrepancy between the current
behavior and the future story.
© aha! Process, Inc.
Summary
 We were made by God for relationships…it’s how we
live out our love for God
 We need to be like Jesus: accepting and nonjudgmental
 Developing a significant relationship of mutual respect
with someone in poverty will require us to be flexible
and adapt to our differences
Hope in Action…ending poverty through systemic change
Key Points
 Be aware of the barriers to escaping poverty
 Understand the Stages of Change
 Encourage, Coach, Empower
Hope in Action…ending poverty through systemic change