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The Art of Gathering Digital Course

The Art of Gathering digital course is a 6-week learning experience created to guide you through the process of planning and hosting intentional gatherings — for special occasions, in the workplace, or in your communities. 

Group rates are available! Click Here for more information.

Count Me In!

A "Pay What You Can" Option is available quarterly, starting this February 6th. Please apply by clicking here.

Image of Priya Parker's Art of Gathering Course
Priya teaching a workshop.

What is the Art of Gathering?

How we gather shapes the world we want to live in. Yet, much of our time together is spent on autopilot. We often find ourselves in uninspiring moments that fail to capture us or connect us to one another.

The Art of Gathering is a framework of practical lessons, inspiring ideas, and real-world applications to help you transform the way you spend your time with and for your people.

It’s the start of a lifelong practice that instills in you a curiosity, willingness, and a generosity of spirit to ask: How might I do this differently?

What Will I Learn?

"Priya's gathering framework has helped me to see opportunities for reimagining human connection everywhere — from team meetings to political rallies — including settings that I wouldn't have traditionally thought of as gatherings.”

 

~ Katie R., Nonprofit Student Leadership Summit

"I work in a public school system coordinating professional learning for our staff of 500 certified teachers. Priya’s course encouraged me to (re)consider who my audience is and design accordingly. The learnings heavily impacted how I’ve started to plan events, large and small, throughout the school year."

 

~ Elizabeth M., Back to School Event

"I loved how well organized this course was and how in-depth the material went. I was using this course for a monthly gathering I host but the skills I developed will be transferable for every gathering, large and small, from here on out."

 

~Jodi O., Leadership Conference

"This course reinvigorated and inspired me to find ways to make meetings and other gatherings more intentional. The idea of connecting people without making people change or having to be similar to connect really resonated with me. The materials and discussions were practical and I think this is applicable/useful is so very many contexts. I think the course is good for both personal and business-related work and could help people build up broadly useful skills (it certainly has helped me!)."

Photo of Priya Parker

Meet Your Teacher

Hi! I’m Priya Parker. I’m a facilitator, strategic advisor, and the author of The Art of Gathering: How We Meet and Why It Matters.

I’ve spent my life studying and experiencing when, how, and why groups come together…and when, how, and why they come apart.

My mission is to help you take a deeper look at how to create collective meaning in modern life without all having to be the same. One gathering at a time.

Photo of Priya Parker

Is The Art of Gathering right for me?

The Art of Gathering is designed to help you create and host meaningful gatherings whether at work, with friends, or in your community. The diverse range of lessons and real-world examples will help you unlock creativity in how you define your gathering need, as well as in your planning and design.

People in a virtual meeting.

Gathering at Work
Improve how you spend time with your teams. Design for effective and enjoyable in-person and virtual moments in the workplace.

Examples include: meetings, retreats, workshops, and conferences.

Photo of a wedding trestle.

Special Occasions
Reimagine traditional event and occasion formats to shape memorable group experiences that are important to you.

Examples include: weddings, baby showers, holidays, and life milestones.

Photo of an outdoor table.

Community Gatherings
Elevate your next formal get-together to bring meaning and connection amongst friends, family, and your communities.

Examples include: dinner parties, books clubs, neighborhood and school events.

Sample Use-Case: Reimagine Your Wedding Day

Create an experience that reflects the celebration you crave for your big day.

 

The Art of Gathering Digital Course helps you go beyond your color scheme and floral arrangements (of course, those can be important too) and focus on what makes your wedding day buzz with energy and meaning.

With this framework, you’ll learn to:

  • Define your purpose for the day. (Even the most traditional of occasions require us to ask ourselves: Why are we coming together now, in this way, with these people?)
  • Understand the magic equation of your party size and event space, and why that matters for connection.
  • Determine who should be on the guest list (and just as important, who to leave off).
  • Create a compelling invitation that sets clear expectations and primes your guests.
  • Infuse moments of connection for your guests to plug into — and avoid leaving your guests to fend for themselves.
  • Help your guests feel seen and valued as they enter and leave the event…and so much more.

Sample Use-Case: The Year of More Effective Meetings

Time is precious for the people on your teams.

 

The Art of Gathering Digital Course will help you and your teams design and lead recurring meetings in a way that encourages effectiveness, inclusivity, and connection.

Strengthen your teams, one recurring meeting at a time. With this framework, you’ll learn to:

  • Define why you’re meeting now and who should be involved.
  • Navigate the physical space, virtual space, and hybrid combinations.
  • Create a compelling agenda that sets clear expectations.
  • Build empathy and infuse moments of connection amongst meeting attendees.
  • Step in and keep the overtalkers and derailers at bay…and so much more.

Sample Use-Case: The Well-Defined Team Retreat

Create an energizing and supportive environment for your teams to come together.

 

The Art of Gathering Digital Course helps set you and your team up for a fresh, inventive team retreat or offsite that is clear, relevant, and fun.

Give your team something to look forward to. With this framework, you’ll learn to:

  • Define and communicate why you’re bringing your team together. Are you treating your staff to a relaxing getaway or spending time getting to know one another? Celebrating or strategizing? Letting your hair down or embarking on a creative brainstorm?
  • Understand the magic equation of your team size and retreat space, and why that matters for connection.
  • Create a compelling invitation that creates buy-in and sets clear expectations.
  • Infuse moments of connection for the group to plug into to build empathy and understanding amongst the team.
  • Open and close your retreat in a way that helps people feel seen and valued.
  • Use your power to pivot when the unexpected happens or when the skeptics try to derail…and so much more.

Sample Use-Case: The Milestone Birthday

Birthday parties can be more than just celebrating “another year”.

 

Milestones — birthdays, anniversaries, showers, retirement, or funerals — are moments to celebrate and honor someone we care about. Yet, too often, we go through the same old motions and fall short of celebrating the guest of honor in a meaningful way.

The Art of Gathering Digital Course will help you turn that milestone birthday from just another year into an occasion to remember.

Let there be cake and connection. With this framework, you’ll learn to:

  • Define why you’re celebrating this milestone. (Hint: It’ll be much more than just “Because it’s my birthday”).

  • Understand the magic equation of your party size and space, and why that matters for connection.

  • Create a playful and compelling invitation that lets people know what’s expected and how to show up.

  • Design moments of connection you and your guests can plug into to avoid leaving everyone to their own devices.

  • Help your guests feel seen and valued as they enter and leave the party…and so much more.

What You'll Learn - The Art of Gathering Curriculum

Lesson One Graphic Image, Collection of Shapes.

Lesson One: Determine why you're really gathering.

Learn to define your need, create a purpose to address that need, and why it’s important.

Lesson Two Graphic Image, Collection of Shapes.

Lesson Two: Shape how you spend your time together.

Evaluate how to add a bit of structure to your gathering and what factors to consider when planning your activities.

Lesson Three Graphic Image, Collection of Shapes.

Lesson Three: Create a compelling invitation.

Move beyond logistics and craft a persuasive invitation that intrigues your guests and sets everyone up for success.

Lesson Four Graphic Image, Collection of Shapes.

Lesson Four: Open with a memorable welcome.

​​Create a powerful welcoming moment for your guests to orient them to your gathering’s purpose and to each other.

Lesson Five Graphic Image, Collection of Shapes.

Lesson Five: Design and host for connection.

What is the role of a host?
Embrace your power as a host and design for connection.

Lesson Six Graphic Image, Collection of Shapes.

Lesson Six: Own your power as the host.

Avoid underhosting. Create playful rules and structure to protect your guests and purpose from being derailed.

What to Expect

Across six weeks, Priya will guide you through the six core elements of artful gathering to help you take simple, concrete steps that make a powerful impact on how you bring your people together.

What to Expect

Across six weeks, Priya will guide you through the six core elements of artful gathering to help you take simple, concrete steps that make a powerful impact on how you bring your people together.

I'm Ready to Get Started

Step One: 

Choose a Gathering.

This course walks you through planning a gathering that's important to you at home, at work, or in your community. This can be for an ongoing gathering you’re trying to fix or upgrade or a one-time moment that feels higher stakes. If you don't have a gathering in mind, we'll provide you with some options!

Step Two: 

Establish a weekly learning schedule.

Each weekly lesson includes digestible pre-recorded videos, a digital and printable handbook for notetaking and planning, relevant case studies to inspire, and supporting resources to explore. The course is designed for flexibility: You will choose a regular day and time that works for you to dedicate to the weekly digital lesson.

 

Step Three: 

Attend quarterly office hours.

Priya will be conducting quarterly office hours to go over the most pertinent issues facing the community. We'll review your comments and questions, and may even reach out to you to build rich case studies for these live events. The first call will be in March, details to come.

 

Step Four: 

Continue to practice.

Gathering is a practice to nurture and refresh. Not every gathering you plan will follow the same format. Return to the material as often as necessary. It’s an invaluable reference as you continue to shape new and creative ways of spending time with your people.

Let's Get Started

Approach Your Next Gathering With Confidence, Creativity, and Intention 

Once you sign up, you will receive a confirmation email with some tips on how to get started. You will gain immediate access to Lesson 1 with all of the related resources, as well as Lessons 5 and 6 in case you want to skip ahead to learn more about the role of the host.

We offer three ways to join. A one-time payment of $397 for the 6-week training. We also have an installment plan of $144/mo for 3 months. Finally, if you are part of a group and would like to take the course together, click here to learn more. Discounted needs-based seats are also made available quarterly. See below for more information.

1-Time Payment

$397

One time payment of $397 for immediate access.

Let's Begin!

Other Payment Options

Pay in Installments

$144/mo

3 Monthly Payments

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Groups

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Needs-Based Discount

Everyone has the ability to gather well. You don’t need to be an extrovert or have a fancy house, it’s a set of skills anyone can learn. Let the Art of Gathering be your guide.

If cost is a factor, we want to help. We are offering a limited number of "Pay What You Can" spots each quarter. The current deadline to apply is June 31. Please fill out our application here.

Apply Here

Frequently Asked Questions

Don't see your question answered here? Contact us for more information.