Frequently Asked Questions
Below are some of the most common questions we receive about Oren’s online communication courses. Click a question below to jump to that place on this page, or scroll through at your leisure.
general questions
bundles (2023-24 “Say What You Mean” series)
discounts & scholarships
credits & Certificate
course logistics
Do I need Oren’s book “Say What You Mean” for these courses? Do the courses come with the book?
How much of the course is taught by Oren and how much by the course assistants?
I understand this is a live course – what will the class size be?
I have to miss a few of the sessions. Will they be recorded?
If I can’t attend live and watch the recordings instead, will I still be able to ask questions?
what’s included
Does the course include anything else other than the weekly sessions?
How much time will it take me to participate in the course each week?
refunds
registration
PREREQUISITES
Great question! Each of Oren’s courses covers different material. Here is a breakdown of what is covered in each of Oren’s current online courses:
Say What You Mean, Part I: This course covers Chapters 1 - 9 of Oren’s book. It includes foundational material on presence, relational awareness, intention, listening, and empathy. (It is equivalent to the first 7 weeks of Oren’s previous 12-week course and would be mostly review for those who have taken the 12-week course.) This course will likely be offered again in the fall of 2024.
Say What You Mean, Part II: Part II will be offered Thursday, January 18 - March 14, 2024, from 4:00 - 5:30 PT / 7:00 - 8:30 ET, and will cover chapters 10 - 14 of Oren's book. It provides additional material and guidance on integrating the tools into your conversations and relationships. Part II has a prerequisite: you must have taken SWYM Part I, Oren’s previous 12-week SWYM course, or have equivalent training in Nonviolent Communication. See here for more on prerequisites for Part II.
Say What You Mean, Part III — Authentic Communication: This course is an in-depth exploration of tools for self-expression, including material on setting boundaries, working with anger, and apologies/repair. Oren’s next Authentic Communication course will be offered as Part III of the Say What You Mean series, Thursdays from April 4 - May 30, 2024. There is no pre-requisite for Part III.
Wise Speech: The Wise Speech course is a six-week introduction offered by donation in the summer through Barre Center for Buddhist Studies, and includes a focus on Buddhist theory and practice. Dates for 2024 are Tuesday June 18 - July 23, 9:15am - 11:00am PT.
A “bundle” means that you are registering for multiple courses at one time. Part I has already occurred, so you may register for Parts II and III together at a discounted rate.
Bundles may not be combined with other discounts or scholarships. If you need a scholarship, please see our scholarship info and register for each course separately. Please email us if you have questions about bundles.
No. Bundle discounts are only available if you register for both courses in advance now. It cannot be applied retroactively.
No, we only offer bundle discounts if you pay up front. If you need a payment plan or a scholarship to provide a discounted rate, you can still do this on a course-by-course basis. Please see our scholarship info page for more information.
Discounts are available when you take the course with one or more people. Note that this only applies when registering for any single eight-week course (not as part of a multiple course bundle). Receive $25 off when you register with a friend by selecting the Buddy Rate. Receive $50 off when you register with a group of 4 or more by selecting the Group Rate. You do not need to register together — that is, each person in your group / buddy can register and pay separately using the discounted rate. We offer this on an honor system. When you register, you don't need to name your buddy or those in your group, unless you are paying for more than one person (so we have the name and contact info of everyone taking the course). Email us if you have questions.
Yes, as long as the course hasn’t started we are happy to process a partial refund and honor the buddy rate! We’re glad to do this, as we encourage friends, colleagues, family members to take the course together. Many people find great benefit in their relationships when they share the training.
Yes. We’re committed to making these tools and training available to everyone regardless of their ability to pay. Scholarships are offered on a self-selected honor system. Click here for more information on scholarships.
We are happy to have people retake the course as many times as they want. The Say What You Mean courses have all been live, so each course is a little different each time, reflecting the questions specific participants ask as well as the overall cumulative feedback from past participants. (In the future, Oren will only be offering these courses as pre-recorded sessions; this is the last year they will be offered live.)
There is no special discount for taking a course again. However, if you need a scholarship, please see our scholarship page for more information. Another option is for you to repeat the older version of the course by using your lifetime access to the materials for the course you already took, for example rewatching those recordings and following the homework / recommended reading materials. If you’re not sure how to access that old course webpage, please email us.
We offer Professional Teacher Credits for these courses, but are no longer offering CEC (Continuing Education Credits) for mental health practitioners, nurses, or coaches. Please see here for complete information on Continuing Education.
To obtain a Certificate of Completion, you must attend all classes (live or listen to the recordings) and complete all reading and practice assignments within sixty days of the course closing date. See our Continuing Education page for details on how to request your certificate.
You DO need a copy of Oren’s book for Part I and Part II, as each week is based on reading from it. However, the book is not provided with the course as we do not have the means or infrastructure to purchase, fulfill, and ship orders of Oren’s book. You can buy Oren’s book online or from a local bookstore, or check it out from your local library. The book is NOT required for Part III, though we recommend reading it to support your learning.
The course is taught entirely by Oren, with ample opportunities for coaching and personal exchanges. The course assistants’ role is to provide extra support with written correspondence via Q&A in the online group forum between sessions.
We don’t know how many people will register, but Oren’s online classes have become quite popular and we expect at least 350 people to enroll in this course (though not everyone can come to the live calls). Based on the combination of live Q&A plus written correspondence between sessions, most people who have taken Oren’s courses report feeling satisfied with the opportunities for support, coaching, and practice. However, if you are seeking a small, intimate learning environment, you may want to find a different class or join Oren for another event with a smaller group, like one of his meditation retreats or weekend workshops.
Yes. All of the live sessions will be recorded and available for viewing after each session (recordings are posted within one to two days).
You will have indefinite access to all audio and video recordings, handouts, and guided meditations.
Yes! You can ask questions any time during our course through the (optional) online forum. For the entire 9-week period the course is running, and one week afterwards, this forum is monitored by Oren and our highly trained course assistants. During that time you may post questions to the forum and either Oren or a course assistant will respond. The online forum remains open indefinitely after the course concludes so you can connect or discuss your practice with other participants. However, once the course closes, Oren and the assistants will stop monitoring the forum and be unable to respond to questions.
Yes - you can join the live calls on your laptop, mobile device, or by dialing in by phone. For laptop and mobile you will need to download the Zoom app (instructions will be provided). For phone, depending on where you are located, it may or may not be a toll-free call.
Yes. In addition to the live 90-minute sessions, each week includes: a handout from Oren with a written reflection, suggestions for practice, additional reading/references, and optional interactive exercises with a buddy. Some weeks include audio for guided meditations. Every week includes optional online correspondence in the course forums.
That’s entirely up to you. The minimum amount of time suggested is 90 minutes for the weekly sessions. We recommend spending 1-2 additional hours each week reading Say What You Mean, and doing the practices. Some participants may choose to spend more or less time depending on their schedule. The course provides materials for up to 3-4 hours total of practice and study each week.
We offer refunds only if you cancel before the course begins. There are no refunds after the course begins. Since all sessions are recorded and available for viewing afterwards, we encourage you to stay in the course and view (or listen) to the sessions on your own schedule. If you would still like to cancel, you may do so as long as we receive your request before the course begins, less a $35 administrative fee.
We offer refunds only if you cancel before a course begins. This applies when you register for multiple courses at one time as well. For example if you registered for Parts II and III and you cancel before either of them starts, you would get a full refund for your bundled rate, minus a $35 administrative fee. If you registered for a bundle and you want to cancel after Part II has already started but before Part III starts, we would review your situation and decide your refund request on a case-by-case basis (the most likely outcome is that we would offer you a refund for the components of the bundle that haven’t started yet, less the full tuition for the courses you have taken).
Registration for Part II closes at 12:00pm Pacific Time on Wednesday, January 31st.
While we would love to find a way to accommodate more people’s scheduling needs, the limits of Oren’s personal and family schedule are such that it’s not sustainable right now to offer a multi-week course at another time/day. We are aware that this means certain time zones are unable to attend live and regret the impact of this. Many people have reported that watching the recordings as soon as they are posted provides a rich learning experience and that the online group forum enhances the sense of community and connection. In future this course will only be offered via pre-recorded webinars, to offer more flexibility for people to watch the webinars at whatever time works for them.
Because Part II is not an introductory level course, to register you must have taken either one of Oren’s communication trainings (a previous “Say What You Mean” course, the BCBS “Wise Speech” online course, the Mindful Communication: Wise Speech retreat, the Living Peace retreat, or the BayNVC Immersion Program), OR have equivalent training in Nonviolent Communication. Any 6-8 week course or multi-day intensive that provides at least 9 hours of training in Nonviolent Communication, with an experiential practice component, is sufficient. Reading books, academic study of NVC, attending a daylong workshop, or other forms of learning that either aren't at least 9 hours of training or don't have an experiential component do not meet the prerequisite for this course.
Part II begins with chapter 10 of Say What you Mean, and will build on earlier chapters of the book. If you haven’t read the book before, we strongly encourage you to read chapters 1-9 on your own, ideally before the course begins or within the first two weeks of class.
If you have done at least 9 hours of training in Nonviolent Communication that included an experiential practice component, then you meet the pre-requisite for Part II. If you have no previous experience with Oren as a communication teacher, we encourage you to read chapters 1-9 of “Say What You Mean” before Part II starts. Those chapters are foundational material that will not be covered in Part II (which focuses on chapters 10-14 of Oren’s book).