Each year, 25 individuals from across the cultural sector take part in the Clore Fellowship - a programme of leadership development tailored to the individual. Clore Fellows take around eight months away from work to focus on their development.
One of the Clore Fellows for 2017/18 is Lindsay Dunbar, the founder of Play Pieces Arts. Play Pieces supports innovative theatre making in the Highlands, finding new ways to support makers and engage audiences. They run several lunchtime theatre seasons, site-specific theatre festivals and various performances across the Highlands.
In this blog post, Lindsay describes her experience as a fellow so far. The deadline for all Clore Fellowship 2018 applications is 12 noon, Monday 29 January, 2018.
I applied for the Clore Fellowship this time last year because basically I was having a bad day at work. I was questioning why I was doing what I was doing, who I was doing it for and where I wanted to be in the next few years. It was an answer to some of my questions, it was the perfect timing.
The application process was really straight forward and it was a great opportunity to be honest with myself about what I wanted to get out of the Fellowship and why it would make a huge difference to me and my work. I really didn’t expect to even get an interview but found the application process really helped me reflect what was going on personally and professionally.
Clore has enabled me to feel more connected with the wider cultural sector and helped me think about overcoming some of my perceived limiting beliefs about what I am able to do- Lindsay Dunbar
The Fellowship started in September with the two-week residential. This was daunting, but I was with the most fantastic cohort of creative, cultural people. I learned so much from them. There was a range of inspirational speakers, hands on workshops and a lot of reflecting on your own personal leadership style. Some of it wasn’t easy to process; it can be very intense and you learn a lot about yourself but it’s all useful. This helps you shape the rest of your Clore journey - the secondment, your mentor, how the coaching might support you and what you are really passionate about for the future.
To be given this real gift of time to reflect on how far you have come, as well as the network of support around you to help you figure out where you want to go next, is incredible. I’m just about to head off on various training courses and conferences as well as starting my secondment which will be in England. Clore has enabled me to feel more connected with the wider cultural sector and helped me think about overcoming some of my perceived limiting beliefs about what I am able to do.
If you are thinking about applying for the Fellowship, and especially if you are not, I would encourage anyone to look over the questions and just write a really honest response. They aren’t looking for the right answers or someone who knows all about leadership already. They really want to get to know you, your passions and values.
Apply to be a Clore Fellow at cloreleadership.org. The deadline for 2018 applications is Monday 29 January.
