Thanks for jumping on so quick. That's all right. Mate, you're number nine. Number nine? Yeah. Goodness me. Yeah. I was going to try and get... I had 14 names and I was going to try and get to 10, so almost there. Yeah, ticking them off. Good to see. So I usually start off with a little bit about me and why I'm on this call. So I have this place called A Curious Tractor with this fellow called Nicholas Marchese.
He's from Orange Sky, the co-founder of Orange Sky. I don't know if you know Orange Sky. Oh, yeah, the washing machine. Yeah, yeah. Yeah. So we did a project with Smart Recovery for their 20-year anniversary. I sent around a bunch of disposable cameras and did an art exhibition at the event, which was super fun. And yeah, I get to hang out with April a fair bit, and yeah, I'm a bit of a nerd myself in terms of tech.
I don't love it, I actually hate it, but I know too much about it. Speaking of a community for facilitators and so these bunch of like awesome interviews with you followers just to see like what's helpful and what's not. So the way this kind of works is I use this tool, I don't know if you've come across Notion before, but it kind of looks like this.
So essentially, I'll send this to you after the call. There's a way for you to add more comments if you want to. Your transcript will be here and so like you can edit that or change that or ask for things to be removed if you're not comfortable with them and I'll just go through a bunch of these questions.
And we'll see how we go. Does that sound all right? Sounds great. Mate, oh, so good. On a Friday afternoon almost, too, so. Yeah, this is true. Hopefully you don't have too much more after this. So yeah, first off, brother, I think we always just go to like, how did you first start to interact with SMART? And what's your sort of connection with this idea of facilitation of SMART recovery?
Yeah, I suppose my initial introduction to smart recovery was through a rehabilitation treatment that I was receiving for an AOD, which is probably It's going back about five, six years ago now. So as a participant attending SMART recovery meetings, never really sort of, I guess...
The 12-step program offered me an opportunity for connection but I didn't really resonate or gel with the fact that I was powerless about surrendering to a higher power and so on and so forth because For me, my way of looking at it was if I got myself into this situation, I therefore should be able to get myself out.
Being able to gain strategies and skills to help me to continue to move forward was something that really Sort of resonated with smart recovery and I'm probably, whilst I am in tune with my emotions, I'm a very rational person. I think a lot, and I usually try to gauge a lot of the things that I say, but a rational approach to it just made more logical sense.
to just letting what happens, happens. Yes, fast forward, attended a number of SMART Recovery meetings with the participants. Um, wife went by, um, ex-wife, children, lots of stuff. Um... It was up in North Queensland, up in Mackay. I came back from there and decided that it was time to focus on myself.
And then, was still attending Smart Recovery meetings and then got an opportunity to, to, through a scholarship, to actually become a facilitator. So I did a two-day facilitation course in Brisbane face-to-face with Dennis and Dan, which was absolutely awesome. Then.
I suppose probably sat on it for a little while, which some people, most people do. It's, it's there in the background. It's something that I can do. It's just a matter of. You don't actually gain confidence or skills until you actually apply it. And yeah, I suppose Dennis was running a men's smart recovery meeting.
through his other commitments within SMART. So it became an opportunity for me to take over that meeting. So I then took it over and ran that meeting for a number of times. For a number of probably running for about two years now on a Saturday night, but I use it as an opportunity or not so much a testing ground, but it.
It's a ground tour that offers new people and new facilitators within SMART as an opportunity to co-facilitate. I have four co-facilitators. that sort of work within the men's recovery.
Cool.
Amazing.
Yeah.
Wicked. Mate, you're going to be perfect for this. Tell me a little bit about a specific group, I guess. Almost like who attends and why do you think they attend and what you think is working super well as a facilitator at the moment.
Yeah.
And what almost triggers you to feel like you need help as a facilitator? Are there things in which triggers that for you? Where do you go to almost find that help? Do you go on the website to find tools and stuff like that? Or do you feel like you need human help?
What does that feel like for you as a facilitator, I guess?
Yep.
Yeah.
Yep.
Yep.
So.
We could, yeah.
Yep.
Yep.
Yeah.
Yep.
And then really, like, I guess, getting into more detail now, and you already brought this up, was like, Where do you go to find tools? And then do you just go to that one place to get them? And is there different places you go to get them, for the smart tools?
Oh, yeah.
Yep.
Cool.
Yep.
That's awesome. Mate, you're probably in the top 1% of that then, going to find stuff yourself. So, congratulations.
Yeah.
Yep.
Yeah.
Yep.
Yeah. So now I think we'll try.
Think about this idea of features. So
I think one thing we're really interested in is like, if there was a community space and it was kind of like a mix between this idea of like, Reddit and Discord and Facebook, whatever, like, what features would be interesting for you? And the first, like, I've just got a list if that's okay. So the first one would be direct messaging with other facilitators. Like, do you think that's something in which you would use and would be important as part of the functions?
Yeah.
Yeah.
Awesome.
Wicked.
Awesome. That's cool. Next one people are thinking about is almost like if there was webinars on there, would you engage with them and how often do you think they should happen? And webinars is the very like... If there's videos of information and facilitators are talking, is that something you would engage with? And would it be worth the resource to do that often, I guess?
Yep, maybe like once a fortnight dropping them maybe just to give you a frame.
Yeah.
Yeah.
Mm hmm.
Awesome. And what about this idea of almost refreshing knowledge, like having the ability to do your own self quizzes and self questionnaires on a platform?
Mm, yeah.
Yep.
Yeah.
Yeah, of course. Of course. Yeah.
Blah.
And this idea of dropping tools and resources every now and again, and then thinking about Is there a cadence or how often you would drop like a new one or engage people in new ones or whether it's better off just revising the ones that we already have? Because I think your
You're probably the only ones that identified of going out and finding your own stuff, which is interesting in itself. So like, do you then think people should be... notified of just new things or other things that are out there as a facilitator.
Yep.
Yep.
Yeah.
Yeah.
Yeah.
Yeah, yeah.
Totally.
Yeah, yeah It's awesome The next one's kind of like have mixed responses to this one but
Do facilitators need to know more about SMART and updates on SMART as the organisation and ask me anythings and stuff or is that seen as like promotion or whatever, like where would you sit with wanting to know more about the organisation often as part of that forum?
Voila.
Yeah, so much like April gets on and ask me anything facilitators can go and ask April about the about smart recovery or smart recovery does like Monthly updates on the organisation, how it's going.
Yeah, for sure.
Yeah.
You're right there, yeah.
Hmm.
Yep.
Yep.
Yeah.
Yeah.
Yeah. Yeah.
Yeah.
Yep.
Yeah. Yeah.
There's two more main things, which is one is almost like if you're in a like a community online. Smart has a lot of different, like, focus areas. Would it be better to have those split up as those topics and focus areas? Or does that almost, like...
Yeah.
Yep.
Yeah.
Yep.
Yeah.
Yeah.
Yeah.
Yeah.
Amazing. And the last one is, you would have seen this idea of recognition, right? So, people are in forums and they do stuff. They get badges or... For high people that are using it a lot or contributing a lot. Where do you think that sits with you?
Yeah, and even like, I've done this many courses, or I've done this much reading, like, do you think that fits with Slart's like, vibe? Or is that not?
Yep.
Yeah.
Yeah. Yeah.
Mmm. Tell.
Yep.
Totally. Let's go.
It's a good reflection. A couple of bits to go. One is almost like this idea of guidelines or accepting, for lack of a better word, rules as part of your participation in the forum. When you are almost accepting you're going to participate in a certain way as part of the forum or conversations.
Cool. Amazing. Um, only a tiny bit to go. So, I think... One part of this is a question for you, which, like, the team are really interested in almost having a small group to sort of kick this off and that small group will almost be Um, participating at almost like a higher level to get this thing going. It's almost like, um, founding it and like being in there and giving feedback as this is built. And then there's almost a second tranche, which is like.
Get in there once bugs and stuff have been worked out, and then there's the final group which is like it's working and you're in there. Do you have a feeling about where you'd sit in, where you'd like to participate in that? Hope to chat with you all.
Ha ha ha! Baton!
Yeah, yeah.
Okay, cool.
Cool. Awesome.
Yeah.
And there's this idea of creating content. So being on an interview, like participating in writing something. Do you have that want to need in terms of like, is that something you'd like to do? Like if you were asked to do an int