The Leader can lead the circle alone or alongside a co-Leader. One of the most important responsibilities for the Leader/s is the commitment to follow through and convene the circles. As a Leader, you can find our Toolkit, that will help you on your journey to engaging your participants and facilitating an inclusive session. You will also find sample agenda and other tips that may be relevant, including the core curriculum.
To give you a sense of the curriculum of ‘Invest for Better Climate EU’ take a look at the topics covered, which are accompanied with worksheets and other helpful resources you can explore during your circle sessions. You can choose to focus on only one topic in more depth, or follow the entire curriculum at your own pace.
Circle Members can be drawn from your existing networks of friends, acquaintances, colleagues, family, and friends. The composition of the groups is an important element in bringing a broader range of perspectives into the group experience (diversity across age, ethnic background, wealth level, professional experience, etc.). Some circles may also wish to focus on the needs of a particular demographic like young professionals for example.
Depending on whether you wish to host the circle meetings virtually or in-person, you could utilise various free platforms to do so. When reaching out to acquire new circle participants, you should set the parameters (such as expected time commitment, proposed dates etc.) and mention what the participant should expect (opportunity to hear from experts, ask questions, share educational resources and ideas with broader group of like-minded retail investors).
Similar to ‘Let’s get to know each other’ activities, talking about money is a sensitive topic in many cultures so it’s best practice to do another activity to establish a sense of safe space amongst attendees before inviting them to open up on this topic.