10 Spiritual Care Competencies
Part III in a series
Read Part I: Chaplaincy: a Calling and a Career
Read Part II: Career Support for Chaplains
Common Spiritual Care Competencies
Through your education and work in chaplaincy and spiritual care, you hone a range of competencies. Here are some examples of competencies you might have developed:
Empathy and Active Listening
Cultural Sensitivity and Inclusivity
Spiritual Assessment and Counseling
Crisis Intervention and Conflict Resolution
Ethical Decision-Making
Self-Awareness and Reflective Practice
Collaborative Teamwork
Resilience and Stress Management
Educational Skills and Teaching
Administrative and Documentation Skills
Have you thought about the competencies you’re developing and how to use them for maximum impact as a deeply engaged and fulfilled professional?
The Difference Between Skills & Competencies
You’ve probably heard the phrase “transferable skills.” This is related to competencies, but not exactly the same. While a skill is a specific learned ability, a competency is a broader set of skills, knowledge, and behaviors that enable you to perform effectively.
What Competencies Have You Developed?
Using the above list as an inspirational starting point, take a moment for some self-reflecting.
Guiding Questions
Which of these competencies have you cultivated?
Which of these competencies would you like to develop, and why?
Support to Embrace Your Competencies
It can be a challenge to figure out where and how to use your competencies to make a good living and do work that is meaningful. But you don’t have to figure it all out alone.
Through a 3-month customizable career program we are partnering with the Chaplaincy Innovation Lab to offer, you get to receive support that meets you where you are.
What Types of Work Could Be Possible?
With an increased awareness of your competencies, you can expand your awareness of what professional opportunities could be a good match for you.
You might be familiar with roles that have “Chaplain” in the title, but there are many ways to utilize your experience as a spiritual care provider to do meaningful work. Have you considered how you might continue your career as a chaplain outside the traditional "lines" of spiritual care?
Take a look at some of these positions, to which you'd bring your skills as a chaplain and care for others in new and interesting ways.
Examples of Roles and Organizations
The below descriptions include excerpts from the job postings
Executive Director, Attleboro Area Interfaith Collaborative
An organization working to alleviate hunger, promote stability, and inspire the community to thrive.
This Executive Director is responsible for the leadership, development and execution of all operations to support the success of the organization’s strategic plan and overall mission. AAIC is a small-but-might organization that employs five staff, only one of whom is full-time, the Executive Director.
Account Manager, Rocket Social Impact
A small firm supporting companies and nonprofits through every stage of their social impact journey with strategy, implementation, and communications.
This role is for a highly organized and impact-driven person with experience and interest in CSR, corporate philanthropy, purpose-driven communications and/or account management to help drive meaningful results for corporate and nonprofit clients. Seeking a knack for the details and passion for social impact.
Managing Director of Programs, Kataly Foundation
A family foundation based in the San Francisco Bay Area, is committed to supporting restorative economics, environmental justice, mindfulness and healing justice, and racial justice.
Reporting to the Chief Executive Officer, this inaugural Managing Director will employ a flexible approach to managing program needs and work alongside the program team to promote the goals of the Environmental Justice Resource Collective, Mindfulness and Healing Justice work, and the overall Capacity Building program of Kataly. Acting as a guide and partner to the leaders of each program area, the Managing Director will manage the Foundation's programmatic initiatives with the expertise needed to directly engage in program-related work as needed.
What Work Opportunities Sound Like a Good Match For You?
The above examples are meant to stimulate your thinking and help you expand your view of what could be possible.
Guiding Questions
Which of these types of roles or organizations sounds interesting to you, either for your next chapter, or for further down the road, and why?
If none of these types of roles feel like a match for you (now or later), what types of roles are you curious about?
Exploring Possible Career Directions
It’s OK if you don’t know right now what direction you’re interested in. It can be a challenge to figure out where and how to use your competencies to make a good living and do work that is meaningful. It can also be confusing how to position yourself for your target roles and organizations.
But you don’t have to figure it all out alone!
In partnership with the Chaplaincy Innovation Lab, we are offering a 3-month customizable career program, which provides you with the tools and frameworks you need to achieve progress on your goals.
Whether you already know what you’re looking for or you’re looking to increase your level of clarity, the program is designed to help you speed up your progress.
