Setlabothja and eMalahleni Takes The Challenge

For the month of November PULSE has been visiting the field bands in eMalahleni and Setlabotjha and giving them an opportunity to work on different topics related to holistic health. We are running a programme called “The Challenge”, developed by previous PULSE teams, where the aim is to challenge the tutor team in terms of creativity, planning and teamwork. The tutor team in turn will challenge the members with new activities and new experiences. Every week we work on one topic, and our first session was focused on “Motivation”. The discussion revolved around the questions “Why is motivation important?” and “What motivates you?”. Through the discussions we learned that different things motivate us, and that this is valuable to remember in our work as a team. We also had a chance to reflect upon how we can use this new knowledge when working with the members. Motivation is something we should strive to give to the members as it plays a part in members mental health. Motivation gives you a will and the energy to work towards your goals, as well as the feeling of the goals being within your reach. In turn this leads to feelings of mastering and meaning. The rehearsals were energetic and lively, and the tutors talked with the members and contributed to reflection on the days topic.

A young girl is given the challenge of conducting a group of musicians

From the tutor session from before the rehearsal

The following weeks the topics included self-esteem, mastering, support and meaning. These topics are all related to facets of holistic health. The field bands aim for their rehearsals to be a safe place to be. A place where you experience mastering through learning how to play an instrument. It’s a place where you find confidence in yourself, and that gives you a meaningful activity that contributes to building resilience in handling other parts of your life. In “The Challenge” we help the tutors to focus specifically on these aspects of the music activity, and give tools to improve their members mental and social health.