Donna Frost

Chapter 7 220 Figure 7 . 3 ‘There is a lot of potential, but a lot can go wrong’ (Lilian-NPI-Mtg 7 -Rec 3 of 4 & photo 016 ) Realizing that developing this kind of practicewas within our sphere of influence put pressure on us, in some ways, to ‘not drop the ball’. A big part of the learning curve around this milestone was thus learning to be honest and critical about our own practice, and what we ‘uncovered’ or ‘discovered’ there, without being damaging to ourselves or becoming paralyzed by the fear of not achieving our own standards. Recognising the professional artistry and potential for professional artistry in our practice meant learning to value both what was already present and what could yet ‘become’. As well, it meant accepting our own capacity and responsibility to develop and influence this kind of practice further. Recognising professional artistry and potential for it in our practice: helpful strategies Therewere a number of strategies that we found helpful in the process of coming to value our own practice as demonstrating professional artistry. They are described here in three clusters. Firstly, creating conditions and offering a structure for looking at, describing and experiencing practice situations honestly. Secondly, paying attention to the experience of coming to understand practice in this way. Lastly, working with a facilitator who is able to provide both challenge and support. The CCCI framework, and in particular the lemniscate investigative cycle, provided the general structure and helped with creating the conditions. The particular features that were helpful in this stage included the attention paid to different kinds of knowledge and ways of knowing and the protected moments of individual and