Meet Chamilla Natasha
Chamilla Natasha Melloul Skjelstad lives in a valley surrounded by the wilderness, right outside Oslo, Norway with her partner Eivind Lentz, his two kids and their big greenland dog Nanook from Svalbard.
The wild life is a part of her lifestyle and at is easily combined with freelance life and home office. Big mooses and dears come visit their garden almost daily, and some of them even live there. Creativity and conscious values is Chamillas big passion, and for over 22 years she has primarily worked with organizations, schools and peoples creative force, talent and capital. She calls it to foster conscious creativity.
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Which team and when did you graduate?
I graduated in 1999, team 4.
What have you been doing since you graduated as a Kaospilot?
Since I graduated I have worked as a creative facilitator, educational advisor and lecturer. I was permanent employee at Westerdals Schools of Communication, Art and Technology for 17 years, now an acredited college. During these years I went from being a team leader and pedagogical supervisor, to becoming a senior advisor in pedagogy. Westerdals is a high prestige school, based on talent and in 2010, Westerdals was ranked as one of the worlds best communication schools by Young Guns Schools of the Decade. In parallel with my permanent job, I had, and still have, my own consulting company. I coach both managers, leaders and organizations in their creative development. Since 2018, I have worked freelance with my own company and my customers are primarily from the school sector and the private business sector.
A smaller and very dear part of my business is to be a life counselor and psychoherapist for individuals, primarily women, but also men and couples. I am also a women’s circle facilitator, where our main goal is to release more of the female creative power.
Since the Kaospilot I have studied different coaching programs, multi-generational trauma therapy, potential psychology (spiritual/Jungian) and university pedagogy.
What is important for you in your job?
Meaningful assignments- as in meaningful according to my values. I need to work with “high ceilings», wide perspective and space to influence creatively. I also love good teamwork, and I have been blessed with the coolest, smartest and most creative colleagues for many years, and have experienced that even with poor management you can thrive at work if you have a strong team around you. On the practical side, I am a “doer” so I love effective communication that gives concrete and often visible results. After I become my own boss full time,I strive to live as I learn and aim for a life where both body, mind and soul receive equal attention.
What major learnings would you point out from your experience that have shaped you as a leader?
I have experienced many types of leaders in my career, and I have learned and modeled and been inspired by some of them, but negative learning is often just as valuable. I have been lucky to have many strong creative women around me, but I am also completely dependent on inspiration from international environments and sources, so I draw a lot from the world around me, from my travels in previous years and in recent years the journey has become more digital or deep diving in literature. Thank God for books and technology.
What is your biggest source for inspiration right now?
Nanook, my big kind wolf from Svalbard. He is very sensitive and needs a very gentle leadership from me. He also needs me to be totally present, so I just love what he brings out in me.
Nature have been my biggest source for inspiration for many years now. I think and create best when I am camping or hiking outside.
The spiritual side of life, has also been a major field of inspiration for many years, and I see more and more that the holistic, spiritual values are being nurtured in the innovative companies. I just love it.
The coaching I got from Uffe Elbæk himself will always stay with me. He managed in his own unique way to hit a nerve in me, and “predict” my future…
What would be an example of a learning or an experience from your time at Kaospilot that has been important to you?
The coaching I got from Uffe Elbæk himself will always stay with me. He managed in his own unique way to hit a nerve in me, and “predict” my future, and since I believed in him, he was right. A kind of self-fulfilling prophecy I guess.
The whole year (Outpost, red.) in San Francisco was a big game changer for me. There was something about the vibe throughout California culture in the golden years of the late ’90s. That year changed me enormously, and has influenced my job philosophy ever since.
I would also like to mention the teaching we had with theater educator Erik Pedersen. He’s just completely unique and he took me way out of my comfort zone, and the learning with him was deeply transformative.
What is a piece of advice that you would like to give future Kaospilots graduates?
Work with yourself, always. Do shadow work, never stop evolving. The more contact you get with your own healthy core, the more authentic and credible leader you will be to others. The world needs change makers who have dared to dive deep into their own psyche. Find YOUR values and live by them.
Create yourself a supportive network, a hub, and get together regularly to inspire and share ideas!
And do not forget your own personal creativity… remember to have hobbies just for fun, and enjoy this adventure we call life.