Three times a year I conduct retreats for women focused on success. These women are smart, capable business owners and professionals. They are women who are self-aware and create based on who they are and what they value. Sounds perfect but it is not that easy.
The next retreat is in about ten days. About this time before a retreat I start to receive calls from a couple of women who registered months ago that suddenly need to cancel. It happens each and every time so what is going on.
To create our vision of success takes great courage. Simply wanting something is easy because wanting does not require action, change or commitment. It is a dream or a fantasy. Being determined to create your vision of success is very different. It requires courage and the willingness to allow change.
When I tell women this retreat is a time away, a chance to clear your thinking, reconnect with who you are at your core, to renew and be inspired they are all in. Women sign up! Over the next few weeks, I ask them to take the time to write what they value as a foundation for the work they will do that the retreat. Stating their values is not so hard so they are still in.
About two weeks before the retreat I ask them to write their goals for coming to the retreat. This question starts a growth period. A growth periods means they start to experience the shift in them that will move them from where they are to where you want to be. It is uncomfortable.
It is easier to stay where we are than to create change so while the retreat sounded wonderful from a female perspective, beautiful house with views of the beach and the ocean… The reality of creating change can feel overwhelming.
This simple question, what is your goal for this retreat, is not as big as what is your goal for your life. The question still creates a visceral reaction, fear and uncertainty. For most of our life we live a routine day-to-day and it is not until we stop, retreat and reflect that we make any significant changes.
These retreats are designed to shake us out of our routine, to open our awareness and get us back on track to create what we truly desire. The retreat sounds wonderful, but it takes great courage to break routines and create change. Do we have the courage to change?
When I hear women say they cannot come to the retreat because their dog will miss them, they have to get their nails done, cannot get away from work and other not important reasons I know they are in a growth period. Most often they get through it so they can retreat and create that vision that made them sign up in the first place.
The power of a group of women coming together in support of each of us achieving our vision of success is powerful, and women can feel that in them weeks before the experience of it. It is the energy of all the women in support of each other before the retreat that makes it possible. It is the power of women in agreement that helps us move from where we are to where we want to be. Some changes need a stronger energy support than others so a group of women adds that power of energy.
I held a meeting of one of the boards I sit on. It was the first meeting of the board and as president it is my job to bring the board together. It is an all women board of capable, strong, experienced women. I let the power of women coming together in support and agreement to set the tone of the meeting. Not only did we do the work of the board but we supported each other personally and professionally offering our best counsel to each other. Everyone walked away renewed and inspired by the power of women supporting women.
Notice for yourself your willingness to create change, not just want it but determined to create it. Finally, create a way to come together with other women focused on supporting each other in achieving their vision of success.
Best wishes, Kay