As I look back at the year and start making plans for 2020, I can’t help but feel SO unbelievably proud of everything my team and I have been able to accomplish this year. Specifically when it comes to successfully hosting of not one but TWO amazing retreats for creative entrepreneurs! Just last month, my biz bestie, Jordan Jones, and I wrapped up our second annual Move Mountains Retreat retreat together in the beautiful Keene, New Hampshire.
When Jordan and I first started talking about hosting a retreat together, we kept coming back to the idea of “playing small” and the challenge of constantly feeling like you are “working in” your business instead of “working on” it. So we decided to create a retreat that focused on helping creative entrepreneurs take their business to the next level and grow their influence in an achievable and scalable way.
This retreat has such an important place in my life and business. Because it’s not just about the content, it’s about connecting with other creatives who understands you and supports you in pivoting, growing and transforming your business!
So today, I want to give you a FULL rundown of all the amazing happenings that took place at the fall Move Mountains Retreat in Keene, NH! And of course, give a special shout out to all of the team members & sponsors that made another successful retreat possible!
Oh hey, girl, I see you. Are you wondering how you can register to be on the waitlist for next year’s retreat? I’ve got you – just CLICK HERE to head over to the event page and register for the Spring 2020 waitlist!
Our First Day in Keene
Our drive to Keene was a fall lover’s dream! All of the leaves were in the peak of changing to deep reds, burnt orange, and spots of yellow. It was the perfect way to start our first day of the retreat! And best of all, we arrived at our beautiful home for the week. Tucked in on 3 acres of land was this stunning mid-century colonial home surrounded by old oak trees and falling leaves. We giddily ran through the house, checking out every perfectly decorated room and all of the cozy spaces we would be hosting the attendees in that week (and oh my gosh, did I mention the kitchen!?). We could not wait for the attendees to arrive and get started!
For each of the attendees, we created a custom welcome bag with some fun goodies that were personalized to them and their business. Each attendee received one goal sheet and one book based on what they told us in their pre-event questionnaire. Jordan and I LOVED picking out a book for each attendee – it was so fun to think about what they needed most in their business and give them a special little treat to help push them along.
We spent the rest of the afternoon sipping our iced coffees and excitedly running around the house getting everything set for their arrival. The prep morning is seriously one of my favorite parts of this experience. Everyone on the team has the biggest smile on their faces as we get everything set for the attendees. We’ve spent months and many hours leading up to this day so there is no better feeling when the day finally arrives and we get to share your passions and expertise with another group of amazing entrepreneurs!
For this retreat, we decided to format the first evening a little different. We wanted the first night to be all about getting settled, meeting the other attendees, eating a yummy dinner and just relaxing! Once everyone arrived, we all mingled around the house, said hello to old friends, hugged and chatted with new friends and really just started to set the stage for the week ahead. And after a delicious welcome dinner in the dining room, we moved everyone to the living room where we planned to have all of the talks take place.
We wanted to start the retreat off by having everyone introduce themselves and share one thing that they were currently struggling with as a business owner. Cuddled up in blankets on the couches, everyone went around in a circle and shared their story. It was such a beautiful way to start the retreat. We were so grateful for how open and honest everyone was willing to be, making it really feel like a supportive community of people around you right off the bat. For 5 hours (yes, 5 hours) we hung out together, shared stories, listened and gave everyone the space to be heard. It was absolutely amazing!
Interested in attending the next Move Mountains Retreat, CLICK HERE to join the waitlist for the 2020 Move Mountains Retreat!
Laura’s Day of Teaching
Our day started with a cozy, chilly morning in the house sipping coffee and hanging out on one of the many comfy couches in the house. Since yesterday was a travel day, we wanted everyone to have slow morning and get themselves settled in to our new home for the week. We had a yummy, nutritious breakfast, sponsored by Honeybook, before heading into the living room for a full day of workflows, systems, time management and more!
Before I dove into the heavy, taskbased content, I wanted to start the day off with a mindset shift. I wanted the attendees to really focus on what their limited beliefs were about being a business owner and more importantly growing their business to the next level. Too often we hold ourselves back with our own limiting beliefs about what our potential is and never break out of playing small in our industry. So what I really wanted to focus on during my day of teachings was not just systems or workflows, but also about making a bigger impact and realizing the full potential of their business.
Your beliefs are going to be what holds you back or what causes a breakthrough in your business… remember to be in control of your own success.
Gosh, I could write for hours on all of this. I really believe in this shift in mindset because it is what sets a successful business owner apart from the rest of the world at the end of the day. And I really wanted to stress this with our attendees. We explored this content together for almost 2 hours before diving into the rest of my planned content for the day. And that was perfect! I just loved how everyone shared openly and honestly about their own limiting beliefs and also tuned in carefully to the limiting beliefs of others. It left us with open hearts and minds heading into the rest of the content for the day.
As our day came to a close, it was time to put the notebooks down and enjoy our evening in Keene. The weather was absolutely perfect with perfect evening temperatures for a bonfire and smores! After our a-mazing taco bar and sangria dinner, we all headed out to the firepit and cozied up by the bonfire. Can you just look at this adorable photo of Jordan and Ellie at her first bonfire!? I just love these two! After lots of smores, laughs, and heart to hearts by the fire, it was time to head in and get some rest for another full day of teaching tomorrow!
Interested in attending the next Move Mountains Retreat, CLICK HERE to join the waitlist for the 2020 Move Mountains Retreat!
Jordan’s Day of Teaching
There is nothing better than waking up in your bed, waking downstairs in your leggings and having a private yoga instructor waiting for you in the living room! I mean, c’mon, can this be my life everyday? After a relaxing yoga class in the living room, everyone grabbed a quick breakfast and headed back into the living room to start Jordan’s full day of teaching!
Everyone was eager to learn from Jordan, especially the attendees who were gearing up to launch a new product or service before the end of the year. Jordan is seriously a marketing strategy guru! I loved how she started by stressing the importance of having an authentic brand in order to run a successful marketing campaign. I think this is such an important take away! Before you can really start to grow your influence and break out of the cycle of playing small, you need to first understand and define your brand identity, your business vision and your goals for the future of your business.
There is SO much amazing content to highlight from Jordan’s day of teaching. She really dove in deep and covered some of the key marketing essentials. Everything from email marketing strategy to funnels to revenue streams to implementing tech and so much more! Watching all the attendees soak in all of her wisdom and knowledge about these topics just makes me so proud to call her my co-host for these retreats!
After Jordan finished her last session, it was time to get out of the house and go for a walk through the woods! We could not have asked for better weather! And best of all, it was the peak of fall in New Hampshire and all of the leaves were turning beautiful shades of yellow, orange and red. Going on a group hike was exactly what we needed. Just hitting a hard reset button, getting away from our computers, and getting some much needed fresh air and leg stretching! Best of all, we were welcomed back to the house at sunset to a full Italian night dinner complete with a full build your own pasta bar. Yum!
Okay, this is seriously the highlight of the day for me! After dinner (yes, after dinner at like 8:30 pm) multiple attendees approached Jordan and I asking if we could do some late night sessions on the topics that we weren’t able to cover during our daytime sessions. Are you kidding me?! Women after my own heart! Ready and eager to soak up as much content as possible at the retreat, even if it meant staying up past midnight, cuddled up in blankets on the floor of the living room! This was just incredible to experience and I am so grateful for all of the ladies who stayed up late with me to learn more about implementing Asana in their business <3
Mastermind and Farewell
We started our final day with a much slower pace, letting all the ladies who stayed up late get a few extra minutes of sleep before we did a full day of Masterminding. After a delicious breakfast with fresh, local bagels and some beautiful headshots in the garden, it was time to dive in one last time!
After getting to know all of the attendees and finding out exactly what stage they were in with their business, we decided to split the group into two different mastermind sessions. This was also a great way for people to have a little more time to discuss and flesh out some of the ideas that had been running through their minds the last few days (and even weeks)! I love masterminding! It creates a space for people to open up, share ideas, share limiting beliefs, get support from others, and really make an action plan for next steps in their business. We decided to end the retreat with mastermind groups as a way for people to dial down their main takeaways from the retreat and really leave with a fire to start their next big idea or venture.
We closed the afternoon with one last meal together before people packed their bags and headed home. It is amazing how fast these retreats fly by! Everytime I say goodbye to the attendees and start to reflect on the recent few hours and days, I can’t help but just feel insanely grateful for everyone who walked through the doors of our retreat homes and shares themselves and their business with me and Jordan. This retreat holds such a special place in my heart and I can’t wait to start planning for next year!!
Interested in attending the next Move Mountains Retreat, CLICK HERE to join the waitlist for the 2020 Move Mountains Retreat!
A Huge Thank You to Our Sponsors
Rock Solid Virtual Assistants
I want to personally thank Rock Solid Virtual Assistants for always supporting me, my business and now the Move Mountains Retreat. This retreat would not be possible without the help of my amazing assistant, Bridget. She is by my side every step of the way, from planning all the way to the last day of the retreat (and beyond – she’s already got her timeline started for 2020!) Rock Solid Virtual Assistants is simply the best when it comes to sourcing and hiring the highest quality virtual assistants. I literally would not recommend anyone else if you are looking to hire a team member! It’s not just about having someone to help with daily operations (although, that part is amazing!) it’s also about having someone in your corner to help you push your next vision to the finish line.
P.S. Did I mention that after Bridget gave a short presentation about her experience working with Rock Solid Virtual Assistants, not one but two of the attendees sent in an application to hire a VA from Rock Solid! One of them even had a meeting with Tracy at the retreat! So amazing!
If you are interested in learning more about Rock Solid Virtual Assistants, CLICK HERE.
Photographer’s Edit
Photographer’s Edit has been a supporter of the Move Mountains Retreat from the beginning. I just love working with Nathan and his team. Not only do they provide amazing (and much needed) editing support to photographers, but they also share the same passion for running a balanced and sustainable business! I can’t stress enough the importance of outsourcing in a business. And if you are looking for a rockstar editing team who will get to know you and your editing style AND deliver amazing end product, you have to check out Photographer’s Edit.
And hooray to our two lucky attendees who received a gift certificate to put towards their account! Thank you, Photographer’s Edit!
Honeybook
The amazing team at Honeybook has also been a supporter of the Move Mountains Retreat from the beginning. There is no other CRM for creatives that I would recommend more than Honeybook (and if you follow me blog, you probably already know my love from Honeybook)! Simply put, Honeybook understands a creative business from every angle and helps you manage all of the important parts of your business in one, easy to use place!
Did we also mention that Honeybook links directly with Facebook ads?! Hello, streamlined marketing and client management! Learn more about Honeybook here!
Thank you to Honeybook for sponsoring our delicious, healthy and homemade breakfast spread during the retreat!
Flodesk
Have you ever found something that you didn’t even know you desperately needed until it fell into your lap? Yes, this is Flodesk. A new, beautifully designed email marketing platform for entrepreneurs of all types. Say goodbye to ugly, clunky templates and interfaces for email marketing and hello to this creative, easy to use platform that really meets the needs of a creative business owner. Want to learn more, click here to check out Flodesk (seriously, you have to look at their templates!)
And a special thank you to Flodesk for gifting one of our lucky attendees with a free year of Flodesk!!
Greetabl
Last but not least, I have to give a shout out to Greetabl, a beautiful little platform that allows you to design and send personalized gifts and cards to clients or the ones you love. Greetabl went above and beyond this year, sending personalized gift boxes to each of the attendees before they even arrived at the retreat! Our attendees loved them so much they had already ordered some themselves as gifts before the retreat began! A big thank you to the Greetabl team for being one of our amazing sponsors. If you want to learn more about Greetabl, click here!
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