24: Inside My First Event Business Retreat

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Kayla Worthy takes you behind the scenes of her experience at the Events Elite Retreat by Juliet Tripp. From the moments that challenged me to the conversations that shifted my perspective, I'm sharing my biggest leadership takeaways, what surprised me most, and what I'd do differently if I attended again.

Whether you're considering your first retreat or wondering how to get the most out of these experiences, I hope this honest reflection helps you invest in yourself too. 

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Feel Worthy Podcast Links: https://linktr.ee/feelworthypodcast

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Follow Kayla Worthy 

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/worthyeventscoach/ 
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kaylaworthy/ 

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Follow Juliet Tripp 

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thejuliettripp/
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/juliettripp/

Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:06

Hi everyone, welcome to an episode of the Feelworthy Podcast. I'm your host, Kayla Worthy. I'm a CMP event coach. I have had over 10 years of experience in the event industry. And this is the podcast, the space, the place where we talk about the event professional first. And it's not about talking behind their back. It's about having a conversation with event pros about event pros and making us, our lives, our day to day better in a way that we so thoughtfully put into the events that we put on. We are always spending time putting the event first, but this is the place where we put the event pro first. We're pouring into ourselves. We're getting 1% better every day. And I hope you find that space here and let your hair down. Come authentically, listen to the podcast, share your reflections with me, and we can have more of a conversation together. So today's episode is really all about that and investing in ourselves. I realized I never did a reflection of the business retreat I went on in April. And it's now June. So it's been almost two months since I went on that business retreat. And my world has forever changed. I have just been really reflecting on like how much momentum I've been having over the last few months, how many goals I've hit, how enthusiastic and focused and just really passionate about everything that I'm doing and realizing like what has changed. Stopping and asking myself, like, wait, what has happened over the last two months that maybe hasn't happened in the last six or the last maybe two years or more? I can't credit it all to the retreat, but I think a large part of how much I've been feeling motivated, how laser focused and I've been is in large due to the retreat that I went on. And I think a lot of the momentum in general I've been having over the last year or two is because of coaching I've had. I have a I have a coach. And when you think of coaching or having a coach, I think the easiest kind of parallel I can draw is if you're on a dance team, you have a coach that makes you guys better, you teaches you performances, has you execute them, encourages you, tells you when you messed up. I'm actually currently watching the latest season of Dallas Cowboy Cheerleaders, and you know, their coaches on there, giving them positive reinforcement, or I guess learning how to do that these days. If you haven't seen it, I won't spoil too much. But if you're on a basketball team, same thing, right? You have a coach that's showing you the plays, encouraging you, showing you your blind spots, and making sure that you're 1% better, 2% better every day, and is in your corn corner is in, I don't know where what accent I was having, but is in your corner and holding you accountable to the decisions that you've made and the goals that you've set. So it has profoundly changed my life. I've had mentors, I've had other colleagues, but a coach in this way has really opened up a lot of new opportunities for me. A lot of things that I didn't see for myself or didn't know were possible. And then this retreat just amplified that. So because I've had so much, I've just had such a pivotal shift in my life and my business in my professional life and my family. I want to pay that forward. In this episode, I want to talk about what it's like investing in yourself, how the retreat went. And I won't share and spill all the secrets because Juliet Tripp, who's my coach, but also the founder and creator of this retreat that I went on, she curated the space that was simply unique. Also, it was a testament to the people that she attracts in her space in her world because I just somehow the pieces fell together. And I'm sure they didn't fall together. There was a lot of thoughtful planning, there was clear intention behind what was set up. But there was also so much magic in the people that were there and the space that we were in. And maybe I'm the only one that felt that way. So, ladies, if you're listening to this who went on the retreat, let me know if I'm alone or if you agree. But it definitely felt like the right place, the right time, the right room. To the point where the windows and the doors were opening, it felt like out of the sound of music. But before I go any further, let's go in chronological order and let's go in a bit about why I'm doing this a little bit more inscripted, a little bit more conversational. I decided, well, you know, I was encouraged by my dad, who I've had on the podcast before. He suggested, why don't you do an unscripted episode about your retreat and the retreat you went on and your reflections? And then, full transparency, I was watching an episode or the full season of Perfect Match on Netflix. And this is not sponsored, I just sharing the things I like and the real things that I do in my off time. There was this guy on the show who was just himself, like goofy and funny, and he kept saying, Oh, he's not media trained, which that's fine, but he's just himself, which in a world of AI and all of these new things that are coming because of artificial intelligence, which some are really cool, some are tools that are gonna make our lives so much easier. I mean, for goodness sakes. I have installed Claude, I'm making it my chief of staff, and I believe that it is giving me hours back in my life. However, there are other things happening on the internet in the world where AI seems to be trying to replicate humans, and I don't think that that will ever 100% happen. We'll see. We have podcast proof that I said this one day. But in a world, my whole point and the whole soapbox I'm on is that in a world of AI where there's so many things that are being carefully curated and manufactured and made to be perfect and robotic, being ourselves is the number one thing that we have to differentiate us from this endless pool of technology and knowledge database that seems to feel like it's more perfect or more real than the rest of us. It's not. Being ourselves, showing our personality, not being afraid to say ums or you know what, build in public. That is where the differentiation comes. That is how we separate ourselves. And the cool part about this, the retreat that I went on, there was no way AI could replicate that. There was such an air of vulnerability, authenticity, and just like pureness of just being in a room, talking to strangers that you've never spoken to before, and coming together, laying down your walls, being in different realms of leadership, different spaces within the event industry, but uniquely understanding each other's position and sharing, supporting, coaching each other and celebrating the wins or the new achievements or the new ideas that we have that we're ready to go full on in and conquer. There's just so much authenticity and so much like passion and joy in that that goodness, AI cannot replicate. But all of that aside, I really want to talk more about this retreat so I can share my experience, my land in which I came in to this experience with, and how it profoundly has changed the way I've been working and what I've been doing. So let's go back in time a little bit to when I first saw the retreat being advertised. I honestly just kept brushing it away. I was just I just didn't think it was for me, honestly. I just kept thinking, okay, well, it's happening. I probably won't be able to go. It's in London. I'm in the US, I'm based in Charlotte, North Carolina, in case someone there's another Charlotte, which there probably is, but I'm in Charlotte, North Carolina, probably won't be able to go. It just seems like it's for other people. I kept brushing it away, brushing it away. And then I discovered that I asked one of my friends in the industry, and I will say she's become a friend now. We've spoken quite a bit since being in a program together. And I was like, wait, are you going? Are you part of the retreat? And she said, Yes, which made me think maybe, maybe it could be for me. I don't know. I she's like profound, she's levels beyond me. She's so incredible. But I was like, if she's flat traveling from the US, maybe I could travel from the US. And I didn't have as many obligations as I thought. So I just said, okay, why not apply, see what happens? And I told my husband, I'm like, I'm gonna apply for this. And if you think it's a terrible idea, let me know. But of course, he thinks it's great and he just encourages me to do it because he's extremely supportive. And I said, if I go, or if I get in, then we're we're aligned that I go and we just make we just make the plans. Like we have a child at home, he needs to be taken care of, we have a dog, like all of these things. And he's like, absolutely. So I applied. And what do you know it? What do you or don't you know it? I don't know what I'm saying, but you know what I mean. I was I got in, and once I was accepted, I was like, holy crap, I have to now make things happen. So I then started researching more and making it a reality. Started figuring out like, where do I stay? I've never been to London before. And I'm so excited by the opportunity. The event space wasn't in London proper, it was to the west of um the Heathrow Airport. So I was like, okay, well, how do I curate my journey for this? So obviously I asked for the time off because I also work in corporate and I have a full-time job. So I had to make sure that was cleared. I had to, I thankfully, have an up-to-date passport. So all of that was working out, and I was like, okay, this feels way too kismet because all of the dominoes are falling perfectly in place where I was able to take off time for work easily. I was able to have my passport already set. Um, I did all of the UK like um check-in details, and that went flawlessly. I was able to get a flight out of Orlando, so it's a short flight from here, Charlotte to Orlando, and then Orlando straight to um Heathrow, and it was all lining up so well. I built my agenda to a place where I think the retreat was on a Friday. I then made sure I arrived a full day prior to the retreat so that I had enough space and time to get there calmly, get off the airline and not feel rushed. And because I I did think about like getting there the day off, which felt way too chaotic. And as planners, you know, don't do that. So I made sure I took a night flight from Charlotte to Orlando, Orlando, straight to Heathrow, arrived the morning, the day before the retreat, had a full day to get acclimated, made sure I stay stayed awake the entire day so that I could just acclimate to the time zone. And I slept a little on the plane, so it wasn't the best sleep, but it was enough. So between lots of coffee and pure adrenaline and joy of exploring and being there, I stayed awake all day. And in those hours and days before the retreat, I also received homework. So I made sure that I did the homework. I fully invested in what I wanted this experience to be. I planned so that I could get there the day before and that I can make sure I was in a space that felt a little bit more luxurious, a little bit more of like the next level I wanted to be at, which is exactly what this retreat felt like. It felt like my next level. So I stayed in a beautiful hotel in the uh near the tower bridge. And if anyone has a kid and has ever seen Spider-Man, I was like telling, I was telling my family and telling my son, I'm staying, I'm going to London. It's it showed him on the map where it is. And I also said this is where the scene in Spider-Man happened in Spider-Man, one of the one of the more recent ones. And he's like, Oh, the battle bridge. He was so excited to see pictures of me there. And so it was like my way of bringing him along for the ride, where he can't be there yet, right? We'll we'll travel to London one day. But this trip was for mom for me to fully pour into my cup. But going back to the homework, I made sure that I really took that in and did everything that was given to me so that I was fully prepared to immerse myself into this experience. And I looked at everything. I made sure that I really reflected on what I wanted this experience to be. But with all of that being said and all the planning I did to make sure I arrived safely, I also made sure that I left space for magic, right? I didn't, I saw the agenda, but I didn't ask for hour by hour play of exactly what was happening because I didn't need to know. I didn't need to plan that carefully. I was going to be in a room with several other people and I was gonna be in great hands. I knew Juliet would have everything planned, and I didn't have to worry. So all I had to worry about was getting myself there and being present, which is what I did. So if anyone is interested in a travel piece, I stayed near the Tower Bridge. I immersed myself in the uh borough market. I went to Big Ben, I took the underground, and it felt was awesome to navigate. Felt like being in New York City, but a cleaner, a more um polished or just an overall like better experience. It's a little bit smaller, but it was very easy to navigate is coming from New York and having done that for so many years of my life. And I just did as much as I could. I have a joy list, so it's like 50 different things that bring me joy. Some of the things are small, like a bite of really good chocolate, some things are big, like traveling overseas. And I made this joy list probably back in 2020, and the it felt impossible at the time to even think that I would travel abroad on that joylist because we knew what was happening in 2020 and 2021, and then I have a son and I have life, so I don't know when I'm going to be able to get back to flying overseas. Thankfully, I did it in the fall of 2019, but it it seemed like a pipe dream. So to be able to do this like six years later, have the experience and just walk around and I'm safe, right? I've seen taken, my mother has made sure I've seen taken, and I'm very much aware of my surroundings. So I was cognizant of all of that, and which is why the hotel I stayed in in the Tower Bridge area was a Marriott property because, in case I needed something, I knew they would have it. If in case my family needed to reach me, they could easily get to me instead of me staying in like a hostel or an unknown property. I just wanted that safety measure. So just my tidbit for those that are traveling by themselves, I am a little bit more paranoid now that I'm slightly older. If I was in my 20s, I'd probably be like, it's fine, I'll stay in a hostel, it doesn't matter. But this was a different type of experience. So a little bit more premium, a little bit more elevated was what I was going for. At least at this time, kind of leading into the retreat. So from the tower bridge, I then took an Uber to the property the next day because I wanted, I could have taken the train, I could have taken the bus, but that just felt like clunky. And I wanted it to be straightforward. I wanted to feel calm going into this experience. So I took an Uber and it was probably about an hour ride, but it was fine. My Uber driver was a perfect balance of like chatting me up a little bit. We listened to the radio, there was silence for some time, and it was great. I was able to really take in a different part of the UK that I hadn't seen because I was walking or going through the underground. I was starting to be able to see more of the west side, and it was just starting to lead into what was going to be a beautiful experience. So I arrived at the Langley Hotel. It was a gorgeous location. Even my Uber driver was like, Oh, where is this? I've never seen this. When did they create this? And as if I knew all of the details, but I think he was also so enamored with the beauty of the property that I like we were both astounded. So we get there, we walk in, immediately the bellman is telling me, Oh, I know you're here for the retreat. This is so exciting. And he is already creating this like beautiful experience. And I can't, I just keep saying beautiful, but it was just out of like a fairy tale. So he was already explaining to me where everything was. I was just my breath was taken away looking at the property. I couldn't believe that this is where it was. I was then able to get a cappuccino and just think about what I was hoping to get out of this, calm down a little bit because I was like, oh wait, maybe I'm nervous. Should I be nervous? I just realized I'm about to meet a bunch of strangers that I've never met. And it's been a while since I've done that. So I think another reflection point for me is if you haven't networked in a while and got in gotten into a space where the people that you don't know, do it. Find those spaces, whether it's virtual or in person, and in person, even better. Extra points for that. There's actually another networking event that I want to go to in uh downtown that I need to make time for, which I know won't be an experience like this. And this experience was beyond just networking, but it just reminded me I need to get out of my comfort zone with that too. So if you haven't done it lately, it's a reminder for you to do it as well. And I get there and Juliet welcomes me. And mind you, we've met virtually a ton, but in person, not so much because we live thousands of miles apart. So we get inside the room, there are these gorgeous gift bags, and everyone's excited, everyone's kind and welcoming and saying hello, nice to meet you. It's just like immediately, as if we've all known each other for years, but just open and light. The room, the boardroom we were in was oh, a dream. The windows were open, you could see outside, the air was crisp and perfect. Like again, it's as if she summoned to the universe, Hey, I need this day to go perfectly. And they listened because truly, you could feel like birds would have been chirping, and the entire experience was just otherworldly. So we get these gift bags. I have this amazing notebook that I'm looking at right now with my name. There's the Stanley Cup, actually, that I'm using. I just all of these other amazing, thoughtful gifts of the person that we're going to be when we step out of this room and that we want to be as a result of this retreat. The Start with Yourself book by Emma Greed was in it, and I'm sure a few other things. Oh, delicious cookie. It's all coming back to me. It was just so exciting. We were then focused. We had some hot seat coaching, these like thought-provoking questions that were asked, and we'd spend a full day talking about so many topics. For me, it was just a breath of fresh air to be in a space with other beyond senior leader women that were like executives, that were starting their own businesses, that were in like Fortune 510 companies that were thriving and also wanted to grow and expand themselves and learn. And when you're in spaces with your peers all the time, it feels like you can't share all of the things that are always on your mind. You get into workspaces where you really need to start keeping things to yourself, or you can only share with so many people because now it becomes a competitive landscape and everyone is trying to outdo each other. But this was a space where we can let our guard down. We were not all working for the same company. We were working in different parts of the industry and could be open with each other. And not all of our secrets were shared, right? But there were some moments where we were able to just talk about what was going on and where we want to get to next and again cheer each other on, celebrate our victories, being able to challenge each other if we had a certain thought. Um, it was just truly an experience of a live rent-free forever in my mind. We talked about everything from social media to AI to leadership, and I left with so many takeaways. I was able to immediately put them into place. I started implementing them right away the day after and beyond. I've been continuously revising my list of the things that I need to do and the things that I learned from this retreat. One thing I do want to share that I stood out to me, it was a quote that was said that was. Um at one point, which I just turned on this light bulb for me of like, ah, what is my North Star? What have I been chasing or not chasing? What have I like where have I remained stagnant? Because it's been the safe choice. Going to this retreat wasn't the safe choice. Being in a room that could stretch me was not the safe choice. I'm so glad that I didn't stick with it. I and I asked and I tried because I wouldn't have been dismotivated, this fired up if I I would I know I wouldn't have started my strategic event leader cohort. I I know I wouldn't. It would have still remained an idea that lived somewhere else. But this retreat lit a fire in me where I was like, oh, I have. I have to go. I have to move forward. And I need to be the person that I really want to be. It's really allowing me to start acting like my future self and plan for that version of me. So I leave with a ton of notes. The next day I leave room in my day so that I can explore if I want to. And I was like, oh, wait, I woke up the next morning feeling so refreshed that I was like, I have still time. So I went to the Windsor Castle. I honestly did not spend that much time there. But I went, explored, ran back, got a coffee, and then headed to the airport. But I still had a significant amount of time before my flight took off. And then I still had another eight hours of my flight, which was getting me to Orlando in the evening and then back to Charlotte late. But at least like I was again flipping my time zone for myself back on to the eastern time zone so I could ease back in without feeling like a head shred lag. Leaving that space the next day allowed me to still enjoy a little bit more of the UK and also keep reflecting, keep soaking in everything I experienced the day before and read through my notes and continue making plans and starting to make things happen. Because if you rush back home, it's hard to really sit back and reflect on everything that went on. You could just go back into your day-to-day life and not start applying the things that you learned. But taking that time and space allowed me to map it out so that I could fully do that while I was on the road and then come back home and be a more present mom, a more focused parent and family member and wife and friend and be where my feet are planted. I would do my schedule all over again. It was the right amount of time. Honestly, then I would have, if I stayed longer, I would have just like moved there. But that's not in our plan right now. But you never know. Maybe in 10 years, maybe sooner than that. We'll see. But it allowed me to focus on my business, come back home, be a better person, and then be home and then implement my plan all of my other days. I would keep the same that I left space for magic. I would take advantage of all of the resources given to me. So we had a group chat ahead of time that we were able to connect with each other. I made sure my experience felt elevated. And honestly, I asked a little bit of AI about how do I structure my trip because I had a short amount of time. So I used AI wisely to help plan. I had a lot of like aha moments. So leaving space to be fully present, I didn't use my phone while I was at the retreat. I turned it over, I turned off notifications so that I could fully listen to everything. And I think the other beauty of the trip and the day itself is that we didn't start too early the day of the. I love that because when you plan events, sometimes general session has to start right at 8 a.m. But in this kind of space, we didn't need to have 20 hours all together because that is also where exhaustion comes in and you start to get fatigued and all the things that we tell our event clients. That's not the kind of environment you want for everyone. But sometimes they do it anyways because they want to pack as much information as possible. And that's okay. But for a retreat like this, having the space to move, to talk, to have coffee, to leisurely eat lunch and not feel rushed, to immerse ourselves in topics that were important to us really left this impression of space and air. And it gets to be easy. It doesn't have to feel hard or rushed all the time. And I um and I think that's it's hard to find that and curate that into events because you want to get the best bang for your buck. Is that the quote? And I think you can do that. And you know what? That I think you can. Julia did that. We didn't have to spend 30 hours straight together a week looking at each other just to make this matter. So it got me thinking, when was the last time we zoomed out about our life, our professional work, our business, maybe the side hustle that we've been dreaming of? When do we zoom out and say, this is time for me to have that white space to like vision map what I want my life to look like? And I think as kids, we can dream so much of like our dream career and our dream life and like where do we want to go? But as adults, it starts to get lost because it doesn't feel like we have enough time. It's what I keep hearing. We don't have enough time. But what about if life is really long and it's not really short? What about if we have enough time? What about if we have enough space and we make the intentional decision to carve it out? That was one of my biggest takeaways, too, is I need more intentional time throughout my year to carve out that space and just zoom out. I've started to implement it into my weeks and I feel so much more thoughtful about my decisions instead of feeling like I'm flying by the seat of my pants. So my question to you is when was the last time you zoomed out? When was the last time you put yourself in a room that stretched you? It doesn't have to be this retreat or does. I don't know if she's offering it in the future. I'm selling spaces or something I don't know exists. Um, or marketing spaces for something that I don't know exists yet. But maybe it's another room, maybe it's another conversation that you've been thinking about having andor networking opportunity that you were like, I've seen it and I want to go to it, but I'm nervous. And maybe you just go to that. Maybe you start your own coffee club at work with new people. I don't know. Just think about have you given yourself opportunities to grow outside of your normal environment? And are you building spaces or finding spaces to help you become the version of yourself you're trying to grow into? There is this awesome book by Dr. Benjamin Hardia. It's called Be Your It's Called Be Your Future Self Now. It's incredible. This retreat reminded me of that. Really thinking about who do you want to be? How do you start acting like that person? And I think this retreat was one step for me in investing in myself because it matters, and also starting to act like who I want to be, who I've always dreamt I could be, and start being her now. So I think experiences like this remind us that growth rarely happens when we stay inside the familiar version of ourselves or in our comfort zone. I know it's cliche, but the room matters. And who you are after leaving the room, who you are when you are spending time with what is it? The quote, like you're the sum of the five people you spend the most time with. Be with people that you want to emulate, to be like, to help you stretch, to grow. Anyway, I'm gonna keep going on and on. If you have questions, send me a message. You can send me a text or voicemail, and I'm happy to have more um conversations about this. Let me know what you think about this type of conversation. I'd love to do more and speak openly about things again in this world of AI. Be you, be who you are. I hope you feel worthy today and every day. Have a great day. Gosh, I'm Dr. Susan. Okay, bye.