Week 5: Butterflies
Before you get stuck in, check out our upcoming event🙂
Monday
‘Chase butterflies and they will never be caught, watch butterflies and they will come to you.’ This was a quote that came up in our Monday morning check-in led by Iona, and when the words were spoken I feel we were all able to resonate with the message. Notice what it brings up for you too.
Today, Amelia led a session focusing on Project Planning & Management – a not so exciting statement I know, but crucial nonetheless. Benedict was well happy to reach this stage of the project, sharing that he’s ‘a fan of a good plan’. We discussed the difficulties of both under and over planning and finding the balance between the two (easier said than done!). Being able to manage and adapt is crucial within a project plan and it was highlighted for us the importance of having to renegotiate with certain choices as areas begin to grow and develop. Throughout the whole process it’s essential to keep referring to and focusing on logistics, design and the marketing of our event in order a most desirable outcome, something the team has already had to deal with on many occasions now already. In the group we also covered the 2 types of planning; sequential and parallel, and which of the two strategies would be the most beneficial for us as a team to propel us towards our end goal, always keeping in mind that ‘at the end of the day you’re working with humans, with human problems’, as Amelia pointed out so rightly. Many questions were asked, many answers were not solved, but piece by piece we’re getting there, and I assure you we’ve got some pretty exciting things a ’brewing for ya.
Tuesday
Tuesday we were figuring out each of our roles in the team and establishing the particular jobs we need to prioritise to take us through these next couple of weeks. We thought about the areas which sparked the most interest in us personally, but to also delve into the certain areas which you may usually steer clear of and that you’d actually like to challenge yourself in trying, edging further away from that ‘comfort zone’. We decided on a leadership pattern and structure, different titles of roles, clustering the different jobs into different categories and aligning them into separate roles. I’ve got to say the names we created for each of the title roles were pretty spectacular, I’m sure you’d agree – we have the Guardian Angels, Festive Fairies, Magic Makers, Dollar Divas, Picassos, Digital Nomads, and the Service Engineers. I promise we did get on with other stuff that day, not just creating names for our different roles…
Wednesday
Today marked the halfway point of our journey. A time to reflect, connect and immerse ourselves within nature – we truly were blessed with magical weather, it really helped in emphasising a great spirit of celebration, for all that we have achieved so far, in all that we are, our whole being, and of all that we have ahead of us.
Amelia and Liz welcomed the team onto a walk into Vallis woods. Away from Edventure – onto an Adventure. Iona led our check-in which was much in keeping with how and where we were to be spending our time. With us all gathered sat on logs next to the river, we were invited to explore which elements of nature we felt we most associated with that morning. Well, we discovered that amongst us we had otters, willow trees, rivers, and more!
Our journey was fuelled by a great sense of togetherness – collectively we listened, we sung, we laughed, we explored, we faced certain challenges (making a fire ourselves, with help from a tinderbox miraculously plotted right where we were to make it), and we triumphed those challenges, we let go of our inner obstacles, inhibitions, and embraced those more fruitful and beneficial cultivations so to rally us all onto this exciting journey we have yet to come. We even made our own litter-picking device, using a plastic bag that was sadly caught and hanging in a tree and a long stick found along the side of the path. It was heart-breaking to see the amount of rubbish we came across in both the woods and along the side of the road. The day that this is no longer an issue within society will be a great day indeed.
This day truly lifted us all. Yes, we took time away from the course, but if anything I feel in doing so actually contributed in igniting our spirit, energy, focus and direction to empower and guide us all into the final few weeks, and beyond!
Thursday
Sadly Ruby was not able to join us on the Thursday, as the beckoning of London lured her there, and we really did miss that fiery energy the ‘King’ herself never fails to bring to the room – London got lucky I say. Although we may have been ‘one woman down’, with open arms we welcomed aboard a new member of the family, Louis, who we are over the moon to have come help us with where’s needed for us to create a clothing swap experience I guarantee you won’t want to miss out on, so pencil it in your diary asap (and we’re excited to announce that will be on Saturday 3rd November at the Silk Mill!). We were also lucky enough to have Neil Oliver join us for a session in the morning, where he introduced us to a study in communication; this was a theory Eric Berne formulated in the 1950s called Transactional Analysis, involving the identification of the ego states behind each and every transaction, influencing the 3 ways in which we think, feel and behave. It was really interesting to relate these not just to our own personal lives outside of the course, but with how we work and will develop as a team and the different behaviours we each, unconsciously, bring to the table. The rest of the day we carried on with our project planning, deciding on various jobs which need to be prioritised and our roles following on into next week.
I needn’t be, but every week I always feel just a bit of apprehension about the week ahead. We could never predict or be certain for sure of what to expect, any obstacles or hurdles which may arise at any point along the way. However, one thing I am always sure of, is that without a doubt, every single week has been just as inspiring as the last – so bring it on, I say – my curiosity and excitement has me practically on the edge of my seat!
Cheers to that then.
With love, Rosa x