Navigating The Flow (Rather Than Fighting It)

Posted on June 27, 2019

I recently facilitated a retreat that turned out to be very rewarding because it did not go as planned. Let me explain.

I was leading a retreat for a management team of eight. We had prepared the agenda, selected the location, created the slides, designed the exercises, and agreed to start promptly at 9am. The location doors were locked when we arrived, so we couldn’t start on time. We had no access to a projector, so could not see the slides nor get any details of the exercises.

So, what did we do?

We switched our mindset completely. We decided to focus on the beauty of the location, our intentions, and the desired takeaways--instead of the unplanned occurrences we were experiencing. We re-designed everything in the moment to adapt the circumstances: we had no slides, no presentation, and no written instructions. Yet, it was an incredibly inspiring outcome. This retreat was a powerful example of choosing to stay on purpose and be present in the moment. When I suggested that we trust the process and navigate the flow, rather than fight it, the team jumped right in with me. The goal of this retreat was to increase unity. This situation revealed to the team that they naturally harmonize when their collective purpose is clear. Our purpose is the north star that keeps us on track during turmoil. When we know where we are headed, we can get extremely resourceful, even when faced with setbacks. A key takeaway here is to make sure your team always relates their actions to the main purpose. Resourcefulness will follow.