Why Retreats Are Important
Why are retreats important?
"Know thyself"
There are many reasons taking a retreat is important: they allow you to pull back from the “busyness” of your life, to take stock, to get inspired, to decide and set timely goals, become spacious, and find others who you can relate to.
Retreat comes from the Latin verb “to pull back.” So, retreat, or a retreat, is a place where you pull back from the world. Here are reasons I think retreats are important.
They help you…
Pull Back
“Disentangle”
You withdraw from your regular life, pulling back all the energy that’s invested in multiple directions. You gather your forces to focus inward on your own process and get back in touch with yourself. You become more mindful, living in the moment. From this place, you get a new perspective, you refocus and re-energize. You find inspiration.
Inspiration leads to action. Getting away from it all gives you time to focus on what inspires you, whether it be writing, doing yoga or coming up with a business or life plan.
Take stock
“Seeing the forest and the trees.”
When on retreat you are able to take a meta-perspective of your life, looking at the present, the past and where you wish to be in the future. You have the time sort through worries, concerns and fears. Then plan for your hopes, dreams and wishes.
Become Spacious
“Allow growth”
You step out of your structured scheduled day-to-day “busyness” and step into a space and time that allows time to ponder and reflect. At work, or at the dinner table with the family demanding your attention, schedules, appointments, bills, grocery shopping, housework…. the list goes on…..There is no free time. Time on retreat is different, fluid. There’s no more rush! You find a space where you can give yourself time to connect back to yourself and into flow and inspiration.
Get Inspired
“To breathe into.”
So, you breathe life into your life. Reconnect with your own true self. Move out of “I want” into “I am.” Inspiration comes from creating a space where you can really listen inwardly. It’s a frame of mind that can come from a change of landscape and outlook.
Listen
“Learn, by listening to yourself”
When you’re on retreat, you get to listen. Thats what happens when you have the time and the space to spend with yourself. You listen to your inner voice because there are few distractions. What do you hear? Your own strength and resourcefulness, the part of yourself that has been silenced and what your heart needs to tell you.
Set intentions or Goals (or not)
“Where to from here?”
Give yourself the gift of time to draw inspiration and set intentions for moving forward. Perhaps you discover you are very happy with your life and wouldn't change a thing. Or that its now time for some things to be tweaked, or, there are a range of demands that need resolving. Whichever it is, you can make some decisions about your next steps.
Remember Who You Are
“I am, am I?”
You are probably a lot of things, mother, sister, daughter, husband, father, brother, friend. You may need to be reminded that you are actually an individual with hopes, dreams, wants and needs, that are beyond your labels. On retreat you can drop all the roles. You can just be you.
Find Your Tribe
“Be true to yourself and the right people will show up”
We’re all the same, we are all different. You meet other people in the same position. They go on retreat to do yoga, to understand themselves, to design their path forward and they all came from different perspectives, countries, cultures, age groups. That inspires you to do more of your own thing. You allow yourself to be different because the people around you are. They are a group of people
who will challenge and inspire you and by spending time with them, it will change your life.
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