This Women’s Retreat could Not Have Come At a Better Time

As a mama, woman, friend, healer, and entrepreneur, my bucket was full.  Being there for everyone and everything that needed my attention left me with little time or energy for myself. I needed a little (BIG) something just for me.

So, this past weekend I attended a women’s retreat in Sedona.  I, along with 32 other Ultimate Achiever Women Chiropractic Entrepreneurs, embarked on a weekend of personal and  professional growth.

Our workshops and empowering lectures were interspersed with time to integrate and process amidst the beauty and magic of Sedona. The “sound healing” – forever part of my new routine – vortex hikes, and fireside chats were incredibly restorative, but the endless incredible conversations with strong and impactful leaders were inspirational.

Hands down, my favorite part of the Retreat was The Strength Finders Assessment.

If you haven’t yet done this, I highly recommend it.  This is an assessment meant to reveal your distinct “talent DNA” ranked in order based on your responses.  The goal is to help you maximize your infinite potential.

We can become better versions of ourselves by working on our weaknesses.  We can also understand our strengths on a deeper level.  For me, this has created a much greater understanding of myself, the boundaries that I felt I needed and now know I need, and so much more.

Here is what this test helped me understand about myself:

I am futuristic:  I am a dreamer who sees visions of what could be. I cherish these visions. The future fascinates me.  I love dreaming, visualizing and creating. I was so missing carving out this space for myself to just be, dream and create.

I love and need input: I eagerly welcome opportunities to think out loud about ideas, theories or philosophies.  So true!  I love being surrounded by big thinkers and creators.  I could spend all day talking about ideas.  I despise small talk, gossip and talking endlessly about problems.

I am responsible: I take ownership of what I say I will do.  I am committed to honesty and loyalty.  I need to get better at saying “no” and not taking on too much as I give 100% to everything I commit to.

I am fascinated by ideas: I thrive in environments where I must deal with unexpected requests, unanticipated problems or changing priorities.  I have a hard time understanding when people say “because we have always done it this way.”

I am extraordinarily positive:  I have contagious enthusiasm and get people excited about what they do. People are attracted to me and I positively impact those around me. I now also realize I need to carve out more space for myself where I can just be and recharge.

This assessment has taught me so much about myself, especially things I instinctively knew I needed, but haven’t been the best at creating boundaries for or honoring. I hope that in sharing this, it inspires others to take this online quiz to learn more about themselves and those around them.

When we understand each other’s strengths, I believe we naturally have greater compassion and understanding of our own and each other’s behaviors and areas of opportunity for growth.

“It is not our differences that divide us. It is our inability to recognize, accept, and celebrate those differences.” -A. Lorde

To take the Strength Finders Quiz go to:

https://store.gallup.com/p/en-us/10108/top-5-cliftonstrengths

‍