Positivity Summit 2022 — Forward looking and practical
In this follow up blog to my invitation and recommendation to attend future Positivity Summits, I wanted to share more of my personal experience of the summit, both in terms of speaker takeaways and also in terms of some of the breakout group exercises reflections in case of value to you as the reader.
A narrated version of this blog can be found at the bottom for improved accessibility
Speaker takeaways
Scott did a brilliant, passionate job sharing about 5 myths of the Greek gods and how they applied to his own jounrey of transformation over the past few years.
I was not warmed up on my note taking at this point, sorry Scott! but I can highly recommend that you check out his work by following the hyperlink on his name above, as you can do for all speakers in this post.
I was blessed to not only see Nathaniel speak but also to share a very deep and wide-ranging evening with him and Cornell on the Thursday before the summit and I love, just love, his depth, clarity, wisdom and thoughtfulness around all things human potential with some of my core takeaways and invitations for you to consider today, however you receive the below reflections, as follows:
- “What are you bouncing back to?” (as we emerge from pandemic) — Nathaniel throughout his talk offered a range of neuroscience based facts combined with deep spirituality which was a super powerful combo to observe
- Nathaniel spoke about space, target and tension being critical if we are to leverage our humanity from the most optimal place (my interpretation)
- “Without momentum you don’t have friction” and without friction we don’t have growth and innovation. Such a powerful insight when I observe so much business as usual striving to ensure there is zero friction
- “What you are made aware of, you become more grateful for” — One of my most profound takeaways from Nathaniel’s talk was this frame and lens on gratitude - What YOU have been chosen for in this moment by the universe is his deepest version of gratitude, much deeper, much more connected for me somehow and I still sit in this reflection
- “Are you willing to see it differently?” — A powerful, loving challenge to us all who are often wrapped up in busy lives
How do the above reflections and insights land with you? What has got you curious and what may you constructively challenge?
Bridget is one of the most kind, present, whole, inspiring humans and speakers that I have met in a while. In fact she was one of 5 or 6 who I incredibly met through the summit, but Bridget really does have a gift for blending practicality with spirituality in a really accessible and beautiful way with my key takeaways from here talk as follows:
- “We do the weird now so we can handle the weirdness of life” — I just loved this reflection, how do we treat life with more levity and more like a playground than a life sentence?!
- “We have to feel the wish fulfilled — create an imprint of the change you desire” — This is very poignant and timely for me personally as I imagine my future on the months and years ahead
- “Show up for ourselves day in, day out”
- “The way forward is through” — I really appreciated how Bridget spoke to the fact that no amount of trying to go around emotional challenges is going to help, we have to learn get comfortable being uncomfortable by sitting in and letting emotion and feelings move through our body, an all to often suppressed act despite the huge apparent interest in Emotional Intelligence (EQ) (I should know, I did it for over 20 years!)
- “Life always makes sense when you look at it in reverse” — Another gem from Bridget today. I am not sure about you, but I so rarely look backwards to reflect on learning, growth, challenges overcome and challenges that persist. This blog is part of my prompt to look back over the past few years
Again, how do the above reflections and insights land with you? What has got you curious and what may you constructively challenge?
In what may have been the most raw presentation of the summit, Amy delivered a deeply passionate, vulnerable, incredibly powerful talk that included the following insights:
- “It is ok to speak what is on your heart” — Do you feel comfortable to speak what is on your heart right now? To your spouse? Your boss? Your work colleague? Somebody else? However you reply, give yourself some permission to explore further
- “I never knew there other people out there going through what we were going through” — This for me speaks so powerfully to the importance of genuine, thoughtful, deep community, something that was clearly ignited at the summit last Friday 29th July on another level
- “I wish I was more vulnerable, I wish I had asked for help” followed by an invitation to “be open and honest” with yourself, and those around you. I am amazed how this seemingly simple act, is still too often enacted. Societal conditioning and programming goes so deep but bit by bit, we help each other but especially ourselves remove these layers
- “You need to listen to your body” — For those that are more disembodied too i.e actively suppress and run away from sensing and feeling, this is a really important practice ground and one that you can do at will
How do the above reflections and insights land with you? What has got you curious and what may you constructively challenge?
Breakout Group exercise 1 (post-lunch)
Cornell broke us into 10 groups to explore two questions:
- What is the world missing?
- How do we make it better?
In my group with Caroline, Kathleen and Javier, there was some great energy and shares which can be viewed as follows:
- What is the world missing?
- Compassion
- Slowing down/being still more often
- Peace (reducing trauma by putting out love over fear)
- Vulnerability
- Braver people
- Humility
- More middle ground / less polarity
- Healthy dialogue
- Clean, factual dialogue
- Global citizens / global interconnection
- Shifting what we value and why
- Accountability
- A willingness to do the work (around reconnecting and healing)
2. How can we make it better?
- Coaching and training kids
- Being better role models
- Instilling values
- Taking a more collective lens
- Learn from mistakes
- Be more thoughtful
- Find more common / middle ground
All 10 groups fed back to one another and the patterns were all very common; our innate yet too often suppressed humanity is key.
It was interesting that all we noted that to work on the above doesn’t cost a load of money, it requires a lot of intention and for sure 3rd party support as needed, but we all shared as a team the importance not to build co-dependency as that is very much an old world approach.
As always it is ‘really’ more of a will issue rather than a money issue.
My talk on ‘we are the leaders we are searching for’
I was in two minds whether to use any slides and I decided to send 10 slides to Cornell a little last minute as a prompt and then on the day I decided to freestyle it and honestly, I barely remember half of what I said yet I am grateful my messaging appeared to land with some feedback including:
- “The fact that you were able to basically infiltrate your company, still make a great wage and for your purpose of helping others find theirs! So many people think that sole entrepreneurship is the only way to be fulfilled and that’s not true”
- “Finding/rediscovering your heart” seems to have been one of the most impactful takeaways as was also shared here:
- Also I started dancing to the tune of #changeisaninsidejob and ended up with the room clapping me and joining in as I danced to this term. The point landed that we have way more agency and freedom when operating from the inside out
Just an incredible day, truly and I cannot recommend attending a future Positivity Summit.
Shall we connect?
I am an:
- International business development and authentic relationship building expert working within and across a Euro 3bn + corporation
- International speaker on topics around human-centered design, vulnerability and change is an inside job
- Support senior leaders and mission driven soloprenuers as a Thinking Partner
- Facilitator of people-centered workshops and organisational design
- The co-creator with Jo Hompstead of Human Development Space in-person gatherings which are an emergent and co-creative space for both in-corporate and open groups
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