Now it wasn’t all poolside cocktails and massages, although there were a few of those here and there, no, this trip was “all business” and the timing couldn’t have been better!
Let me explain.
You may have seen me last month, sitting front and centre on the cover of this very mag, as the face of the Women in Business edition and I couldn’t have been more proud.
Not only that I was asked to be the face of the edition, but that my fabulous team of women was also featured, alongside so many other inspirational, successful and diverse women-led businesses in our region. But when I was invited to spend 5+ days surrounded by 40 women that I didn’t know at a Business Retreat in Bali, you might be surprised to hear that I didn’t immediately jump at the opportunity.
Why not you ask?
Well, there are a few things you may not know about me… one of those being that I am actually quite shy, and networking is not my “go to” when thrown into a big room full of people I don’t know. So I was nervous. Imposter Syndrome kicked in big time; I mean there were some very savvy business women going to this retreat.
Would I fit in, would I connect with these ladies or would I just want to hide in my room each night? Cue my fabulous team here on the ground with me, who said “Oh my goodness Lus, you absolutely have to go, this is exactly what we need” and just like that, my tickets were booked and I was on my way! Now I’d never been to Bali, and I was nervous.
I am not sure if there was one overriding factor about why I was nervous, but I was. Would I get sick? What is international travel like post COVID (especially as I was going without my right hand man, Ant, who has the calmest approach to travel and is exactly what I need when things don’t go 100% to plan)? Will I connect with the other attendees? Will it be too hot?
I don’t know, I guess I was just trying to find excuses, but man oh man am I happy I took the advice and went. Being self employed, in order to attend professional development courses or business seminars you really have to make the effort to find them.
There’s not some HR lady sending me off to this or that course (at the company’s expense) to improve my skills. In fact come to think of it, I am the HR lady, and the PR lady and the bookkeeper, and the head buyer and the marketing manager and the payroll lady and the… well you get the picture! So investing in a retreat like this, which was solely designed for business women like myself was just actually exactly what I needed.
You simply cannot underestimate the power of connection. Even before I hit Bali I was fortunate enough to connect with a fabulous entrepreneurial lady called Lou, who invited me to join her for a glass of Champagne in the Qantas First Class Lounge (no less) even before we left Australia.
It was the introduction to the retreat that I needed. These ladies were going to be fab! I’ve always been interested in knowing the stories behind niche brands, the how and why of their inception.
Lou’s brand story was one of those. Last year, Lou a then new mum was feeding her son while casually reading her Kindle… until she dropped it, on his head.
Telling her husband Ben about that little incident, he quickly configured a solution for her, a strap which fitted her kindle that she could slip her hand or finger behind and never worry about hurting their new son again!
This was how Strapsicle was created! Less than a year later, their brand is now sold internationally as well as on Amazon both here and in the US, amazing huh?!
So as I sit here finishing this month’s musings for you, I would be lying if I said I didn’t have a tab or two open in my internet browser with Qantas and Luxury Escapes for another Bali trip in the making… It really was that good!
