Well, as we wrap up season seven, I am overcome with gratitude at the quantity and quality of women that showed up to be more purposeful with their lives this year. Our theme was REDISCOVERING THE BEAUTY THAT IS WITHIN YOU. We chose this theme because I have discovered that many of us have lost ourselves.  Some to our children. Some to our work.  Some to unhealthy relationships.  And some to the idea that we have to be what others want us to be.  So this year, we went on a journey to REDISCOVER OURSELVES.

We talked about what it means to live from the INSIDE, OUT.  Everything is an outflow of the relationship we are in with ourselves.  For many, that was a first time concept.  As within, so without.  Let that sink in.  As within, so without.  It’s an inside job.  It starts with us.

We learned that everyone communicates, but few CONNECT.  So we challenged ourselves by evaluating the CONNECTION within our most important relationships.  Because the truth is that good connection is KEY when it comes to communicating. And because we were wired for CONNECTION, we will continue focusing our efforts there.  Women are better, together. The end.

(With so many living stressful lives, we decided to take a deep dive into uncovering if stress can in fact be our friend.  But after missing two flights and being stuck in the longest day of my life in another country, we decided to shelf this topic for a less stressful time. :). But do not be dismayed!  We will certainly revisit our friendship with stress.)

Because FUN is essential for each one of us… we created some serious FUN!  We laughed, we gave back to the community, we played games, we dialoged about where we look for fun, how it is good for us and why we long for it. We were challenged to HAVE MORE FUN, and do things without a desired outcome, without profit and without a purpose. God put something inside each of us and our desire is that women in our community start running after what sounds FUN to you!

Fun is great!  AND so is LAUGHTER.  It is SOOOO good for the soul. We want to laugh every time we are together, and boy did we LAUGH in January!  Having Leanne Morgan with us this year was most definitely my personal highlight!  There is NOTHING like laughter.  Good, honest, gut belly laughter.  And with a sold out crowd of 600, it reinforced what we already knew… women WANT TO LAUGH!  Don’t stop.  Can’t stop.  It’s good for the soul!

We know that how we are in relationship with ourselves affects every other relationship we have, so we took a hard look at what makes each of us tick. We saw up close and personal how we are each wired. We looked at our strengths.  Our weaknesses.  Our vices. And our needs. The Enneagram will forever be a friend of The Exchange. Get to know your number.  This 2w3 knows that you will be glad you did.

Purpose changes everything. And because we are here ON purpose and FOR a purpose, we asked LOTS of questions. The questions we ask ourselves, or don’t ask ourselves will determine the course of our lives. So we answered vulnerable questions like, what lights me up?  What makes my heart beat stronger, more courageous and more giving? What did I want to be when I grew up? What can I not stop talking about? What do I love? What do I want to change? Our PURPOSE lies within the answers to those questions. Don’t settle for a purposeless life.  Find your purpose and allow the unique gift that God wrapped in you to be fully opened.

And lastly, what began as a journey to learn how to love unconditionally, resulted in the freedom and grace of discovering that human, perfect love is unattainable.  We came from and will return to unconditional love.  Yet, while here on this earth, we can aspire to simply LOVING WELL. And after all, love, in truth, doesn’t need any other adjectives.

We hope that you were able to join us for some part of this incredible, life changing journey.  If so, thank you.  And if not, that’s ok.  It wasn’t your time.  But who knows… August 2022 just might be.  Women need a healthy relationship with ourselves.  Connection.  Laughter.  Fun. Purpose.  And each other.  So come join us.  See you soon…