5 Ways Attending Retreats Can Benefit Your Business

As entrepreneurs and small business owners, most of us don’t have time to take a vacation, so how can we afford to set aside time for a retreat? Whole days away from the office? In a row? Who has time for that?

In fact, taking time to attend that retreat could end up being the best thing you can do for your business. Here’s why:

Retreats Give You Time to Focus on Your Personal and Professional Development

We all have a million things to check off our to-do list each day, which can make it hard to find time to work on ourselves, both personally and professionally. When was the last time you really invested in yourself and your business? Maybe you find some time here and there to read a book, watch a video series, or attend a webinar, but those can only help you at the surface level. They can’t give you an opportunity to dive deep into an aspect of your business to make sure you achieve all your goals, and that’s the unique benefit a retreat can offer your business.

Those books and webinars can also be sources of inspiration that go untapped. Maybe they bring up some ideas for you and you think, “I should do that,” but then you have to pick up the kids from school or walk the dog or make dinner, and you never get to take action on those new ideas.

​By contrast, a retreat gives you both the inspiration/motivation and the opportunity to start working on your big goals right away.

Work On Your Business, Not Just In Your Business

Running a business can be so busy and chaotic that sometimes we forget to stop and make time to work on our business. What big goals do we have for our business? What systems and processes do we need to put in place to achieve those goals?
Taking a step back to make those assessments and put those processes and procedures in place takes time, which is why many entrepreneurs and small business owners never get around to it, and that can prevent them from moving forward in their business.

​When you attend a retreat, you have a chance to step back and look at (or set) your big goals for your business and figure out how you’re going to reach those goals. Don’t let your big dreams for your business die as dreams without ever having seen the light of day.  Attend a retreat and commit to making those dreams a reality.

Build a Support Network of Other, Like-Minded Entrepreneurs

People often say that Rome wasn’t built in a day, but they tend to leave out the fact that Rome wasn’t built by just one person, either. It required a team (several teams) of people working together to achieve a common goal. (It Takes a Village training has more information about building a network)

As entrepreneurs, we often feel like we have to do it all ourselves, but the truth is we need other people to provide support, whether through the products or services they provide, fresh ideas they might bring to our problems, or just someone to listen while we vent. Attending a retreat is a fabulous opportunity to meet and network with other entrepreneurs who face similar struggles and can relate to your challenges on a level few people can manage. That makes the relationships you forge during a retreat so much stronger, and it makes your business stronger.

The Power of Collaborative Work Spaces

If you work from home, the chance to work in a collaborative environment with other, like-minded entrepreneurs can be invaluable. Not only do you get a chance to network and build relationships with them, but you can bounce ideas off of them as you work on your big goals for your business and get a fresh perspective that could lead to that big “Ah ha!” moment.

Return to Work More Energized

While a retreat is not technically a vacation, it can provide that injection of energy and rejuvenation a vacation can provide. It gets you away from the office, allows you to interact with and learn from new people, and gives you a chance to consider and work on your business from a fresh perspective. That way, when you do go back to work, you’re ready to tackle the goals in your business (both big and small) like never before.

​When was the last time you took a retreat? When was the last time you devoted a day or two to just work on your business? If it’s been a while and you’ve been thinking it might be time for another (or your first!) retreat, my quarterly retreat is coming up, which makes it the perfect time to schedule your next retreat for your business.