In 2011, my business was doing OK. My private client roster was pretty full and I had been successfully leading an online program that was pretty popular.

But a few things were missing:

1) It had been two years since I had led any kind of in-person retreat or extended workshop, and I was craving being with clients and community members in sacred space in this way, craving leading women to their depths in community together, craving the very special kind of magic that can only happen when you are in circle, in person, with stellar facilitation leading the way.

2) I knew I had the potential to create a 6-figure business, but I wasn’t creating it.

3) I knew in my heart that I was meant to be a leader of a community, and I knew that, until I was leading a circle of women over a period of time, I wouldn’t truly tap the potential of my next evolution. I had already led a year-long program twice in my past business, so I had a taste of what it meant to be a transformational leader…I had a taste of how it felt to channel energy and wisdom to a group of people straight from Spirit and see how they became activated and healed…and I knew I wanted more of it.

That’s where the idea to create a 9-month mastermind with four in-person retreats came from – my deep, deep longing to step into the leadership role that can only really come from facilitating magic for a group of people in person.

The first retreat I led for that mastermind was amazing in many, many ways – we delved deep into the heart of competition. And because the work I do doesn’t let you hide from anything, so that you can be present and love ALL of yourself, instead of making nice-nice about how competition is wrong, or not “spiritual” or something to squelch, we dove right in to OWN our competitive selves and find the healing and the gold through looking it straight in the face, loving our competitive selves, reclaiming the positive power in it.

This is working with the Shadow.

In that first retreat, we also went deep, deep into fears and obstacles holding us back from being big and seen in our businesses (competition being one of those things) and then we also worked on many practical levels – marketing strategy, operations, mastering enrollment calls.

The two days were filled with ritual, sacred work, vulnerability, revelations, inspiration, sisterhood, and….this had MASSIVE effects on me and my business:

1) That was the year that I firmly leapt into 6-figures. The mastermind leveraged my time and helped me create that. It was the MOST I had ever charged for a group.

2) If you’re wondering HOW I filled the mastermind – it wasn’t with any slick marketing techniques at all. In fact, I never announced the mastermind to the public. Instead, I filled it with 24 women who already knew me, mostly by inviting them to two in-person experiences with me where I led ritual and circle – and they were so blown away by these circles (& through the mastery they had already experienced with me as their coach or online group teacher), that they easily stepped into the mastermind.

3) Most importantly – the experience of leading this community of 24 women, especially at our retreats, transformed ME. By facilitating those retreats, I walked through a sacred door into my role as transformational leader. I grew immensely because of this, and it also gave me the confidence and the reputation to double my business that year, and then again the next year, and then again the next.

There is something so powerful about in-person events, circles, and retreats.

And the results that can be created if you are masterful as you facilitate are massive (& oh so satisfying!).

One of my favorite, favorite things about what I do is when I get to guide a client through her OWN process of stepping into her next evolution as a transformational leader, help her put together her retreats and workshops, show her the most masterful ways to facilitate…and then watch how quickly and beautifully she grows because of it.

Just to be clear: I’ve also had a LOT of facilitation faux pas and mistakes…and a lot of learning through them. The mistakes have made me an even better facilitator. (You can read 5 Case Studies of mistakes that some of my clients and myself have made, and the lessons learned from them here: https://s3-us-west-2.amazonaws.com/jlicfmcasestudy/5FacilitaitonCaseStudies.pdf)

And I’d love to hear from you!

–If you’re already facilitating groups, how has that changed you and your business?

–What are some mistakes you’ve made?

–What are lessons you’ve learned?

With love,

Joanna

p.s. – If you haven’t yet registered for our Ritual and Facilitator Mastery Workshop, there is still time! Over 200 women have said YES! to this incredible 4-hour training. I’d love to have you: http://joannalindenbaum.com/ritualworkshop/