I apologize for not having any pictures to go with this post, but taking photos, drawing and painting were the farthest things from my mind during my 3 days in Charlotte, NC at the Uplevel Your Purpose Retreat.

In the many events I've attended over the years in corporate America, I don't believe I've ever experienced the openness, energy and willingness to connect as I did at this event.

Wow! The energy was amazing.

The event was centered around getting clear about who we are, what our business is about and how we can step into our own power with clear, decisive steps and take action to serve others authentically.

This meant leaving behind (or working through) preconceived notions, old mindsets that in some cases we didn't even realize we had! It meant (and will continue to mean) being scared and doing it anyway. It meant leaning on someone who had been a complete stranger just moments before to help us move forward to a more positive mindset.

The information we received is a "nuts and bolts" plan to making our businesses grow—authentically. Make no mistake, we still have to do the work to make it happen. This isn't a magic bullet, drink this magic potion or even a magic pill.

Success was modeled for us by several members from Christine's coaching circles. Businesses as diverse as the women who created them. From a neonatal nurse to an astrologer to a cosmetic surgeon.

One of the biggest things I learned while at the retreat was that will it takes work, sometimes hard work, to build a successful business, it doesn't have to be a struggle. We get into the habit of making our lives difficult so we can celebrate our victories over the struggle by sharing it over and over again with friends and family.

I'm coming to understand just how much this behavior limits me and what I can accomplish. This type of behavior drains me and steals energy that I could be using to accomplish more.

One of the other lessons I heard time and again, was that life is a process just as success and failure are as well. I create success, or failure, through the myriad decisions I make everyday. Neither success or failure is a one time event—it's the thousands of decisions made each day.

As I move forward with what I've learned/learning, you'll begin to notice changes. Some big but mostly small tweaks to what I'm already doing.

I look forward to sharing the growth with you. Meanwhile, I encourage you to check out Christine's blog—it's chocked full of goodies!