Holistic Corporate Off-Site Retreats: Growing the Personal and Professional through Transformational Travel
Transformational travel, one of the latest trends in health and wellness, is an innovative concept that focuses on personal transformation through “immersive, meaningful and intentional travel experiences”[1] that make a lasting impression when a traveller goes home. While not everyone has access to expensive trips abroad in exotic locations, one of the simplest ways to experience this kind of unique getaway is through a holistic corporate retreat.
Traditional workplace off-sites with the usual team bonding activities and seminars in hotels offer little in the way of relaxation, except through TV or the hotel bar. These hardly encourage personal reflection or spur passion for the workplace. If you’re looking for business retreats that create a stronger impact, take cues from transformational travel which guides participants on a “personal journey” instead.
Holistic corporate off-site retreats can open minds and ignite an inner spark in participants. They can be a jumping-off point where people discover “…more beauty, more joy, more connection, more love, more fulfilment, more exuberance… The more inspiring glimpses about what human life can be.”[2]
Benefits of a Transformative Corporate Retreat:
- Empowered People
Dr Garth Lean, Professor from the University of Western Sydney, lists personal enlightenment and wellness as two of several principal agents of change people experience with transformational travel.[3]
There are few opportunities in our daily working lives for personal reflection and introspection. People need to get away to see things from a different perspective. Corporate retreats provide not only a much-needed break for the body, but an opportunity to clear our minds to think about how things can be done differently or better. They allow us to ponder the alternatives.[1]
Even a short transformative weekend can shift our way of thinking – it can be a catalyst for changing the way we live and work. What’s more, there can be a ripple effect to the people close to you: friends, family and you community.[2]
Business objectives will benefit from turning your usual corporate off-site retreat into a wellness-centred one. Why not include a professional short course or recognition program alongside wellness activities in your transformative corporate weekend? Refreshed in body and mind, participants will no doubt be more motivated to participate in work-related seminars.
3. Renewed Company Culture
The traditional off-site objective of building and maintaining company morale still holds true for holistic business retreats. Retreats provide an opportunity to enrich personal relationships between team members to create a better working environment. Retreats tend to boost mental health at work and improve workplace culture. A more cohesive and redefined company culture reinvigorates employers’ and employees’ passion and productivity.
Planning a Great Transformative Business Retreat
If you want your corporate retreat to be a transformative getaway, it helps to define your organisation’s needs and identify the goals you’d like to achieve for the people in your organization.
Objectives
From a holistic perspective, ask:
- What results would you like to see after the corporate off-site(s)?
- Specifically, in what ways would participants be different people to the people they were when the corporate retreat began?[6]
Venue
The setting for a transformational weekend has to be a wellness mecca. Yvette Reisinger, Associate Professor, Temple University, says “nature-based and eco travel provide the basis of self-reflection and healing, can lead to feelings of wellness, relaxation and interconnection to the world.”[7]
Activities
Brainstorm an holistic theme that is aligned with your organisation’s vision. Incorporate mindfulness, yoga or other wellness activities that can then be adapted to the work environment. Professor Reisinger adds: “travelling for wellness purposes focuses on healing, rest, recuperation and fitness, it allows one to get in touch with ones’ inner self, and develop a sense of being one with the world. Yoga affects the psychological, emotional and spiritual well-being of individuals and communities.”
Final thoughts
While people have always travelled in search of enriching life experiences and different perspectives, there is now a growing movement of organisations providing immersive, off-site retreats to harness the personal growth and transformational benefits that travel brings.
Let HSG help you plan your next transformative business retreat.
We partner with quality venues around Australia to bring you holistic corporate off-site retreats. Choose a location not far from your capital city or somewhere more exotic.
We work with you to tailor a retreat to meet your objectives and budget.
Contact us on 1300 889 073 or email us
[2] Charles Eisentein, Author, Public Speaker and Gift Economy Advocate
[3] Dr. Lean, G. (2016), Transformative Travel in a Mobile World
[4] Smith, J. (2018) Transforming Travel: Realising the Potential of Sustainable Tourism
[5] http://www.travelweekly.com/Strategic-Content/Transformational-Travel
[6] Kottler, J. A (1997) Travel That Can Change Your Life: How to Create a Transformative Experience. San Francisco : Jossey-Bass.
[7] Reisinger, Y. (2015) Transformational Tourism: Host Perspectives retrieved from books.google.com
