Am I clear? What we didn't know then...

I wrote the below last year about this time. Little did any of us know what lay ahead. I always like to look back in order to look forward, but if anything, I’ve learned to keep space for anything to happen! And sitting here reviewing goals and dreams for 2020, knowing what all we faced, I’m humbled and grateful to say that every single goal laid out in 2018, 2019 and 2020 was accomplished! *mindblown* It wasn’t easy, it didn’t go the way I expected, but I am grateful to have landed in a place where we may be able to focus the coming year(s) on consistent growth, stability and sustained support. May I repeat the prayer for 2021?

I pray, no matter the road ahead, that Rise continues to be a place of healing, that we may become a source that guides you on your path to wholly living. May we walk alongside and learn from one another.

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You know I don’t believe in new year’s resolutions. The turn of a calendar page doesn’t mean that suddenly life will change. But I do believe in themes that weave through our days that collectively set up a trajectory and ultimately becomes what defines our years. Because of the nature of weaving, some themes overlap, some ebb while others rise up and flow. 

2016 was a year of destruction, 2017 foundation-laying, 2018 building, 2019 accumulation. This year, not ironically the year 2020, I feel my emerging theme is clarity. But clear vision isn’t waiting until January 1. In November, the leadership team of Rise spent a weekend getting really clear on our mission, our vision, our key characteristics that will clearly set the path for Rise as we move forward. Before the holidays, I did a nine-day digestive cleanse to prepare my mind and body for the holidays. This week between Christmas and New Year, I’m clearing my physical space of objects that no longer serve.

You know what else they say about 2020… hindsight is. So before we turn the calendar page forward, it’ll serve us well to look back. Here, I copied and pasted goals outlined about this time last year and noted where we are currently in regards to those goals.  


2018:

“This has been a year of momentum and establishing roots for sustainable growth. Rise will celebrate its 5th birthday in 2019! And 2018 has laid a groundwork upon which I feel we are ready to build…

This is what I've been up to the last couple months of 2018 in order to realize these dreams for 2019:

  • A fresh and functional website Website is fresh and functional AND will be getting another redesign as we head into the New Year and new building *hint hint on a few of those other goals*

  • Hiring my first employee Um, so we hired three, not one. Two remain on staff in the roles of Brand Strategist//Storyteller *hey, Jen* and Right Hand//Synergist *heyo, Becca*

  • Hiring an accounting/bookkeeping firm Life. Saver. Kickstart Accounting has taken so much off my plate and for that I’m so thankful!

  • Going back to school for Ayurveda Health Counseling Certification First part is done in February! Internships begin in April

  • Launching SOAR Method (a wellness planning and coaching program with an empowerment focus, using Ayurveda techniques and a whole network of health and wellness professionals) SOAR method is in the works! It’s an ongoing project that will be ready to launch early 2020

  • Creating and finding instructors for new types of classes (i.e. barre, strength training, meditation, nutrition, and more!) A highly qualified gym owner has been identified and we’ll close a deal when the time is right! Three barre instructors have been or are being trained. Massage therapists are lined up and ready for their spaces. Other services are in the wings and we’ll reveal those in the near future!

  • Looking for a new space downtown where we can join in the vibe of excitement happening on Main St and house this explosion of growth Here’s the big one! We closed on 27 W Main St on April 26, 2019. The big move is slated for April 1, 2020. If you’re in the neighborhood, peek in the expansive storefront windows to check on our progress. It’s coming along beautifully.

So you’ll see we’ve reached pretty much every goals set forth for 2019. And just like the preparation it took at the end of 2018 in order to achieve those objectives, we continue to weave and co-create to build the future for which we have been called in 2020. 

The goals for 2020 are clear and simple:

  • Move into 27 W. Main

  • Launch SOAR method

  • Have systems, processes and communications in place which are seamless and client-experience focused

Hindsight being 20/20, I’d say 2019 was one that shifted Rise in big ways. Those shifts, while aren’t easy or comfortable, were necessary and clearly revealed a vision for well into the future. We gained and lost instructors, gained and lost clients, took big risks, felt a little scared, but the overall lesson was one that is helping us become a little more clear on who we are as we move forward. And isn’t that all we can hope for every year?



My prayer for 2020 is that Rise continues to be a place of healing, that we may become a source that guides you on your path to wholly living. May we walk alongside and learn from one another.

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