RELA: A magical adventure in the woods
June 11-14, 2020
Nine Mountain Retreat Center, Plainfield, MA
The bad news is no one was taught how to be in a relationship.
The good news is it no longer needs to remain a mystery.
Introducing RELA.
RELA stands for Really Exciting Love Adventure and it’s a weekend dedicated to self-discovery and finding your voice through exploring relationships. We chose this name and the red balloon because we want this to be a fun and magical adventure.
Hi, the “we” is me, Angela Lussier, founder and CEO of the Speaker Sisterhood, and my friend Dr. Joli Hamilton, a professor, coach and speaker who focuses on sex, love, relationships and connection. (She’s also one of the first and longest standing Speaker Sisterhood members!)
Our guiding image we used to create the energy of the weekend was this, a picture I got at a flea market for $1.00 over 10 years ago and is my favorite possession.
You may be asking yourself why Speaker Sisterhood is putting on a retreat about relationships. Well, like our clubs, what we’re talking about isn’t really what we’re talking about. The retreat isn’t really about relationships, it’s about the self-discovery that comes from examining our relationships. You know that Speaker Sisterhood isn’t really about public speaking, it’s about what you learn about yourself through doing public speaking. This is the same thing – just a different approach. Isn’t it so fun?
So what is the weekend about? Let’s start with these questions:
Do you ever wonder what your relationships can reveal to you?
Do you feel totally satisfied with your relationships, or do you want them to be deeper and more meaningful?
This retreat weekend will take you through an adventure of exploring your current love story – AKA the story you have in your head about what relationships, sex and connection are – and the love story you would like to create. It’s not just about romantic relationships though, it’s about how you show up and relate to others in all kinds of ways.
Can you relate to any of these statements about your relationships?
- “I’ve heard of boundaries, I just have no idea how to create them.”
- “I’ve become the invisible caretaker of everyone’s needs except my own.”
- “Even if I was asked what I want, I’m not sure I could say what that is.”
- “I’m in a relationship that is going nowhere and I’ve lost sight of myself in the process.”
- “Relationships feel more like work than joy.”
If you can relate to any of these statements, you’re the perfect person to join us. We want to help you connect with what gets in the way of creating joyful, easeful, satisfying relationships so you can find a better way.
Don’t you love her already?
The format of the weekend is experiential, group-driven exploration, learning and discovering together through the guidance of trained facilitators. The retreat is limited to 20 participants and aims to take each person on an adventure into their own love story, both past and future.
This retreat is for you if:
- You’re feeling dissatisfied or disappointed by your relationships.
- You sense you could be getting more from your relationships, but you don’t know how.
- You feel like you’re a failure at communicating, setting boundaries, stating needs, and getting what you want.
- You end up in relationships that are taking more from you than they are giving you.
What you will learn:
- How to know if a relationship isn’t working for you anymore.
- What serves you and what doesn’t when it comes to thoughts, beliefs, and behaviors.
- How you’re holding yourself back from the intimacy you really want.
- Why you keep finding yourself in the same relationship struggles over and over again.
- How to ask for what you need and communicate your boundaries, even if you have trouble talking about them.
- What to do when it’s time to transition out of a relationship that isn’t working for you.
- What trust is and how to build it.
Our hope for you is that you will leave the weekend feeling:
- Clearer about what you want from relationships
- Refreshed and energized about your relationships
- More trusting of yourself and your desires
- Courageous and not afraid to show all the way up in your relationships
- More optimistic about relationships so you can shift the focus towards connections and experiences, not obligation
What you get:
Everyone will leave with their own unique love story designed with your relationship goals in mind AND you will get to present your love story to the group before the weekend is over. Don’t forget, this is Speaker Sisterhood, so there will be some public speaking.
Here’s the key: Personal transformation doesn’t need to mean suffering through every step. Playful, creative time can be just the thing we need to discover parts of ourselves we thought we’d lost in childhood.
Join us for RELA: a Really Exciting Love Adventure.
On the fence? Here are the top five reasons to go:
- If it sounds scary, that’s a clue to go for it
- Do something totally different that will open your eyes in a new way
- Make new friends
- Have fun, be creative, explore
- Rewrite your love story
Find out how this idea came to be on our podcast episode: Ep. 134 An Announcement and an Offering (and How We Got There)
Want to join us? Here’s how.
Since this retreat is only open to 20 women, we have created an application process to make sure this is definitely for you.
The application window is now closed. Please contact us using the form below to get on the waiting list if you would like to apply to attend.
Cost:
Speaker Sisterhood Members and Club Leaders:
$400 for the program + $430 for lodging and meals = $830 ($100 discount!)
Non-Speaker Sisterhood Members:
$500 for the program + $430 for lodging and meals = $930
Cost includes our RELA program, all materials, lodging for three nights and all meals and snacks.
Payments Plans:
Speaker Sisterhood members and club leaders: $285/month over 3 months
Non-members: $320/month over 3 months
More about Dr. Joli Hamilton and Angela Lussier:
Dr. Joli Hamilton has been interested in relationships since she drove her parents wild with constant questions about how people work. Growing up wasn’t enough to sate her hunger for the answers to those questions so she got a doctorate in depth psychology from Pacifica Graduate Institute where she specialized in Jungian and Archetypal Studies. Her most recent research studies explore jealousy–where it begins and what to do with it. Raising a family of seven teenagers, Joli never loses interest in the mystery of relating to each other and ourselves. Joli also earned a certificate in holistic sexuality education from the Institute for Sexuality Education and Enlightenment, where she is now faculty teaching intimacy, communication, theories of sexuality education, and kink awareness for new sex therapists and educators. She is an AASECT board-certified sex educator and is currently the Chair of the Continuing Education Committee for AASECT. Joli is also a professor of human sexuality where she is constantly finding new ways to teach people how to lean into their curiosity about sex, love, and connection.
Angela Lussier is an award-winning professional speaker, seven-time author, two-time TEDx presenter, and CEO and founder of the Speaker Sisterhood, a network of public speaking clubs for women. Angela is the host of Claim the Stage, a public speaking podcast for women rated #1 on the inspiring podcasts list by Forbes in 2017. She is a contributor to Huffington Post and her work has been featured on ABC, NBC, Forbes, Today.com, Virgin, and Entrepreneur. She likes to spend her time cooking, being in nature and hiking, reading, making things, and being a mom. Her motto: Stop waiting. Start creating.
Got a question? Contact us!
Speaker Sisterhood: Discover, Awaken and Create Your Voice 