Co-creating a collective reset
An Interview with Adrian Sinclair
As we enter this time of global upheaval, we need places and opportunities to rethink how we lead our teams, households and organizations. There is a need for leadership that finds new ways of doing things and disrupts our patterns. In my career I have found that retreat centres have offered me a solid amount of time to imagine new ways forward. Adrian Sinclair and I are co-creating a new retreat offering at Hollyhock on Cortes Island this May and in preparation I took some time to interview him. Enjoy!
Tell us a bit more about you - What books are you reading? What cafes are you loving?
Adrian Sinclair: I bought this gem of a graphic novel last week at the Vancouver Fan Expo directly from the Vancouver-based author, Darcy Van Poelgeest. "Little Bird, The Fight for Elders Hope," is an epic david & goliath tale about resistance to an unhinged American Empire, extreme family drama, and a horror story about religious zealotry. It takes place in an alternate future version of Western Canada. Written in 2019, but very applicable in todays geo-political climate. In my backpack right now, I am reading Aldous Huxley's "Perennial Philosophy." It's a pre-owned copy and there are thoughtful notes written in pencil all over every page of the book. It feels like I am reading it with an anonymous co-reader. The book is a comparative study of religious and mystical theology, published in 1945. Fav cafes? For those who know me, I spend way too much time in cafes on The Drive (Commercial Drive Vancouver/Little Italy). Due to the way my attention span works, I need a lot of ruckus, noise and things going on in the background to help me focus on a task like answering questions for this interview ;) Caffe Calabria, in my estimation, provides the very highest quality ruckus I have ever witnessed - they also have the largest indoor stone sculpture garden this side of Italy.
Janet Moore: Why this retreat, at this time?
Adrian Sinclair: While we are very "digitally" connected - we are facing a deepening crisis of social isolation, polarization and general high levels of anxiety. There are many ways of addressing this. Many of them can be effective. Yet, the world is full of quick-fix, listicles, top 5 ways to..., solve these interconnected and systemic socio-economic, colonial and social media-related issues. Why retreat at this time? Retreats have one big advantage over other methodologies, they are fully immersive. The Hollyhock Leadership Campus is a closed system. It exists apart - its inputs of ocean, forest, garden, gathering structures, meals, and accommodation all 100% focused on shutting out the default world, and supporting the unique needs and desires of the attendees on their individual retreats. Let's close some stress cycles, grow our networks, receive nutrition, get some rest and remediate our personal mental environments.
Janet Moore: What can folks expect to happen on this retreat?
Adrian Sinclair: (Spoiler Warning) In contrast to every other retreat out there, we will resist the urge to flood you with guest talks by guru's, we will not propose a systematic rethinking or radical lifestyle shift, and we will not advocate a new foodism that will revolutionize your gut micro-biome. We will expose each attendee to an expansive, immersive, connective and nourishing 5 days that will feed their senses and attempt to reset our collective nervous systems to a more peaceful and powerful state. The techniques are land-based and driven by our natural need to connect and rest. As leaders (in our work) and leaders in our home lives (as heads of households) - we are feeling more and more disconnected and exhausted. Collective Reset directly intervenes in these two problem areas.
Imagine, you wake up to an ocean breeze, sun rising over the beach as you walk down to the main lodge where attendees meet each morning. You raise a little porcelain cup of rich, earthy pu-erh tea to your lips and sit to chat with someone you met yesterday on the ferry up to the island. Over tea, you meet Anita, she is creating an online education start-up that specializes in creating access to post secondary education for rural Canadians. After breakfast (which was made from the Hollyhock garden), you and Anita both grab a forest-walk map, head out on a co-hiking route. The paper map suggests you avoid using your phone for the duration - time slows, and both of you go deep into some big topics while you stride under the vast cedar canopy. When you find your way back to the lodge, you laugh at the sound of the "Mandatory Nap" Gong that is being struck by one of the organizers. You think to yourself, "I thought this retreat was free of mandatory programming?!" Notwithstanding, you decide to give the nap a try after you dip into the hot tub overlooking the ocean to fully relax your body and mind. After your post-soak nap, you meet up at the beach for the daily facilitated leadership discussion called: Daily Fireside. All the discussion topics are submitted by the group, its dialogue based and is facilitated by Janet Moore, who spent her PhD researching and testing new ways of disrupting the dominant post-secondary lecture-based education model during her time at SFU. Lunch is next, you hope today is when you try your first oyster - you have heard that Hollyhock is known for its Oyster BBQ's. This afternoon you plan to go for a swim in the ocean and then partake in sauna/cold plunge session with one of the organizers who has been running a non-profit sauna society for over 20 years in and around Metro Vancouver. This evening seems light-years away, the day feels like it is lengthening, expanding, and slowing to its own speed.
Janet Moore: What scares you most about the retreat?
Adrian Sinclair: That we might be giving people too much freedom. Do people want more tight programming and structure?
Janet Moore: What are you excited most for?
Adrian Sinclair: I'm excited about meeting new people. I am also looking forward to feeling recharged with calm and powerful energy when we leave the island after 5 days.
Janet Moore: What do you love about Hollyhock?
Adrian Sinclair: The Toast Bar. Right beside the kitchen, 24 hours a day, there is a place where there is always fresh bread, a big toaster and an amazing selection of spreads to apply!
Janet Moore: What can we expect from the toast bar?
Adrian Sinclair: Whether you are spreading peanut butter, almond butter, nutella, local honey, or Earth Balance on gluten free, sprouted or ancient grains-based toast -- you can be absolutely sure that 24hrs a day, you can experience the Toast Bar's near endless bounty of savoury and sweet combinations. I feel like the spirit of this Retreat could be summed up by the Toast Bar. The retreat and the toast bar are like a re-charging station that is self-serve, open-format, and can accommodate all kinds of combinations. Everybody loves a good piece of toast - and it always tastes better when shared.
More info on the Collective Reset: Leadership Retreat in a previous blog here.
