Living and Learning On Your Own Terms

I was a teacher in the UK system for more than 15 years. I did all kinds of jobs; from covering PE lessons to Senior Management and leading Entrepreneurship across an Academy Chain. I co-wrote a book on the best bits entitled 'Fear Is The Mind Killer' then went into education consultancy and worked for the prestigious UCL, Institute of Education. There were some wild adventures in the middle, where I built a school in a bright-yellow, double-decker bus and, on one unforgettable day in 2015, my heart cracked wide open over tea with refugees and I had an epiphany about life, the universe and everything. And yes, I was 42 years of age at the time!

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These days, if you look at my Instagram you could be forgiven for thinking that I simply plant trees, play in the ocean and skip stones in rivers for a living.

And in many respects that is true.

And there's a reason why I think it might just be the most important work I've ever done.

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Because it helps people learn how to regulate their own nervous systems, so that life feels manageable even in the roller-coaster moments.

And enables them to understand how people communicate with their words, behaviours and actions, so that they can forge deeper and longer lasting connections with others.

It also allows them to move from unconscious incompetence (they are blissfully unaware of just how terrible they are at something), through the excruciating stages of conscious incompetence (they understand exactly how terrible they are at something), to conscious competence (they can do it, but it takes all their effort) through to the joyful realisation that they are unconsciously competent (they can do it without thinking about it).

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?This work that I do, that looks an awful lot like play, is the culmination of 20+ years of studying, researching, designing, building, iterating and improving a method for supporting humans to thrive.

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Want to know why I still do it?

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Because it never, EVER gets old to witness people light up when they realise that they can do something new, that they believed was impossible, because they learned how to self-regulate.

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?It doesn't matter what that thing is. Whether it's skipping stones, or planting trees, or designing solutions to global challenges; like how to live and learn on your own terms, aligned with your own values, with dignity and joy.

The important thing is that it all becomes possible when you learn how to make it so.

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If you're wondering if there has to be a better way, perhaps today more than most days, I want to reassure you that there is. I used to feel trapped in a life that made me miserable. Now I am free to live life on my own terms and, more than feels fair some days, do that barefoot on a beach with the most interesting people in the world.

What's more, I am no longer alone. There is a global movement quietly gathering force in the background with me, making the world feel safe for all of us.

Come and join us if safety, belonging and purpose - or skipping stones on the beach - are important to you too.

Kate x

Director/Founder - The Human Hive and The Hive Adventure

Our next adventure begins 10th January 2025

Cabrera, Carretera Rio San Juan Nagua, Cabrera 33000, Dominican Republic

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