Reflection on Our R5 Week

We did it! Our first R5 is in the books.

Just 3.5 years ago, Compass Point was just two coaches (Tom and myself) and a dream of what our future team could look like. It’s wild to see how much we have grown with all the work we have put in!

Now as a team of 4?(and?actively looking for #5), we are much more systematized which allowed us to take a full week to?Rest,Reenergize,?Reflect,?Read, and have some needed?Recreation – aka the R5.??

The R5 week meant that as a team, we agreed to:

-?not check or respond to emails

- not check in with clients

-?not talk to each other

- no late-night texts about work

- no expectations of completing any tasks at all that week.

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You might be thinking, “so, you all took a vacation.”?A vacation it was not.

While the intent was for our team to relax and recharge during the R5 week, the premise was never truly to vacation. The goal of the R5 Week was to purposely unplug so that we could come back to work ready to kick the butt of the rest of 2021 for our clients.

How often have you taken a “vacation” yet…

…still find yourself answering emails before the kids get up or after they go to bed?

…you feel expected to be a part team meeting before you head out?to join your family on the beach?

…your significant other sleeps while you bask in the midnight glow of your phone or laptop hoping there are no fires to put out?

R5 represented permission to hit the pause button?– to each other and ourselves. That the BEST thing we could do for the business was UNPLUG from the business. Not only did we push through COVID, but we also GREW during that chaos. We added a new coach. We expended a lot of energy – mentally and physically – all while dealing with our own life events.

“Almost everything will work again if you?unplug it for a few minutes, including you.”?– Anne Lamott

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So many of my clients are high performing achievers.?They are BUSY.?They are checking emails from sun-up to sun-down. They are running around their offices or around town to get all of their daily tasks completed. They are juggling their personal and professional lives every moment of the day.

They may be “doing it all”, but you know what??EVERY. SINGLE. ONE.?of my clients has a bigger goal that they?WISH?they were spending more time on.?

Whether it be a big marketing project, making it to a dream revenue goal, shifting their entire business model, or making more intentional time for family or health. Every one of my clients has something that they?wish?they were doing differently (or better).

So, what gets in the way??Being BUSY.?Think about it.?What is it that YOU want to do? Like, REALLY want to do??Part of our work with clients is helping them determine their priorities and then having them?actually?prioritize them.

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“The key is not to prioritize what’s on your schedule,?but to schedule your priorities.”?–Stephen Covey

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At Compass Point,?we decided to make the time for our priorities.

The TIME to recharge.?

The TIME?to think about our goals.

The TIME?to think about our “stucks” and figure out how to get unstuck.

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Did it work for us?

You bet it did.?We came back together the Monday following the R5 week with our thoughts, insights, and ideas for the rest of the year, and beyond. We came back together to share these thoughts and pump each other up about the possibilities that lie ahead for us as a team. By the end of the R5 Week and our debrief on the following Monday, we left with extreme clarity on our next steps for Compass Point and for our team. And then, we hit the ground running. To learn more about?what each of us did during R5,?read my full blog?on our website.

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Ok, let’s talk about the ELEPHANT in the room.

We are NOT bragging about our ability to take a week off like this. This took sacrifice on each of our parts and was?NOT?a cheap week for the company. We worked extremely hard the last 18 months to get here. We know how blessed and lucky we are that our hard work?paid off and allowed us to do this.

We also recognize the strength this brings?to our team and our company. So, we want to ask… what can YOU and your company do to replicate this concept??

o????Take an R5 long weekend?

o????Implement a “no email on weekends” rule?

o????Purposefully ensure your team takes ALL of their vacation days?

o????Make a pact to not contact a team member while they are on vacation?

There are a dozen different ways?that you can implement this premise at your company. It does not need to be a full week of shut down. We recognize that a lot of our clients can’t do an R5 because of the type of work they do.?

But what we’re saying is…how do you make space and time to THINK better?

You can get better. We ALL can get better.?Take the time to rest.?Take the time to "noodle" ideas. Take the time to TURN IT OFF.

What possibilities does our R5 experience conjure up??

How would you choose to spend your R5?

What could new ideas do for the business?

Comment below. We'd love to hear from you.

And remember...a quiet mind is a high performance mind.