Chat with Cat: Impact

I met with a friend for lunch today. This friend is a minister, a consultant, and a work/life coach, and he has some great stories about what he does and has done and the reasons for them. In his work he talks a lot about impact. What is the impact? Why does it matter? How is it meaningful?

Montreat makes an impact on a lot of lives each year. I have heard inspiring stories from those who attended Youth Conferences, those who have worked on Summer Staff, or those who have had other deeply meaningful experiences in this "place set apart." I have felt some of those impacts myself. I walk away better knowing God, better understanding my community; better seeing my calling. Though equally as often (and equally as meaningful) are those times that Montreat experiences have not led me toward any type of "better" but have instead hurled me into confusion or taken me back to square one. How might Montreat (or another special place) have made an impact on you?

Then, perhaps even more importantly, how has that impact directed you to do something that matters? How has your experience led you to make an impact on something or someone else? Maybe time spent on a trail hit you with the interconnectedness of God's creation, and you joined an environmental effort in your community. Maybe working with youth and leading them to express themselves spoke to you, and you became involved with the work of young people in your hometown.

Think about it. How are you carrying on the momentum of the impact? Where did the chain of meaningful experiences begin? And where could it go?

I would love to hear about the impact of your experiences. Please share in the comments section.

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Cat is the Sales Associate at Montreat Conference Center. She loves helping people plan the perfect Montreat Experience and would love to hear from you about how this blog can help you.

Cat can be reached at catw@montreat.org or at @Cat_Montreat.

Chat with Cat: A Fourth 'R'

We all know the '3 Rs': Reduce, Reuse, Recycle. In the new 'green' age these words have become almost a mantra to some--especially that last one. Somehow in our busy lives we have managed to find extra time to save the bottle, jars, newspapers, and boxes that fill our homes. I should know. I'm moving next week and this weekend managed to fill about a million (OK, about six) bags of recyclables.

Proponents of the '3 Rs' claim that doing these things are not only great for our planet, but also for our own health and finances. We produce fewer new items, so fewer gases and resources are consumed, etc, etc.

I would like to add one more 'R' to the list, and that would be 'rest.' It's good for our health and finances for sure, and I'm pretty certain your family physician would agree with that. It's also great for creation.

In fact, just today I received the most recent issue of the quarterly newsletter from Presbyterians for Earth Care--an excellent P.C.(USA) organization that helps "people of faith to foster earth care in their communities and congregations." (I attended the PEC biannual conference here in Montreat back in July.) The theme of this quarter's newsletter is the Sabbath and the practice of keeping it.

I haven't had the opportunity to read all of it yet, but there appears to be some great pieces written about sitting back and taking a look at creation. On particular part jumped out at me. This is from the cover story, written by Terry Chapman, pastor at Forked River Presbyterian Church in New Jersey:

...the practice or, to use a biblical term, the 'keeping' of Sabbath is not just another lifestyle option or one more think to check off a list of the top ten things that if done will make one happy, wealthy, and wise. It is an imperative rooted in the very essence of creation. ... When we forget or refuse to keep the Sabbath, not only do we suffer, the intricate tapestry of the cosmos begins to unravel... (PEC Update)

Those are some powerful words. We need to rest. We need to retreat. We need to take time for Sabbath, whether it's on our holy day of the week or not. Check out the brand new PEC website for more thoughts on the Sabbath and creation, and start thinking today how you might plan your Sabbath.

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Cat is the Sales Associate at Montreat Conference Center. She loves helping people plan the perfect Montreat Experience and would love to hear from you about how this blog can help you.

Cat can be reached at catw@montreat.org or at @Cat_Montreat.

Chat with Cat: Don't take our word for it

One of the amazing things about the Web 2.0 world is how technology makes it easier for us to listen. That may sound contradictory to some people because, in many ways, technology allows us to tune out the world around us. But in another way, the connectedness of social media allows us to find out almost instantaneously what people are saying about us. Any time that anyone Tweets something with the word 'Montreat,' it shows up on my computer. Every time someone posts something online about 'Montreat,' it appears in my inbox.

What's really so amazing about this is the things that people say. If you are familiar with Montreat, you are probably well aware that the spiritual nature of this place is almost indescribable. Yet some of our guests do an unbelievable job of it on their blogs. It is quite clear that they are not tuning out their surroundings. But (as LeVar Burton would say) don't just take my word for it...

Here are some snippets of what our blogger guests have said about Montreat in the past few weeks. As well as including some wonderful descriptions of Montreat itself, these writers delve into some pretty deep topics inspired by their time at our conferences:

• "It is what many have deemed a “thin place”—a location on earth where the veil separating the spiritual realm and the material world is slightly more diaphanous—perhaps, even permeable at times." (from Elaine in Texas)

• "I want to live every day the way I feel at Montreat. It’s easier to hear God." (from LK in S.C.)

• "The sermons, lessons, keynotes, and general conversations were enlightening and inspiring. Texts that I’ve been struggling to understand (i.e. - Matthew 15.21-28), suddenly made sense, and I found myself explaining the interpretation to the students I was with." (from Bethany in Tenn.)

• "800+ people– mostly college students– came to this Presbyterian conference center nestled in the Appalachians to hear a good Word, and I don’t think they returned home to California, Missouri, Pennsylvania, Texas, Alabama, or the Carolinas disappointed." (from Presbytide in Ala.)

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Cat is the Sales Associate at Montreat Conference Center. She loves helping people plan the perfect Montreat Experience and would love to hear from you about how this blog can help you.

Cat can be reached at catw@montreat.org or at @Cat_Montreat.

Chat with Cat: Focusing on Targets for 2010

Happy New Year from Montreat Conference Center! We rang in 2010 with a wonderful College Conference, and there's no better way to make a new start than to bring in 850+ young adults and some fantastic speakers.

And of course it's the time of year to make resolutions, for ourselves and for our businesses too. I wanted to know what people were thinking about, so I tried to use LinkedIn's Q&A feature to get some idea of the types of resolutions that business people make, and the types of goals they set for themselves in a new year.

The responses were not was I was looking for, but it may have been even better. The first responder simply wrote, "They don't. They are called Strategic and Business Plans." His answer didn't offer any inspiration or motivation or room to maneuver. Several others responded similarly, except the gentleman who wrote, "Avoiding carbon pollution fines." Who knew?

It reminded me that despite all the inspiring and motivating that us marketing types like to think about, solid businesses do have to be run on real, concrete plans and goals. These strategic plans and goals can make the difference between growth and failure for some organizations. And maybe when the people who make these plans hear the word "resolution," they think it's something soft or lofty, or as one person put it, "loosey-goosey."

So perhaps today's connotation of "resolution" has been damaged or lessened by so many years of making New Year's goals that fall flat of their glory. Failed diets; broken promises; forgotten objectives. But let's also think about the other definition of the term. In terms of images, "resolution" refers to the amount of detail that is available, and to the ability to zoom in on or focus on a particular item.

So what will you do this year to add detail to your goals? So much detail that you can easily focus on what's important and work toward attaining those goals that could make or break your business. Do you need to bring in someone to help you increase this "resolution?" What sort of environment will best allow you to focus on your goals? Don't forget that even a temporary change in surroundings can put you in the right mindset to accomplish things you have been putting off.

Could Montreat be the right environment for your next strategic planning or refocusing retreat?

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Cat is the Sales Associate at Montreat Conference Center. She loves helping people plan the perfect Montreat Experience and would love to hear from you about how this blog can help you.

Cat can be reached at catw@montreat.org or at @Cat_Montreat.