Cgw #5

[Savage]

Had an amazing time at CGW this weekend. IMO this was the best one by far. Lots of love to everyone who attended!

Day 3 was especially fun with about half the people wearing costumes. We took lots of photos, so I'm sure people will share some in the coming days.

Now I need to sleep about 12 hours...

[Tyler Fowler]

Originally Posted by Steve Pavlina

Now I need to sleep about 12 hours...

I agree with pretty much all you said there, Steve, but I really can echo this part! This was a truly amazing workshop and I thank you enormously for putting it on.

Now then, where did my pillow go? I'm going to need it on my trip back to WA.

[Daffy Duck]

Good stuff! I look forward to seeing the pics.

[seeker5]

Originally Posted by Steve Pavlina

Had an amazing time at CGW this weekend. IMO this was the best one by far.

I agree! Just Amazing.

[Zachary]

I feel blessed for having gotten to be a part of this whole event. To everyone who I met, may the friendships continue and may you receive all the love I learned to give this weekend! For those who were there but I did not get to know, thank you for the energy we all shared even though we may not have talked face to face. And for those envious souls who could not attend, don't worry. I bet on the principle of oneness that you'll get your fair share of the growth from those of us who did attend

Thank you Steve, and everyone who made this workshop kick ass

[Margarita888]

I saw some of the pics. I'm super jealous!!!!! Looks like you all had TONS of fun.

[Cielemel]

The workshop (and weekend) was absolutely fantastic for me in both learning and connecting. I had more amazing hugs on Sunday than I could possibly count!

I'm overflowing with gratitude to Steve and everyone in the room . . . Love Love Love to All!!!

Cynthia

[wolvie]

This weekend was phenomenal, it'll stay with me for the rest of my life, and it was fantastic making 100 new friends within 4 days!

I'm still riding on the wave today, all of my interactions on the way home and today have been so warm and inviting. I've already taken some huge steps towards focusing more on my spirit work, including joining another spirit group and having dinner tonight with my best friend - and fellow spirit worker - to talk to him about the insights and experiences from this weekend.

I also have a date with a potential "sex kitten" on Friday, we'll see how that turns out.

Love you all! <3

EDIT: I found out *just now* that I've inspired a whole *PODCAST* to start a fitness challenge! One of their contributors has me as a friend on Facebook, and when he saw me talking about my success on 30 day trials over the past 60-90 days, he was so inspired by it that he's using his podcast to spread this type of challenge to a wider audience! This correlates exactly to the 30 day trial that I decided upon doing for November at CGW, we started today, and it'll be a lot of fun!

Anyone else interested should either friend me on Facebook (Virginia Willett, Denver CO) or follow Wombatcast (Geek-oriented podcast, WombatCast on Facebook, WombatCast).

[DANDUNGAN]

Purr.

[microELVIS]

What a weekend. Top notch information, ridiculous coincidences and of course first class people.

I miss you all, and wish you joy and growth in all that you desire.

Maybe one day we will hang out again...

[Elemental]

Awesome.

I'm sitting in the airport waiting for my flight home, and I'm having post-workshop withdrawal already

[Orionjoel]

I echo your thoughts Elemental, and I think yesterdat and this morning have been the most challenging part of the weekend. Just because i know that there are things I need to change however still having trouble confirming for myself just what actions I need to take.

[Savage]

Originally Posted by Orionjoel

I echo your thoughts Elemental, and I think yesterdat and this morning have been the most challenging part of the weekend. Just because i know that there are things I need to change however still having trouble confirming for myself just what actions I need to take.

You often won't know the right actions till you're already in motion. It's hard to figure anything out when you're still pondering. The more experimentation you do, the faster you'll figure out what works and what doesn't. Don't expect to get it right on the first try since that rarely happens, but each attempt gives you a better idea of what will work for you.

[Razilee]

Originally Posted by Steve Pavlina

You often won't know the right actions till you're already in motion.

And that means I need to stay in motion.

I'm crashing after the workshop high. As I drove closer and closer to my house, I felt enveloped in a dark cloud of gloom. It's a lot harder to be hyped and excited and feel like I know exactly what to do now that I'm home among all my old connections.

That being said, I did already jump into change. And I'm almost giddily excited about the possibilities ahead of me, the insights I've had and all the wonderful friends I've made. Late on Sunday night (probably already Monday morning!) Zach asked me what was the first thing I would do when I got home. My response: solidify the social support of all my new friends to make sure I keep on changing.

Thank you all for making CGW totally awesome!!!

[Charante]

Hey everyone!
Back in my own time-zone after another very long trip! 12 hours of sleep was needed indeed to regain a bit of energy
CGW was truly amazing. I'm very motivated to take action on everything I picked up this weekend. Especially the guided meditation in which we could talk to our "future selves" did a lot for me. I had no idea I could actually connect with myself like that... it may sound cheesy, but I feel much more whole since that! I'm gonna repeat that excercise daily and keep in touch with "me"
Love you all and miss you!

- Marian

[Sai]

Phew, just got back. Can't quite articulate in words (brained frazzled) but something has changed in me. Thanks again Steve! (Still don't believe you're a real person though)

- Simon

[Krazy]

I also attended CGW3, which was a life-changing experience for me, and resulted in my moving to a new city and starting a new business. CGW5 was a bit harder to pin down, but after the first day I felt like I was struck by a truck when I realized that all of the disconnections I made since May needed to be replaced with something better. Since I now feel my career and finance areas are going the direction I want them to go, relationships and fitness are my primary focus.

Upon arriving home, I disconnected my home computer, which has been a major source of time-wasting for months and years and in the case of political websites I frequented, a source of pointless frustration and anger. I took it to my office a half mile away, where it remains disconnected in the corner. My home is now television and computer free. I'm doing this as a 30 day trial, but I already feel like more time came from heaven and into my life. I'll be interested to see how this turns out as I begin searching for alternatives to mindlessly staring at my computer screen for hours on end.

Also, this morning I hired a personal trainer, who works for a company that only does personal training in their private gym. It is expensive. But when we did the exercise at CGW proclaiming our "amazing health" I realized that one of the standards I found important was "six pack abs" and my lack of fitness has proven to a real blocker in my relationships (whether real or imagined). My health focus for the past year has been to form new habits gradually. This has helped significantly improve my diet over the past year, but I'm eager for more rapid change. So, I combined the two things that have worked best for me in the past: a strict raw vegan diet combined with intensive physical training with a personal trainer.

Super psyched and grateful for all those who I met at this CGW!

[joyfulgrowth]

Since some people mentioned post-workshop withdrawals symptoms:

A friend of mine is really into brain chemistry and happiness research. Once after a two-week-workshop in Spain with lots of hugging, cuddling and community he sent us an email about how to deal with re-entry. The main point I recall is that much of it is about Oxytocine, which tends to be much higher after you have experienced a lot of closeness with people.

His two post workshop suggestions were to

* start hugging friends and family (more) so that the difference between a hundred hugs on Sunday night and possibly none on Tuesday isn't that big (Thanks Daan for broadening my mind on that!), and to

* find as much that you can appreciate in your life as you can the first days. Apparently, appreciating little details (the taste of an ingredient of your breakfast, an sms from a friend, the color of the sky - anything that you could say "I like X" about) has a similar love effect on us hormonwise as receiving hugs, and you can do it even while in the process of figuring out how to create more enjoyable connections at home

(and of course, while needing a certain discomfort to motivate me for change, focusing on aspects of my experience that I do appreciate is what gives me the fuel/power/connection to life that I need to actually make a change - been down the resistance road for to long to know that hating my circumstances cripples me.
I remember times of my life when I within just a couple of days had trained my appreciation muscles in a way that I would not only notice hundreds of things I liked and feel that joy in my body, but when my brain had actually gone on autopilot from appreciating: e.g. I had gotten so excited/happy about every mango-sunflower-yellow item that came into my experience that when they turned out to have hundreds of trashcans at the Barcelona airport in just the right color, my mind had a blast and I was blown away by joy without even making any conscious effort )

Anyway, so joyful integration to everybody!

[Supertramp]

Wow!!!! Seeing all the response, I guess Steve would've done a great job in raising consciousness! I clearly miss it. I have one request Steve. Is it ok for people here to share the exercises of the CGW as it would be helpful for me. This being the last workshop, it would beneficial for us... at least to get a glimpse of what you guys were doing there..

Prasanna the Supertramp

[90802]

Man oh man oh man.

What a weekend. I'm still a bit drained from it. Now I need to make a plan to stay in touch with all those wonderful people I net this weekend. I also need to find a decent picture so everyone can recognize who I am (Chris D from Atlanta).

For any lurkers who didn't attend and are curious...my biggest takeaway (and I'm sure others will disagree) was the importance of a social support network. Up to this past weekend, I had always thought something was wrong with me because I couldn't tackle every challenged I faced by myself. Now I see that having loving and supportive people around you can make all the difference.

I've NEVER felt this close to people I've only known for a few days. I didn't get to speak to everyone, but really enjoyed the conversation with everyone I did get to speak with (what an ugly sentence ).

Now I have to figure out how to build that support network here at home.

[Razilee]

Originally Posted by joyfulgrowth

Since some people mentioned post-workshop withdrawals symptoms:
* start hugging friends and family (more)
* find as much that you can appreciate in your life as you can the first days.

Wow - great advice. I was kind of already noticing that being aware and appreciating each moment was really helping, but this just consolidates it. Thanks!

[Divajules]

Originally Posted by 90802

Man oh man oh man.

What a weekend. I'm still a bit drained from it. Now I need to make a plan to stay in touch with all those wonderful people I net this weekend. I also need to find a decent picture so everyone can recognize who I am (Chris D from Atlanta).

For any lurkers who didn't attend and are curious...my biggest takeaway (and I'm sure others will disagree) was the importance of a social support network. Up to this past weekend, I had always thought something was wrong with me because I couldn't tackle every challenged I faced by myself. Now I see that having loving and supportive people around you can make all the difference.

I've NEVER felt this close to people I've only known for a few days. I didn't get to speak to everyone, but really enjoyed the conversation with everyone I did get to speak with (what an ugly sentence ).

Now I have to figure out how to build that support network here at home.

THIS! I went to CGW#2 and this was one of the big things I came away with as well. Why would you think anyone would disagree?

[la9arza]

I've been to personal development workshops of various shades, including Tony Robbins, T. Harv Eker and many others.

I know this is supposed to be the last one, and if so I feel really lucky to have attended it. But I do feel compelled to say that given my previous experiences with these types of workshops, the material, delivery, and attendees were the best BAR NONE.

Sincere thanks to Steve, Erin, Bron, Dana, Matty, and all the beautiful, simply amazing attendees that made this experience the highlight of my year.

Much love,
Lisa

[ericabiz]

Well, I've already made the huge sweeping changes I didn't have the courage to make after CGW#1. The first day I was back, I broke up with Richard and put in our 30-day notice in the house we are currently living in. Then I decided to get rid of half my stuff, seriously downsize, and move to a smaller place. Today I found a place I liked and tomorrow I plan to put in an application.

All this while running a startup and my blog, and getting ready for another conference on Friday-Sunday. Sleep? Who needs it!

CGW was the kick in the a** I seriously needed.

-Erica

[Orionjoel]

Way to go Erica, Taking massive action is never easy. Good Luck, look forward to seeing great things with the start up soon

[Cielemel]

Originally Posted by 90802

my biggest takeaway (and I'm sure others will disagree) was the importance of a social support network. Up to this past weekend, I had always thought something was wrong with me because I couldn't tackle every challenged I faced by myself. Now I see that having loving and supportive people around you can make all the difference.

For anyone who did NOT go out dancing with us Sunday, you totally missed out seeing Chris come completely out of his shell with wanton abandon dancing in the middle of our circle of CGW friends. This quiet, self-conscious gentleman unexpectedly DOMINATES the dance floor with fantastic moves I couldn't even keep up with. Chris, ya gotta use that man, that energy is going to take you beyond any expectation or goal or dream you ever had for your life! West Coast Swing, I'm tellin' ya, that dance is written all over you, you HAVE to find some classes and social west coast swing dances to give it a whirl!

BTW, I forgot to tell you Chris, because I didn't want to blurt this out in front of everyone on Sunday, but I teach graduate school, so if that kind of teacher can be the kind of teaching resource you were looking for, let me know. I'm cielemel on Yahoo IM, Twitter, Facebook . . . or you can e-mail me at cynthia@cielemel.com

I'm in Atlanta right now missing that great CGW connection. I'm totally bummed this business trip is so short, it would be a blast to hang out with you again so soon after CGW. So. . . April.!We must get together and get you out dancing when I come back to Atlanta in April!

Best regards,
Cynthia

[90802]

Originally Posted by Divajules

THIS! I went to CGW#2 and this was one of the big things I came away with as well. Why would you think anyone would disagree?

Hmm, not that anyone would disagree with that, but they may have came away with completely different insights

Now, I'm not sure where the heart of dixie is, but if you are near Atlanta stay in touch. There's an attendee who's moving here, and we are going to stay in touch. You should join us if you live nearby

Originally Posted by Cielemel

For anyone who did NOT go out dancing with us Sunday, you totally missed out seeing Chris come completely out of his shell with wanton abandon dancing in the middle of our circle of CGW friends. This quiet, self-conscious gentleman unexpectedly DOMINATES the dance floor with fantastic moves I couldn't even keep up with. Chris, ya gotta use that man, that energy is going to take you beyond any expectation or goal or dream you ever had for your life! West Coast Swing, I'm tellin' ya, that dance is written all over you, you HAVE to find some classes and social west coast swing dances to give it a whirl!

Hehe, thanks for the nice words

It's so funny, to me dancing is something that's just a natural part of who I am now. I never even really think about it. It seems to give me a chance to get in touch with my "real" personality (being silly, playfun, etc). I DEFNIITELY need to figure out how to put that part of my personality (the dancing part) into other areas of my life (especially when it comes to social and relationships). Perhaps the social conditioning has made me afraid of being silly and fun in front of strangers. I need to figure out a fun 30 day trial with that one

Oh, west coast swing is getting on the agenda. I'll have to search for lessons in Atlanta.

And maybe I can become a novelty stripper to fill in the income gaps

PS-Hmmm, not sure what kind of teaching resource I was looking for, but would love to be reminded. I don't think I've ever met so many new people so fast. It fried my brain just a bit But I'm always ready for a cheerleader or three ( and would love to cheer you on in whatever direction life takes you!).

Ahh I'm so glad I was able to attend. New friends are groovy

[fsally]

Decison, Decision, Decision!
It's how I ended up in the workshop in the first place. I knew the workshop page was up for about a year, but something was holding me back from signing up. I guess it was fear...A fear of change, but this time, I just went 'Ah screw it, let's just sign up' and I'm glad I did.

I knew the principles of Truth, Love and Power but it's one thing to know it and another to actually go out and APPLY it! We had fieldwork where we went out and actually mustered up the courage to DO the exercises that seemed quite daunting when I first saw them. It made me realize one thing though, I was blowing up my fears out of proportion. While doing the exercises, it was clear that after you take SPECIFIC action for a minute or two, it really becomes a lot easier!

Before the seminar, I had an idea that I wanted to do something along the lines of comedy, but I realized that what I really want to do is become a HEALER and comedy is just a means by which I channel the healing. This gave me a lot of clarity on WHY I want to do the things I want to do, which in turn increased my motivation to actually GET IT DONE! I also had fear of judgment of people disagreeing with my comical views on reality and Steve really hit it home for me when he said "Well you're providing value by making them laugh, and you're going to get criticisms come your way. It just comes with the package" The fear was holding me back from fully committing to comedy writing, but I now feel much more inspired to take action on it, after I accepted that truth.

I have set concrete goals on what I want out of my college experience, my career, and my relationships. (I will take on health after I get some momentum going in these three areas) And if I find out it is not what I want, well no problem, I'll make more decisions and experimenting with it until I find the one I want.

The thing that made the workshop really amazing was the high energy and determined people that I met over there. Listening to them and really connecting with them deeply gives you an experience that you can't really describe in words. You find out that most people are having very similar issues to your own in their lives and it really makes you feel part of the bigger whole.

Lastly I want to thank Steve, Erin, Rachelle and all my fellow CGW-ers to make this one of the best weekends of my life! I would highly recommend it to anyone who wants to find clarity in their lives, tackle fears head on, and enjoy the process of growth by connecting with other people who share the same values.

Much love,

Faisal.

[Charante]

Originally Posted by ericabiz

Well, I've already made the huge sweeping changes I didn't have the courage to make after CGW#1.

Wow Erica, that's huge indeed!! Congratulations! This must give you such a big sense of freedom You go girl!

- Marian

[Sai]

Originally Posted by Steve Pavlina

Now I need to sleep about 12 hours...

I slept 14!!! With the hike the day before and the long journey home and the general lack of sleep in Vegas meant I needed to catch up. My auntie was astounded that I slept that long.

Biggest takeaway from CGW5: Steve Pavlina might be a real person. Though I stroked his head and felt his stubble, I'm still not too sure on this one.

Joking aside, the social courage exercises were the most helpful. I feel so much better saying Hi or giving high fives to strangers. It's made me more social, a bit more courageous and much happier. But let me see how I do in a club or a bar before I say too much.

I'm also in a better place emotionally and mentally than before. I'm no longer apathetic but I wouldn't say I was motivated. I just feel more smiley. And that's a good thing.

Other things:

• Steve answering whether to stick at something or to quit by making the distinction between medium VS message (stick at the medium for a while, change message quickly)
• Asking a stranger what you want in terms of a friend/partner within the first 5 minutes of conversation
• Trans-Dimensional Exercise - very similar to 5 years forward 5 years back meditation, but probably more useful in terms of gaining clarity for the next step
• Authority: Ready-Fire-Aim/Trial&Error - this was pretty good. Apply it to everything! When I didn't know what to write in one of the exercises, I just guessed e.g. my message when marketing my wares. Guess and try it out has never been realised in such a concrete way for me before and it can apply to anything big or small

Those were the things that resonated the most with me. Thanks again Steve!