What Did 24 Days of Co-living in Spain Teach Me?

The beautiful La Posada Del Candil. <3

Programs like The Break Fellowship are something each entrepreneur has to do in their life. They give us a chance to understand ourselves better firstly as human beings, and then as creatives and founders.

I hear a lot of bad comments going towards this specific program, which I was part of from March till June this year. And yes, there were for sure things that could've gone better or could've been done in a more organised and mindful way. But at the end of the day, I really believe that it gave us all many learnings takeaways. And I’d love to share mine here.

1. Know your values 💚

In the first days of our stay at La Posada Del Candi, our incredible(!) facilitator made us do an exercise about defining which are the values that we are currently following in our life, and which ones we’d wish to incorporate more. This was a really important reminder for me, because in the next weeks there were for sure situations when these values were being put to the test. And exactly in these challenges and moments I realised that I really need to know what my values are so that I can move from them, and fully embody them. We tend to put some random words here and there as our values but are we really demonstrating them through our actions?

2. Know your boundaries 🙅

To be honest, nobody will think about your boundaries without you communicating them. Being surrounded by so many women, there were for sure many emotions and fluidity, a lot of feminine energy around. But in times like this, we need our masculine center to be strong, as it creates support and gives us the power to be. It’s really easy to expect from others to know what you need or want in certain moments but nobody will give you space or help you if you don’t say it. It was a huge reminder for me how much power I actually have and that setting my own boundaries isn't selfish, it’s self-care.

3. Wabi Sabi 🌳

During my stay at La Posada del Candil (an awesome place, make sure to check it out!) I read a book by Beth Kempton about the Japanese wisdom Wabi Sabi. This philosophy, or way of living, teaches us how to see the beauty in the imperfection and appreciate it. The first 10 days of our time in Spain, it was pouring outside each day for hours, forcing us go inside - in the house but also in ourselves. Of course, with 16 women in one place working it wasn’t the best situation. But instead of complaining, for me these moments were precious - I managed to connect more with the others, spend more time just being and not doing. Instead of complaining, I decided to see the beauty in this situation and to surrender, without control or expectations.

4. We are all interconnected 🪐

The in-person experience of The Break started with Eva Curto, the program director, showing broccoli on stage and sharing how it’s a metaphor for a fully interconnected system. And during the next three weeks, this for sure stayed in my mind. Even in times of disagreements, I was telling myself that we are all connected and we are all part of one. No matter the differences, we all experienced very basic human emotions, we were all sad, angry, happy, tired, grateful or anxious at certain point. This for sure made me feel much closer to the other women. And then the visit to the Calar Alto Observatory really deepened this feeling. There, listening about the universe and the planets, I was reminded how each of us is also a little universe and we can’t make general conclusions because it’s hard to really deeply get to know everyone for such short time. This gave me also the comfort, that I won’t always be understood by the others and that’s ok. And it felt like real freedom…

For me, the experience of The Break Fellowship, and especially the in-person part, was eye- and heart-opening. Yes, it was exhausting and overwhelming at times, but also supercharging and inspiring. All at once.

I hope this short sharing is a reminder for all readers (and hopefully participants in the program) that it’s always a good idea to go outside of the comfort zone even if you feel uncomfortable the whole time. It’s a huge chance to learn something new and expand as a person. And even if things aren’t perfect and mistakes are being made, stay in the vibration of gratitude. Because I’m sure you have things to be grateful for after these weeks in Spain.

Many thanks to the amazing women with whom I shared the time at La Posada Del Candil, to the kind team and hosts, and to everyone I met during this journey. It's the start of something new for sure! 🧚