Owning Wisdom with guest faculty Karen Walrond
Join the Radiant Rebellion & Reclaim Aging
Aug 27 - Sep 1, 2024 in Santa Fe, USA
Led by: Karen Walrond, Chip Conley, Lee Johnson, Robert King
Financial aid is available. Apply Here.
It’s time to dispel the myths around aging and recognize that getting older is awesome.
When you look at how aging is portrayed in our culture, it’s largely presented as a something to dread – a sad but inevitable decline from some mythical “high point” in our youth.
Yet science shows the opposite is actually true: people’s happiness measurably increases when they reach midlife.
Which shouldn’t be surprising – throughout history, in most cultures, social attitudes toward aging have been largely aspirational. Getting older and wiser is what most people want to do!
But in the past 100 years, public perception of aging has become increasingly negative. That’s by design – and largely perpetuated by the multibillion-dollar beauty and anti-aging industries.
The good news is, because our negative beliefs around aging were intentionally created and have little actual basis in reality, that means they can be intentionally UN-created.
In this Owning Wisdom workshop co-facilitated with Karen Walrond and Chip Conley, you will free yourself from limiting beliefs around aging – and reclaim the joy, vibrancy, and potency of getting older.
(And possibly unleash your inner rebel in the process.)
What You’ll Gain
Through a combination of our MEA Owning Wisdom curriculum and Karen’s guided introspection and interactive experiential activities, you will:
By the end of your five days with Karen and Chip, you will understand how much power you have to create a joyous and light-filled life at any age, and will be excited and energized to make that future a reality!
Meet Your Faculty
Karen Walrond
Author of The Radiant Rebellion: Reclaim Aging, Practice Joy, and Raise a Little Hell
Award-Winning Author | Leadership Coach | Speaker | Attorney
Karen Walrond is an award-winning author, activist and lightmaker who has helped thousands of people around the world find purpose and meaning in their lives.
Her work has been featured PBS, Huffington Post, CNN.com, The Oprah Winfrey Show, and on Brené Brown’s Unlocking Us podcast. Karen is a sought-after speaker and the author of The Lightmaker’s Manifesto and The Beauty of Different.
Karen’s accomplishments and passion for empowering others toward self-determination and leadership helped her become one of 2016's 40 over 40 Women to Watch, as well as one of YWCA-Houston's 2016 Outstanding Women of the Year. Her mission is to help you name your gifts, attain your goals, and make light in the world.
As seen in:
PBS, HuffPo, CNN, Oprah Winfrey Show
Chip Conley
MEA Co-Founder and Author of Learning to Love Midlife: 12 Reasons Why Life Gets Better with Age
Bestselling Author | Entrepreneur | Innovator | Disruptor | Speaker
A three-time TED speaker on the big stage, Chip Conley is one of the world's leading experts at the intersection of business innovation, psychology and spirituality.
As one of the creators of the boutique hotel movement and the "modern elder" to the young Airbnb founders, Chip's been a disruptor and expert on entrepreneurship and business leadership. He’s a globally-recognized thought leader on the future of work and the competitive advantages of a multi-generational workplace.
Inspired by his experience of intergenerational mentoring as a “modern elder” at Airbnb – where his guidance was instrumental to the company’s extraordinary success – Chip founded MEA and has since dedicated his midlife years to reframing the concept of aging and helping people navigate midlife with a renewed sense of purpose and possibility.
What people have to say...
"Activism is such a big and often intimidating concept, and Karen breaks it down into small, intentional and integrated acts that create a joyful life."
Brené Brown
#1 New York Times Bestselling author
With her passion, intelligence, flexibility, and intuition, Karen Is able to craft innovative messages that inspire her audience to think less, act more, and make immediate impact on their organizations
Megan Choate
Manager, Solutions, Child Health Corporation of America
Karen has the rare ability to engage a large audience just as she would any intimate conversation. Her humor, intelligence, and remarkable experience are conveyed to a room of 1000 people just as if we were at the dinner table.
Bryan Mason
Chief Operating Officer, VSCO
This workshop is for you if...
You feel some apprehension or uncertainty around the idea of aging
You’re tired of being told how you “should” look, act, think, and feel at any given age
You’re ready to redefine the experience getting older as a life-enriching adventure
You’re eager to explore the dimensions of healthy aging, in terms of health, beauty, spirituality, connection, and meaning
You’re ready to become a part of the Radiant Rebellion and shed false assumptions that may be holding you back from your full power
You’re excited to embrace a future of joy expanded potential and maybe raise a little hell while you’re at it!
Santa Fe, USA
Rising Circle Ranch
An upscale regenerative ranch featuring traditional Pueblo architecture and spanning nearly 2,600 acres of wildlife, hiking trails in the arroyo, with ancient petroglyphs, and awe-inspiring beauty. Close to historic Santa Fe, an artisan’s mecca.
Meet Your MEA Facilitators
In addition to the powerful sessions conducted by Karen Walrond, you will be supported on your journey by our seasoned faculty members:
Lee Johnson
Land, Livestock, and Mindfulness
Lee likes to say that he’s as ordinary as dirt but as complex as soil. He’s resident “cowboy sage” at our campus in Santa Fe, where his love for the simple yet complex hum of nature has led him to work in holistic land management. As steward of our four-square mile regenerative ranch, Lee translates nature’s teachings into simple insights that encourage us to tune into the inner and outer landscape of the world around us.
You will appreciate the opportunity to be in his presence and slow down, listen to nature, and gather around the campfire of shared understanding.
Robert King
Experience Facilitator
Robert King is a family medicine physician and award-winning ceramic artist with work in private and public collections all over the world. He is a member of the Choctaw Nation of Oklohoma and lives in Galisteo, New Mexico with his fearless and furry companion, Wilbur.
As an artist, Robert continuously seeks new ways to express himself, utilizing the natural resources found in the surrounding landscape. He describes his body of work as “a love letter to the high desert”. You will appreciate his creative perspective and deep appreciation for the natural environment in which you’ll be doing this soul-empowering work.
Growing old with joy, confidence, and enthusiasm is an act of rebellion.
Especially when the world is designed to make us fear and hate the idea of aging!
Pushing back against the false narrative that we need to look and feel “young” for as long as possible requires a rebellious spirit.
“Young” isn’t inherently good. And “old” isn’t inherently bad. In fact, “old” can be awesome. Old can be radiant.
And during your five days with Karen and Chip in Santa Fe, you will have the opportunity to reclaim the potency of aging and enjoy a vibrant and fulfilling life.
