Embracing New Beginnings and Reflections: Totel.ly´s Year-End Update

The end of a cycle implies new beginnings: a new cycle. A new journey is around the corner.

Recall the hand gesture shared in the Offers and Request Exchanges (OARE) to signify completion: both hands cupped together facing down touching the index fingers. The hands move in a half circle and end with the pinky fingers touching; Hands cupped open to receive. With closure comes reflection. What are the gifts we hold in our hands when we are complete with a cycle? What learnings can we take from this cycle as compost for the next?

Our totel.ly journey this year has been gifted with so many insights into what we offer. We reflected on what worked well for our community. And on the flip side, what didn’t land well, or meet our community’s needs.

One of our greatest gifts was getting to know our community through the Offers and Request Exchanges. It seems many of us were looking for something similar! “This was exactly what I needed!” was voiced by so many of you. Such heartwarming responses give us the sense we are on the right path.

This past year was our most interactive yet! We experimented with three different types of events: OAREs, a retreat, and a pop-up outdoor event. The feelings of connection and community that came from these experiences often lingered long after the events themselves. This feeling was not present for all events, but many. And when we felt it or didn’t feel it, we dug deeper to understand why.

Team reflection homed in on what brought us the most joy: it was the ability to try different events, have different facilitators, and for the facilitators to not only guide the experiences but to also feel and be part of the community.

Next to all the successes, the tinkering of our platform plays out in the background. We see how it is yet to “stick” with our audience. We ask ourselves now, what kind of platform will best serve us and our 3 core pillars: self-awareness, community connection, and nature-led experiences?

Changes came this year within our team. We are grateful to those who came before and to those who have joined us. With each cycle and evolution, we inevitably make room for new team members with specific skills to join us. It is no secret that we love to connect! We invite anyone interested in our opportunities to let us know!

The final reflection comes down to sustaining our success. Our events were mostly funded by grants, and now is the time for us to consider a small fee, depending on each person’s circumstance. To keep totel.ly viable and to serve our community as well as we hope to, it is a relevant next step. Totel.ly aims to serve our current and future members with a living income, supporting them to best support you and our mission!

And lastly, we thank you! Without your participation, without your presence and interaction, there would be no gifts, no learnings, and no ability to grow. To you, we share our deepest gratitude for showing up, for bringing friends to our events, for thinking openly, and for learning to exchange. In 2023 we co-created our first community events, and with that, 2024 will see many more!

Watch out for Totel.ly Human; our fresh rebranding to be launched as we open into the new cycle!

With gratitude and in completion we wish you a restful, joyful, and connected remainder of 2023. We will see you in 2024.

Team Totel.ly Human