by Julia Leikin, Spa Coordinator
After a quarantined spring, a socially distanced summer, and a long winter, the entire Still Point Wellness staff had the opportunity to meet up for an in-person staff meeting at High Five coffee by the river on a beautiful spring morning in April.
Pre-covid, staff meetings were a monthly occurrence, and an important practice for us to connect as a team and build positive relationships. The past year put a pause on our regular in-person meetings. Needless to say, we felt very grateful to be able to gather safely together as a full team once again.
We arrived wearing warm coats and hats and proceeded to set up our myriad of seats - adirondack chairs, camping chairs, blankets, and even a very cool swinging hammock chair - in a big circle on the edge of the French Broad river.
As we settled in, hands clasped tightly to warm coffee cups, our Spa Director Ashley pulled out a stack of paper, a roll of tape, and a bucket of colorful markers. Nothing too surprising for a Still Point staff meeting! We all sat with curiosity and anticipation as a piece of paper was taped to each of our backs. Then we learned our task: to write on each person’s back something you appreciate about them.
At Still Point Wellness, our company culture is the heartbeat of the business. As a space for healing and wellness, it is vital that every member of our staff feels connected to their own values, passions, and strengths, and is empowered to express them in their work. Equally important is identifying and appreciating each other’s unique strengths.
Markers in hands and smiles on faces, we quickly set off to inscribe sweet, anonymous compliments on the back of the nearest staff member, quickly forming long, tapering trains of scribbling hands. It didn’t take long before everyone had received an admiration from every other staff member.
By that time, the sun was in full force, layers were shed, and sunglasses were donned. After settling back into our chairs, we took a moment to remove our own sheets from our backs and read in silence what our fellow staff members admired in us. It was a truly special moment to give and receive recognition for our various strengths as people and as coworkers.
After basking in the warmth of this activity, it was time for a Still Point Wellness staff meeting staple: a check-in. We bounced from person to person sharing updates on our lives, our joys and our challenges in recent times. Some described the struggles to readjust to “normal” life as the pandemic restrictions relax, some shared news of exciting achievements in their personal lives. With varying work shifts on top of pandemic limitations, we haven’t often gotten to connect like this as a full staff, so having the opportunity to catch up with everyone at once was a special privilege.
After everyone had the chance to check in, spa co-owners Corey and Robin gave an update on the progress made at Still Point Wellness’ new location. For the remainder of our meeting, we discussed ideas, thoughts, and curiosities about the expansion we are about to experience. As a small business that has had one location and a staff of under 20 people for years, we are all very excited for what’s to come as we more than double in size.
With our second location set to open this Fall, we are all looking forward to plenty more updates and staff meetings to come!
