RETREATS + WORKSHOPS
A great way to reset or refresh team culture is to set aside time for team building. This is especially critical in the age of remote and hybrid work.
But let’s face it, it’s hard to find time to curate a high-impact retreat on top of your day-to-day work. Plus, the best retreats allow leaders to participate, versus facilitating all day.
As your expert facilitator, I can make sure your retreat doesn’t feel like one long, meeting.
Photo: Charisse standing at white board laughing during team building retreat with Sheltering Arms.
If you’re curious about working together, don’t hesitate; reach out today! We need a few weeks lead time to plan thoughtfully for most experiences and two months to plan a full-day team-building retreat.
Unlock the secrets to planning unforgettable team offsites and retreats! Our FREE guide '10 Tips for Planning a Successful Team Offsite or Retreat' is packed with expert insights to help you create impactful, engaging experiences that energize your team and drive results. From choosing the perfect location to ensuring lasting impact, this guide covers it all. Don't let your next team event fall flat – get your free copy now and start planning like a pro!
Whether it’s doing a human scavenger hunt, sharing leadership stories or having a one song dance party, teams that laugh, play and get vulnerable together build trust, compassion and empathy.
Photo: Four team members at TechBridge celebrating winning and holding up one finger.
I can work with you to create an unforgettable team-building experience that:
builds rapport and trust through activities, storytelling and games.
promotes self-awareness and understanding of diverse leadership styles and how to leverage those styles.
produces a leadership team vision for culture.
leaves the team with concrete actions that can be taken to fuel that vision.
is fun!
“My takeaway from the day is that I should be more open-minded. I was honestly dreading the retreat and thought it would be boring, but it was so much fun!” - retreat participant
Photo: Sheltering Arms team members seated in a circle with others running to find a seat in an icebreaker game.
Through a series of conversations with you and members of your team, we work to select the activities and discussions that will work best for you.
Leadership Archetypes
This exercise explores three archetypes related to work style.
People people
Outcomes people
Process people
Team members work in groups according to their self-selected archetype exploring questions around work styles and preferences.
Groups share out to foster understanding and harmony across archetypes.
Photo: Woman standing and pointing at chart during Sheltering Arms team building retreat.
Photo: Two people building a figure with legos at TechBridge.
Team Vision
Imagine: Your team has won a prestigious award for strong culture, and the story will appear on the front page of the New York Times. How does it feel to work together every day? What are you doing and what does it look like?
These questions are answered in small groups creating a mock-up of the front page story. Groups share their visions, commonalities are found, and the group brainstorms actions that will move the team closer to the vision.
Virtual Team Building Events
While being together in person is ideal, meaningful team building can happen over Zoom. Let’s talk to explore the possibilities!
“I hired Charisse to design and lead a team-building retreat for my 34-member administration team at Sheltering Arms. She not only delivered an incredible retreat, but she was a joy to work with. I was impressed that she took the time to speak with several members of my team to gain insight into their roles and elicit input into the retreat design. Because she did that, she was able to establish trust in the room quickly as well as garner eager participation. My personal takeaway was being mindful of the various styles in the workplace and creating a space where all of those styles feel respected and valued. It was a very fun and rewarding day that left us with clear ideas for practices we can implement to keep growing closer as a team as we deliver on our mission. I cannot recommend Charisse highly enough!”
—Blythe Keeler Robinson, CEO of Sheltering Arms
Fill out the contact form to start planning a retreat that your team won’t stop raving about!
Session Menu
These sessions can be a part of your team-building retreat, delivered as stand-alone workshops or keynotes.
North Star Visioning
This workshop will guide you through an engaging, interactive exercise for creating an inspiring, motivating vision for the year. The North Star Vision consists of two parts; the first is a Personal Manifesto comprised of core values and beliefs that motivate you and drive your decision-making. The second part is AACT (aligned, actionable, clear & time-bound) goals. Without a vision, it's easy to default to solving problems as they arise or reacting to what you or other people in your life view as urgent. It’s also easy to become busy and stressed, checking things off a never-ending “to-do” list and wondering what it all amounts to. By creating a vision, participants will have a “North Star” to guide them and inspire them to do and be their best.
Present: how to plan and show up for what matters most
In this engaging, interactive workshop, participants learn simple practices for increasing productivity and creating work/life harmony, including: reflecting on lessons learned and celebrating successes; setting priorities and blocking time on the calendar to work on them; scheduling self-care and fun, and eliminating distractions so you can truly be present.
Photo: Woman in pink sweater and mask, clenching fists like, “Yes! Winning!” at Sheltering Arms.
From Burnout to Thriving
In this talk, I share my story from burnout to thriving and the three lessons I learned along the way including: listening to your body, asking for help, and taking time off. I then walk participants through simple practices they can do to practice self-care, maintain health and well-being. One of the practices I share and invite participants to do with me is gentle movement and mindfulness.
Strengths-based Leadership (based on the CliftonStrengths Assessment)
This workshop helps participants identify and harness their strengths using the CliftonStrengths assessment. It is designed on the simple premise that teams that use their strengths perform better than those that don’t. Learning and leveraging each other's strengths has the power to boost productivity, engagement, and an individual’s sense of value to the team.
Active Listening to Create a Coaching Culture
Active listening is a complex set of skills that involve listening to and observing the person with whom we are communicating. This is a critical “soft” skill that distinguishes leaders, improves team culture and makes it easier to move together toward common goals. Coaching provides support while leaving the person being coached feeling trusted and empowered to own their work, solutions and challenges. This workshop exposes participants to this skill and provides opportunities for practice and self-reflection.
Mindfulness + Well-Being Check-in
As time progresses and our culture around work evolves, employees are seeking more support from their employers for their overall well-being. This session is an excellent way to meet that need. It provides space for team members to check in, relax and de-stress so they can return to work with greater focus and productivity. Includes gentle chair yoga and practical strategies for incorporating the techniques in your work day.
Charisse standing in the center of a circle while T. Dallas Smith team members stretch holding onto the backs of chairs.
Man smiling during mindfulness session at T. Dallas Smith.
How to Thrive While Black at Work
This workshop is a safe space for Black workers to gather, reflect and take charge of their well-being. In this engaging, interactive workshop, participants leave with concrete actions that they can take immediately. Topics covered range from making time for rest and rejuvenation to setting healthy boundaries around work. Click this link to learn more and listen to a one-minute overview on Bloomberg Black Business Beat here.
"We engaged Charisse as a speaker for our Juneteenth event whose theme was“Thriving While Unapologetically Black”. Charisse understood the assignment. Her authenticity and frankness was refreshing and she had a very welcoming presence. Charisse made a comment about happiness not necessarily when earning more and more money. That stuck with me and had me thinking, ‘After your basic needs are provided for, then what? Where do you get your happiness?’ I will definitely be exploring this more on my own. I appreciated her comments about finding space to thrive even if that means creating your own space for growth. The entire conversation helped highlight the need for more spaces to acknowledge and celebrate the joy and beauty of being Black."
–Anton Taylor, Reading Partners Senior Manager Talent & Equity