It’s about the journey, not the destination. This mantra sums up the overarching takeaway from summer’s Creativity & Right Livelihood class, generously applying to both topics. The power of innovation within each realm was powerful to eat, breathe, and think continuously while at Channel Rock for eight days, returning to orientation’s 140-acre off-grid eco-retreat center on Canada’s delightfully remote Cortes Island:
The 12 hour, three ferry adventure to and from captured the essence of the journey while the carefully orchestrated days of reflection and team process in between the travel spoke volumes. Encountering our authentic selves in a new light while shifting between multiple team processes, all while being unplugged and in a magically creative setting and state of mind, was liberating and empowering.
Taking first year’s Hybrid MBA practice in systems thinking, with its brief foray into design thinking, to a new level felt like exercising a latent muscle that strengthened with consistent iteration and rapid prototyping over the course of the week. Combined with fascinating guest lectures and onsite opportunities to implement open inquiry via fieldtrips, we grew as a group in process and execution, culminating the week with team presentations. In a fun burst of creative exploration my team crafted a video for the business From Around Here while working from concept to pitch in 24 hours:
Our personal reflections became evident across small peer discussions and group exercises, finally evidenced in individual natural constructions, storytelling our present place in right livelihood in poignant and meaningful ways. The opportunity to play thoughtfully while being surrounded by co-learners in a delightful natural setting was everything I hoped for and more: another BGI delight for the memory books. A meteor shower overhead with bioluminescence in the bay each evening didn’t hurt either!
Amanda Thomas is an MBA Candidate at the Bainbridge Graduate Institute, entering her second year in the MBA in Sustainable Systems. She was part of a group of students taking an intensive summer course in Creativity and Right Livelihood at Channel Rock on Cortes Island, BC.
