For us, this is retreat week. Inside the Total Life Freedom Mastermind Community, we hold live, two-day business strategy retreats here in Bradenton, Florida. We just wrapped up a retreat last week and we are preparing for a second one that begins with dinner Wednesday evening, full days on Thursday and Friday and a wrap up with coffee and amazing donuts from Peachey’s Bakery on Saturday morning for those who haven’t traveled home yet. These events are magical. I have said it often- and I have been made fun of because it sounds so extreme- but if I could physically and emotionally handle it, I would do these every week. As you might imagine, they take a lot to prepare for. They are engaging, personal, deep, fun and at times, emotional. But what happens in those few days when it comes to relationship building, growth, communication, strategy, and possibly most important- clarity- makes each retreat some of the most valuable days of work I get to do. During the first day of the retreat, we were involved in a discussion about the power of intentional connection, and how much intangible value there is that comes from it that is not measurable. As business owners, we can get wrapped up in task work or lists because it’s easy to measure. But how do you assess or quantify the value of connections or community? John Schuchman, who is a realtor in Lancaster, Pennsylvania also runs an online community for realtors. He mentioned that because of his involvement in Total Life Freedom and the connections he has made, that he earned a $30,000 commission on a house he sold from a referral by someone within TLF. So often, the story ends there. We don’t think much about it. The jealous ones smile but internally say, “must be nice.” Others respond that it’s a cool story. But how many dig deeper? Schuchman mentioned that the referral came from Melissa Bloom (who just published her first book), and that being in TLF and Melissa were the two reasons why he was able to get that big commission check. But I knew more about this story than anyone else there. So I decided to have a little fun with it. Yes, John got the referral because of his involvement with TLF and because Melissa made that introduction. But does it really end there? I looked to my right and saw Emily Brunner, who didn’t give herself any credit. But the reason why Melissa is in TLF is because Emily referred her to me. They are friends, and Emily has been a member of TLF for a few years. When Melissa talked about growing her business, she connected Melissa and I. So, did he get the commission because of TLF? Was it Melissa? It must have been Emily. Did it end there? No, the original reason why Melissa and Emily connected about TLF is because Emily was at a TLF retreat in Pittsburgh a few years back and our son Andrew brought one of his tarantulas for people to hold if they wanted to get over their fears. Emily held the tarantula, posted a picture to social media, and Melissa saw that post. She asked about the retreat and Emily told her about TLF. So did the referral happen because of TLF? Melissa? Emily? The tarantula?? No, it goes deeper than that. A few months earlier, I was at a conference with Ken Carfagno, who was also at this week’s retreat. Before that conference, our family left for the trip in a down mood because Andrew was super bummed that one of his tarantulas was dying. Elizabeth and our boys stayed with Ken’s family for a few days while we went to the conference. At that conference, a guy named Chuck Balsamo was the keynote speaker. Balsamo’s speech, ironically, was about getting over fears. And he said that he was deathly afraid of spiders. So to get over his fear, he went to a pet store the night before and bought the scariest looking tarantula that he could find. During the speech, he brought the tarantula out and showed it to the crowd. He mentioned that he wasn’t going to keep it and I instinctively knew what would happen next. So I was ready. And as soon as he said, “Does anyone want a tarantula?”, my hand was up before he said the word ‘want’. And I walked to the stage to get Andrew’s new tarantula. The one that Emily would eventually hold at that retreat. So was it TLF? Melissa? Emily? The tarantula? Chuck Balsamo? Well, maybe. Or maybe not. Justin Schenck was the one who created the Growth Now Movement Live conference and invited Chuck to speak. Ken Carfagno is the one who asked me to go to Justin’s conference. Dave Ramsey was the one who put together a different event with Gary Vaynerchuk and Seth Godin nearly a decade ago in New York City, where I met Ken. Chris Mefford, who worked for Dave Ramsey, was the one who gave me a ticket to that conference when we were hired to shoot a photography event for Dave. The truth is, we have no idea where it started. Or where exactly it came from. What we do know is that there is one common theme to all of this- connection. And the power behind it. On the calculated side of entrepreneurship, it’s easy to lose sight of the value of connections and relationships. It’s easy to get caught up in the tasks, the to-do lists and the measurable things that can be listed out. It’s easy to blow off reaching out to someone, making that referral, asking how someone is doing, sharing an event- simply being generous to others. The tasks are easily trackable. But they aren’t nearly as valuable. Some could say that John Schuchman got a $30,000 commission check because he’s a great realtor. Because he’s a go-getter. Because he invested in himself. Because he interacted with others. All of that is true. But I hope that when you see the backstory, you will realize that success comes from much more than just being great at what you do. It comes from all of the connections that happened before that deal was made. If anything in that timeline changed, that opportunity wouldn’t have been there for him to make. And this might be the coolest part of the story. At the end of this retreat, Emily once again got to take a picture with the same tarantula that Melissa saw, that got her into TLF and that led to her making the referral to John Schuchman, who earned that $30,000 commission. Have an AMAZING day! Vincent | 
