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<h2>Team Retreats</h2>
Team Retreats &#8211; Twice a year (when health and safety permit) we gather in person, for a week-long retreat. We use this time to work together, have fun and reconnect after six months apart. As a fully remote company, these two weeks a year are we are highly impactful, and we all look forward to them a ton!
We expect everyone to help create an environment that’s respectful, fun, and safe for all team members. We encourage everyone to hang out in common areas and for retreat-veterans to help new team members and first-time attendees feel welcome. Alcohol is available at specified times during the retreat, and we expect team members to drink responsibly and know their own limits.
Are Team Retreats Mandatory? &#8211; Yes. They are an essential part of working together. Accepted absences include: parental or medical leave, death or major illness in the family, etc. Just ask if you are unsure and we&#8217;ll work with you.
The Schedule &#8211; Our retreats are broken into all team meetings, group activities (hiking, rafting, surfing, escape rooms, etc), meetings within your team, and quality time getting to know your coworkers. We try to keep evenings open to allow you to connect and recharge from the day.
A few weeks before the retreat, you’ll receive a full schedule (and invites on your Google Calendar) so you know where to be.
Meals &#8211; Meals at the retreat are planned with the venue and the Ops team reviews sample menus as part of the retreat planning process. We work with every venue to accommodate allergies and food preferences. We also arrange for snacks and drinks to be made available in between meetings.
Rooming &#8211; Rooming depends on the venue. We do our best to accommodate everyone&#8217;s preferences and needs. We survey the team during the planning process to gather everyone&#8217;s preferences, prior to assigning rooms. Whenever possible, we try to book venues that allow every person to have their own room, but this isn&#8217;t always possible.
In shared rooms, each person has their own bed and we group folks together by gender identity. Sometimes there’s a bunk room, but we try not to have them and will minimize the occupancy to a single person per bunk bed.
Hugs &#8211; Because we all work remotely, you’ll often work with teammates for months before you meet them in person. So don’t be surprised when they want to greet you with a giant hug, rather than a formal handshake. We also realize not everyone wants a hug, so if that’s you, that’s totally okay. We use a color-coded bracelet system to signal everyone&#8217;s comfort level with physical contact and social proximity. We re-distribute bracelets and share guidelines prior to every retreat.
Hugs are meant to be occasional and friendly. Exercise good judgement &#8211; when in doubt, ask for consent to hug another team member!
As of 2020, we also greet one another with elbow bumps or foot taps for everyone’s health and safety.
Unsolicited Feedback &#8211; Because trust is so important to us, we’ve created simple rituals to build deeper trust. Unsolicited feedback is 10 mins of your co-workers talking about you as if you’re not in the room. At the end of your session you have 5 mins to respond to the feedback given.
This time ends up being an insightful look into how you are perceived and what you can improve in your work. You’ll also hear the best compliments from your teammates who really appreciate working with you!
It sounds crazy, but it’s actually really helpful! <a href="http://nathanbarry.com/unsolicited-advice/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Nathan wrote an article about the first time he did it at a mastermind group</a>. The unique combination of vulnerability, trust, and care for others creates a great opportunity for growth.
A Place for Introverts and Extroverts &#8211; We want you to feel comfortable and at home during our team retreats. If that means you need to spend more time in your room away from others to recharge between or after sessions, that’s totally fine!
Or if you’re on the other side and prefer to be the life of the party, just respect everyone else (including the neighbors) and be quiet after 10pm.
Whether you prefer a boisterous game with coworkers or a quiet cup of coffee out on the deck, we want to make sure you get what you need out of the retreat.
How to Dress &#8211; You can leave your business attire at home. For these retreats we are normally on the beach or in the mountains, so casual and comfortable is the way to go. Dress in layers as the days are often warm with cool evenings. Don’t forget to bring a swimsuit for the hot tub or other water activities (if you want to participate). We&#8217;ll share a suggested pack-list prior to every retreat based on the local climate.
On the last evening we always have a nice dinner and take a team photo, so bring one nice outfit.
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Team Retreats

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