Special Event

Launch Party - June 29th 2011
By Nicolle Aleman

We had a big night on June 29th at the Goddess Collective Oakland. It was a thrill and honor for us to throw our official launch party, as well as our first ever biannual coed event.

Almost 100  members of the community showed up in celebration and support of the Goddess Collective, a global social and networking organization lovingly created by Marta Maria Marraccini.  The Goddess Collective  gives women a safe place to claim and stand in their own leadership using The 14 Embodied Principles of Feminine Leadership.

The Goddess Collective kicked off the evening with a special performance by Revital Carroll, who entranced us all with her Sacred Temple Dance. Each of Revital’s hypnotic, powerful dance sets were rooted in ancient Hindu traditions. The dance of  “Kali” captivated us all. It was a great way to start of the evening.

Revital Carroll  www.shaktibhakti.com • shaktibhakti@gmail.com • 928-713-7123

We also proudly welcomed our special presenter that evening Mike Robbins. The very first man to speak at The Goddess Collective. He is a  personal life coach and author of “Be Yourself Everyone Else is Already Taken” as well as “Focus on the Good Stuff.” Mike Robbins is a best-selling author known for his ability to empower people to walk in their most authentic selves. He teaches that appreciation and authenticity are fundamental to the success and fulfillment of individuals, teams and organizations. Mike gave a short but potent talk at the GC last month.  Among the many eye-opening points he raised, the most thought provoking question he posed to our group was: “If you knew the date of your death, how would you live your life today?” For many people in the audience, money and looks lost their priority statuses first. It seemed to be the group consensus that we would all spend more time making authentic connections with our loved ones and less time worrying about what people thought about us.

Mike Robbins
Author, Speaker, CoachBe Yourself, Everyone Else is Already Taken (Wiley)  Focus on the Good Stuff (Wiley)

(925) 825-2319 officeWebsite, Blog, Press Kit, Facebook, Twitter

Thank you, Mike, for bringing your wisdom and your open heart to the GC!

Our keynote speakers for the evening were Matthew and Terces Englehart, founders and owners of Café Gratitude. Together, they own nine restaurants in the Bay Area, Los Angeles, and now Kansas City and are the authors of several books. When not tending their organic gardens that supply their restaurants, they tour the country speaking and sharing their experiences with people.

Matthew and Terces Engelhart
www.cafegratitude.com

Matthew and Terces spoke about the fundamental values needed to build a community. The first was acknowledgement and faith - as in having faith in the good qualities of another and acknowledging them when you don't see them, as opposed to when you do. Their way of thinking is that evidence-based acknowledgement is not as good for the soul as faith-based acknowledgement. They gave the group the opportunity to practice on a one on one basis. It was a moving experience to not only give acknowledgement for the Divine Qualities I see in other people, but to receive and ask for that acknowledgement as well.

Another component of building community was apologizing. "Think of that friend whose calls you don't take anymore," said Terces. "Whom you've backed away from because of what Matthew and I call "the weather." That is, the emotional weather that people display that makes us back away and retreat into our separateness."

Terces went on to say that we take back our power when we are accountable and apologize, even if our ego tells us that we are right and the other party is wrong. "You may apologize for your contribution in the inelegance of the situation, if that's what it takes. But dig really deep. What can you really be accountable for?" In their business model, they said, the higher up a person is in the ranks, the more apologizing they need to do. They more responsibility they take. "We apologize to our employees ALL THE TIME," said Matthew. "We want them to know that they are seen and treated as the absolute sacred beings they are." As a result, the Engleharts are able to work with an incredibly accountable staff: they don't experience theft at their restaurants beyond the occasional irresistible chocolate truffle and their rate of turnover is extremely low and the employees. The very fact that they can own nine restaurants and not need to be present at any of them speaks for itself.

The Engleharts have developed and are practicing a model of commerce that is sustainable and heart-based. Their talk was incredibly inspiring for all of us!

The Goddess Collective would like to thank all of our presenters for the gifts of their presence and wisdom on June 29th, as well as the community who showed up in support of us. We remain inspired to live our vision in the world because of you!