When Being Smart Gets in Your Way: A Conversation with Darla Ledoux

Yes. So welcome if you're joining us to Sacred Business Stories. This is our weekly SubSec Live where we really just have an honest conversation about what it looks like to build a business that's aligned with your deepest truth. And, um, we are honored today to be joined by Darla Ladoux. She is a transformational business coach, uh, a self-proclaimed recovering engineer, founder of Sourced, and a best-selling author. And, um, we've had the privilege of getting to know her on some various business retreats over the last few years. And, um, Yeah, just thought she could bring a beautiful perspective to us here today. So welcome, Darla. We're very happy to have you here with us.

I'm so excited we got this scheduled. Yes.

Uh, thank you so much for being here. Like, I'm very excited for this conversation and I like to remind people like why we do Sacred Business Stories. And I truly believe in the power of like permission, right? When we share the behind the scenes and like Uh, if we believe, and that's why we're here, that you do have a sacred business, that you have a business that like not only brings all of who you are forward, like your victories, your challenges, like your certifications, and that's how like you help people, but also supports your lifestyle and it gives you like a life that, you know, you're excited of like living. And often like we just see where you are, but we don't know the behind the scenes. And then we kind of like. Many people like to our audience of like, well, me too, I want to have this. Me too, I want to create something that is coming from my heart that excites me every day that I wake up Monday, like excited about what I'm creating. And then we thought like, why not just share the behind the scenes stories from like people who we believe, uh, and we connect in this way that like, we think have a sacred business. So thanks for being here. We, I think you have a lot to share. I think our work have a lot in common too. Like you help people with like energy and intuition and kind of like shifting the invisible so you can see in the visible. Um, so if you could just like share with us, like how does it started? Like, you know, you worked as an engineer and then like, uh, like how you are here now.

So I'll share a couple stories. When I was working as an engineer, I got promoted to senior engineer. I was working at Procter Gamble, which most people know And I kind of felt like I had it all going on, right? Like, okay, I did this thing. I grew up in a town of 500 in northern Minnesota. No one in my family went to college, so I was feeling pretty successful. And I was nominated for this coach training program within my company. And little did I know that that was gonna change my life. So they took people from all levels of the organization and sent us basically on retreat, which, you know, I'm a big fan of retreat. And in the process, we were getting trained to help people have good working relationships together, to let down, you know, their judgments about one another so they could work together. And in order to be trained to do that, as you might imagine, we had to work on our own biases. And so, you know, I'm in my 20s, and I did not know that this was even a thing, that my filters that I was raised with were affecting how I was interacting with people and the results I was getting and how I was experiencing myself in life. And so in this training, I got this aha and I was like, why doesn't everybody know this, right? It was like that sacred tap on the shoulder. And so I started to get curious about that. And I was coaching then in my engineering job 1 to 2 hours a week, and I thought, how could I make a living doing this. And so I went into what I call my 10 years in the self-help aisle. It was 9 years, actually, but, you know, close. And I started reading every book, all the personality profiles, all of the, you know, "What do you want to be when you grow up?" books, and tried to find a job that was going to let me do this thing of helping people understand that their beliefs affect their energy and that affects their results. I wanted a job doing that. And I didn't find it, and I didn't find it, and I didn't find it until I went to a training program. I did Landmark Education. If anyone here has done Landmark, I'm curious. And what I uncovered, this belief that I had that started when I was young, related to my dad being really proud of me for being smart. And he didn't come around often. And, you know, this one day he was so proud of me for being smart. That I decided that was gonna be my identity. Like, I will be smart, right? So I'll get the engineering degree. I'll get the— I remember clearly saying to my math teacher, "What's the hardest type of engineering? 'Cause that's the one I'm gonna do." I didn't know what an engineer was. And then, you know, I got the hardest job to get on campus, and like, that was kind of how I'd been doing things. And so in— this retreat, again, a Landmark retreat, I realized that my attachment to being smart was in the way of everything I ever wanted, right? Like, it seemed not smart to quit your corporate engineering job and become a life coach. But once I saw that, I was free, right? And so that's really what I did. You know, it, it took, um, having some personal loss in my life to really, like, force the issue. And yeah, I went to coaching school, started my business. It's like, definitely hasn't all been roses, but I've never looked back. Like, I know I'm on track with my purpose.

Yeah, it's so beautiful the way you describe it because like the one thing that made you successful could be the one thing that it's exactly what you said, like it's just blocking me from everything that I wanted and then How was the, the, the, the transition in action is one thing, but like giving up that identity, right? Like that's the, that's the challenge. Like, what if I'm not the, the smart one that needs to be and do and, you know, and like, what about my dad that now I'm, I'm not as smart anymore and I'm not, you know, he's not proud anymore. Like that's, that's the big challenge.

Exactly. So true. I'm like right in the middle of another ego death, if you will, right now around structure and organization. And like, I was the one in my family who created the sense of structure. My parents both worked, and I had siblings, and I made sure they had dinner, and I did all the things. And I found myself recreating that in my business. And I've made a lot of money by being the one who structures things.

Mm-hmm.

You know, but there have been times where I've allowed people to let me structure for them in a way that didn't empower them to, like, do it for themselves. Like, you, you can do it. So I'm in that process right now of like, oh, okay, what does it look and feel like if I really let that go?

Yes. Yeah. And it's scary.

And I, I think of you two, like, you know, your collaboration and how you've got the structure and the flow. So I love that we're together.

Yeah, we are. And like, I, I often like talk to people like clients and I was actually having a conversation with my mom about it. And it's just like, it's so connected to what you're saying. Like we don't, as we grow and I mean, like as we expand our awareness about life, it requires new structures, right? And often, like, you want to go to the next phase without evaluating your structure because it has been working so well. And then you feel that you're kind of like not on the flow, which is, you know, not being on the flow, not like life is against you or everything is so hard and you're not doing anything wrong, but just the structure doesn't, doesn't serve anymore, right?

Yeah, I don't think it gets— well, it does get a little easier if anyone's listening and they're in that place of like, oh, this was my identity and now I'm being called to maybe make my money in a different identity. Um, it— I wanna say it doesn't get easier, but it does because you know you'll get to the other side.

Yes.

Like that first, you know, quitting my job and having people wrinkle their nose at me and go, you did what? Like, that was so terrifying, but I lived. So now I know I will always live, right?

Yeah, I had a very, I had a very similar situation when I left my corporate role and then I ended up creating this business that was very, very lucrative. Um, but it was kind of just on autopilot and very much like you're describing, I was kind of recreating the same patterns and structures that I had from the corporate environment. And, um, But what I love about what you just said is I remember exactly where I was when I made the decision to shift and just literally shut that business down. And it was exactly as you said, because I had kind of already taken that leap and gone through that process. I had that like internal kind of faith and confidence in myself to be like, you know what, if I did it this, did it this time and I got through it, I know I can, I can do this again. So there's, there's a lot of, a lot of truth to, to the way you described that, I feel.

It's hard to let go of something that's working. Yes.

It is. Yeah. Yeah. I, I, I often think about that. Like sometimes people like, I don't like this. I don't like, like one thing is to let go the things that you don't like, but eventually you're going to get to the point that life will tell you to let go the things that you like and it works, right? And that's like, oh, that's a whole nother level. But you know, you jump and then it gets better and better, at least in my own experience. But it's, it. It doesn't take the challenge away.

Such a good reminder, like the idea that we should only be working in our genius zone and there's lots of things we're good at that we probably don't need to be doing.

Yes. And, and I know you do like a beautiful work, um, connected to helping people with their intuition, right? Um, how is that for you? Like, how do you navigate your own decisions and like letting your ego die right now and connecting to, you know, the source, as you call it. I love that name. So how is your personal experience on that?

Such a perfect question right now. So I've been in this place of daily meditation and just going into darkness and just experiencing, and then eventually a little spark of light will show up, right? Like, ooh, that's a vision. That's something you really want. You know, and I say this, and like, I'm running my programs to help retreat leaders host their retreats and all of that, but I know there's like, there's something being born. So, so far, you know, within that transition, you all know I ended a relationship and moved, so I'm like really wanting to only create that which is alive, right? That's coming from love and truth. And so, so far, I've seen two things. I've seen a venue, and I, like, the vision for it is all really clear. It's more like a meeting space, not a retreat center. And then I've seen an event, and I'm doing it, a virtual event that I'm doing in December. So I have two things that I know are alive, and then I have all these programs that, like, I love when I show up to them and they're, you know, the humans are awesome and I think they're going to live, but I don't know. I really don't. I'm in that place.

Yeah, that's a, it's a cool place to be, I think, because it's the, the way I call it, like the void, right? The space of infinity possibilities. Like, and without detachment, you're just like, oh, I see this and I feel this. And eventually like all the pieces come together.

I should say, you know, when I work with clients, like, that is not an easy thing for people just to sit in the void. It hasn't been easy for me, right? My brain wants to come in and assert itself. And, you know, I know— I remember once, years ago, I had a coach give me an assignment to do nothing for a weekend. And then, and then he was like, "Okay, one day," right? Because I was like, there's no way. There's no way. And no journal, no, you know, like, don't try to figure things out. It was like nearly impossible the number of times I picked up my phone or my journal. So it's, you know, it takes practice. So the framework that you're referencing of the 6 sourced magics gives people something that they can hold onto in the process of building the muscle until they can really sit with nothingness. So, for example, one of the magics is sensation. If someone is sensation, they may find their messages come through on the yoga mat or in qigong or something like that, like they're— where they're moving energy in their body. Or they may, when they sit in meditation— I did this for years, this was my practice— doing a chakra scan to look at where wants my attention. Right? And so I had to learn obviously what the chakras represent and all of that, but that would give me a place to go to get information. I have a lot of sensation magic, so that was pretty easy for me. Recognition magic needs to interact with things. Like, it's not probably going to come through on the cushion. It's like you're putting the pieces together and source is giving you these clicks. Then you take it to the cushion, right? So there's like a different prescription for each magic type to help you build the muscle. And the big word I use is permission. Like, it's not a prescription. You don't have to, you know, do it a certain way, but it's really giving you permission to trust what you're already experiencing and receiving from source that you may think makes you crazy.

Yeah, I love that. Mine is, uh, I, I took your quiz and mine is, uh, is the feeling sensation as well. Like I have a pretty sensitive body. Uh, and then it's like, you, you don't always get the, the clear thought with that, but you know that there's something there for you. And then I just need to sit with the nothing and like, well, it's going to show up eventually, but, um, it's a, it's a learning process.

In my early practice, I committed to not doing anything unless I knew it was a yes, which was a lot of not doing, honestly. Like, I had to un— like, disconnect myself from that need to prove and be productive and earn money by doing. It's not an easy process, but worth it.

Yeah. Yes.

Yeah, Darla, like one of the— and maybe this is— maybe you can relate this to your work and intuition, but one of the things that we want to, you know, that we often want to convey to our audience is that it's perfectly normal to like have these experiences of fear and resistance coming up, especially as you're kind of stepping into this void or kind of this space and trying to create from the heart or trying to create something that feels like meaningful work to you. So, um, yeah, I'd love to ask you maybe maybe either from past experience or what you're going through now, like related to that experience, like what is one area that fear or resistance kind of rears its head maybe? And what kind of work do you do to kind of keep yourself moving forward and taking the next available step as you, as you kind of navigate that?

I just recorded, I have this private podcast that I've been doing and I just recorded an episode about this, about when you notice yourself in your mind thinking about how you'll explain your actions to someone, that you're probably in that resistance. And sometimes it's explaining it to yourself. Like, you know, like, I'm finding myself explaining to myself why I'm doing the things I'm doing, and it's like, I'm just doing it because Source told me to. So I think, you know, just to keep an eye out for when you are feeling the need to explain yourself. So in my sitting process, this is all very alive right now, I've gotten basically this message. So I'll tell you all because you'll understand, to do this event, and the imagery is, it's all about light. So the words that came through were "Free your light." And I have a card deck that has a card in it called Legacy of Light, which I pick often, and it's just been significant. And so I connected to that, but it's this idea that, you know, we all come from light, from the collective soul, and that we aren't doing anything wrong by having our, you know, default energy patterns—that's what I call them, and I'm calling them cloaks for this event—by having our cloaks, We are just protecting our light, right? And I think now is the time to uncloak, to really trust that we're connected. Like, you know, you two and I, we're on a same path, right? We want freedom and love and light for people and connection and abundance. And we all are awakening at this time. And that was the message, right? It's like, you're fine. Like, you don't have to heal anything else. You don't have to fix anything else. It's just like, fucking show up. So that's how it came through, right, is this vision of like freeing your light. And then we need to translate that into something that people can explain to themselves about why they're showing up, even though it's all intuitive, right? The reason someone shows up is because they get that. They feel the vibration of the message. but our brain still needs something to explain it to ourselves. Yeah. I'm like, I don't know if that answered the question. Um, yeah. Phil, did I answer you? I feel it does.

Yes. Quite, quite. Yeah. I feel that is this relationship with, um, I love what you said about like when you catch yourself explaining your actions. Right? Like we, we have this thing that everything needs an explanation, that everything needs to have like a reason. And sometimes like, no, you're going to know the reason maybe like years later, right? Like you're like, oh, I did that because it took me here, here, here. Like if you, if you want to, you know, get the explanation, but you don't see at that moment. And I feel that that is a big cause of like fear and resistance, like not having the explanation, not having that. Type of clarity that blocks people often, at least like in our world, from taking action. Yeah.

And even, you know, when you get on a podcast and tell a story, right? The story is weaving the thread and maybe the thread is source told me to, and it makes no sense and there's no like linear path. Although it makes perfect sense, you know, if you look at the big picture of of my journey of becoming more and more aware that we have guidance and that we have a unique path. I didn't know that. I certainly wasn't trained that. In fact, I spoke to my sister yesterday who really wants a career change, you know, and I finally feel her in commitment about it. And I was like, do you want me to do some exercises with you? We could look at that. But we weren't taught that. It matters, you know, that who you are and what your unique gifts are and that you love what you do.

Yeah, it's more the opposite, right? Like you should fall, like you should just follow this path and do what everybody's doing. And, you know, and then when you decide to do differently, like it at the beginning, like it feels weird and safe. Like, am I doing something wrong?

And then so much of the world is oftentimes like, uh, kind of validating that, right? Like, that's something that we often see with our clients is as they start to take the leap, you have to be very cautious because family members, friends, you know, colleagues, they don't understand, you know, like where this is coming from. And yeah, it could be an interesting time.

Totally. Absolutely. I told our friend Ron about my Free Your Light event, which I have renamed. I knew I was going to rename it. And, um, he's like, mm, yeah, I don't really like that. What else you got? It's like, it's okay. You'll like, when it's done, you'll like it. Yeah.

Like when it's ready. Right. And it's that, and sometimes it takes you to, like, you need to put out there to receive that feedback from life. Right. Like, and then, and it's coming through other people or you feeling when you say it out loud. Like, and, and, and that's the whole experimenting, like.

Yeah, I think that's such a great conversation to have is like, how do you, how do you two advise your clients to balance between like, we have to get feedback and receive support? Because I think a lot of times when it feels tender, people don't want to share, but then they don't have affiliate partners or they don't actually invite people to come because they're still guarding it. So how do you all approach that with your clients?

You want to share, Phil? I was just going to say, I mean, a huge part of, of that I find is, uh, is our community, like our Sacred Growth Club and our network, is because there's so many people that are on this shared path and kind of are experiencing or have experienced one of these tender moments. It's just so powerful to be with a group that understands that and can be gentle with the feedback and can, um, can receive it. And so that's, you know, that's been a huge part of our work is as people are kind of starting to own their message more, using that as a support system and from there building the confidence to kind of radiate that out into, you know, broader and broader circles. That's one thing. I don't know if there's anything you'd like to add to that, Carolina.

Yeah, I think it's this whole idea of like taking action. Right? Like you received something from your intuition source, like your higher guidance and like, oh, it's like an event, just using your example. And then you put out there and what is, and it's going to refine, right? And it's going to like, and then you, you give the name to the best of your abilities to the information that's available for you right now. And then you talk to people and you're like, oh, you know what? Like it doesn't feel exactly what I thought it would be. And then you refine that and But people get stuck in their heads trying to figure it out, like the big vision without taking the first step. Right. And, and that's the whole work that we do. It's like, hey, hold your vision. We provide you like a plan that it's like an assumption to the information that we have right now. But, you know, balance your nervous system every day to take the one action that's going to move you closer. To what it is.

And maybe the step will just redirect you to something that, you know, um, yeah, that's kind of like the, uh, the dirty little secret, like when we're, you know, because part of our work is creating this strategic plan. And, and as Caroline said, we're telling people, you know, this is really just our best educated guess or hypothesis and this co-creation of our experience and knowledge and then everything that you're sharing with us about your gifts. But like, we perfectly, or we, we, we, we, we totally expect that the plan is going to shift as life gives you feedback. And really it's all just about giving you the confidence to get into, into motion. And then from there, yeah, life, divine, whatever you want to call it, will start to show you kind of how to navigate within that structure. So this is kind of the, the dance, right? Exactly.

You have to be willing to embarrass yourself to get the to find out. I had a mentor that, that spoke about, you know, if you're lost somewhere and I give you a map, unless I tell you where you are on the map, it's useless. And how do you find out where you are? You have to take the action and get the, you know, look around, see what's happening. Yeah. It takes a thing.

I love that you mentioned the, uh, oh, I was just gonna say, I love that you mentioned You may have been at that event in, uh, I'm not sure if you were at that event in Texas, but one of Ron's events actually. We did our first presentation when we started this business, and Caroline and I often laugh, and we probably shared this on one of these episodes before, about like how bad it was. Like, we felt like looking back, like, if we feel like it was absolutely terrible, and all this like head stuff that was coming up, especially for me, because I felt like I had like a certain relationship with people and the work I've done, and now we're showing up on stage and we're talking about energy and we're like doing meditation and stuff. And it was a very challenging situation for my mind. But, um, to your point, like, that's how we get to where we are now, and that's how we'll continue to get to where we're going, is like, we needed to experience ourselves in that, and we needed to experience of like, oh wow, like, this is— parts of this are just totally not landing, and like, there's a lot more work to do here. And so yeah, I love that you said that, like, you know, allowing yourself to be embarrassed, I think, is a huge part of the journey.

Yeah, I'm really practicing that now, just like letting myself do whatever comes and then sharing about the result publicly no matter how it goes, you know? So, um, I do wanna say something I wanna say for people around this idea of messaging and being in your magic is, you know, I have been in business 16 years and I've had lots of really good names and really bad names, right? My first book is Retreat and Grow Rich, which is a great name. Like people immediately get it. It. Um, but I had a retreat that I named the Inner Alignment Intensive. And I named it that on purpose because I wanted to stop pretending like we were just doing business planning, right? Because my prior one was like the Sweet Spot Business Retreat. And so, um, the Inner Alignment Intensive made me millions of dollars with small groups of 16 people coming to do deep inner work. And, you know, when I named it, I didn't even tell my coaches the name because I knew, like, it wouldn't be a good outcome-based name, right? I did give it a tagline that was, "Raise your rates while staying true to you." But it was very much, you know, we're doing the inner work to get the outer result. And at that time, I really did think, this is crazy. Nobody's going to come to this. But it really worked. So Um, you know, we're getting more and more where people understand this connection between energy and results and are more willing to invest in energy. But, you know, in 16 years, that's all I've been selling really is an energy shift. So anyone listening who thinks you can't, you can.

Yeah. And I think it's more like, um, even the name of our business, right? Like Sacred Business. Like those two words could not be combined probably for the past like hundreds and thousands of years. Right. And now you're like, well, why not? Right. Like, and, and, and I, I was actually having a call with someone just before you. And I was like, for me, this is just, I know there are different relationships to business and each person has their own path, but I can't separate anymore from my own life. Like there's no way I can have a business that it's separate from my evolution, my spiritual my, you know, my life, like those, it's, it's just like that. Um, and yeah, it's, it's just the inner and the outer, you know, like the shifting your energy so you can see the result outside and then the outside being a reflection what's within, like this is so ingrained and maybe because I've been doing this for years or, and working on myself, but I think like little by little people are like understanding more and accepting more that like everything is connected and There's no other way. You might see the results out there and think that it's coincidence. It's not connected. But if you explore a little deeper, you're going to see that like, yeah, what's happening inside is what's showing outside. And that's it.

You said something that made me think about why that retreat worked. It worked because I was so committed to it. So yeah, like as we work on ourselves and we bring more assurity and less self-doubt, the results totally change. We could say the exact same words. Exactly. Yeah.

Yeah. It's like the, almost like the density of the idea, right? Like you believe so much and it has been working for you so well that now you kind of like have that whole body or energy work behind that idea that's not empty anymore. Now it's based on experience and—

I love that phrase. Have you said that before? The density of it?

No, that's the first time I say that.

You should say that again.

That's good. Oh yeah. I'll watch the recording and I'm like, the density of it. I don't think I've ever said this way.

Carla, uh, one other question I had for you was, um, You know, as people kind of start to take on this meaningful work or kind of operate from the heart, and especially in that kind of— I think you used the word tender phase— where maybe other people in their lives, their social networks that they've operated in previously, don't fully understand where they're operating from. I feel that, and especially if as, as they're trying to use online as a way for connection, I feel that, um, this could be a real challenge. Like, how do you make meaningful, authentic connections online while sharing your message in a way that, um, that is authentic? And so I'd love to hear more about kind of your approach with that, how you approach connection, and what advice might you give to someone who's trying to share what they offer more consistently.

Yeah, I have two really clear things for me. One is to go to events and retreats and be in the room. Obviously, that's how we connected. If I, you know, I could map like my network. If I needed, you know, someone to promote something for me, let's say, or I just needed someone to listen while I talk through something, like there are people all over the world that I could reach out to. And I, if I mapped it, I could say which event, right? Like this event, this event. That's how I've grown and really built my confidence, right? Because when you have peers, colleagues who can see you, it really makes a difference, especially if you were raised with people who didn't really see you or didn't think this is a valid career path. So go to events is the first thing. And the second thing, you might be shocked, is host your own retreat. And there's a reason though, a really strategic reason. One, you know, hosting a retreat helps you raise your prices because people really, they shift their energy and then they can see a new possibility that they're willing to invest in. But the other reason is you will find yourself saying things on retreat and you just like, just like, Um, the density, right? You'll say things and people will go, ah, and they'll start writing and you're like, oh, that's what I do, right? And you'll learn what you do through doing it, not sitting home figuring it out. And, um, both of my books came through questions people asked me on retreat. Like, I was doing general business coaching, but I was delivering my work through live retreats. And people would pull me aside and say, I just want a business like yours. Like, how, how do you do this? Like, I just wanna do exactly what you do. And that's why I created The Anatomy of a Transformation, which is the way I explain how to fill your retreat and how to make a business out of it. It came through because people asked me questions. And so yeah, that's why I think people should host a retreat, even if it's tiny. Like, it doesn't have to be a big production. You don't have to go to Bali. It can be 6 people in your living room. Like, Get yourself in that leadership role and serve people in their transformation, and then see what comes out. Like, you're— this is— I'm gonna come back to your magic because your magic, sources wants to help you to do this. Your magic will figure out how to structure the thing in the moment. Like, you— your deep commitment to helping someone is gonna make the information come through.

Yeah, you're, you're totally speaking my language on both of those. I mean, and I've said this on other episodes of this, this show as well, like I can literally, if I sit down or you were to ask me, every single kind of big business breakthrough I've had going back to 2017, I could literally trace almost like a lineage back to like events that I've chosen to go to. And yeah, you know, and just like the depth of connection that you create in that experience. It far transcends, I feel, what you can do online. But then when you kind of come back into this space, it's, it's really a strong amplifier. So it's been— I'm totally with you. It's been the number one thing for my own professional career. And then we haven't actually done a retreat yet for Sacred Business Flow, but in past versions of business, it's always been my favorite thing to do. And yeah, we're kind of tentatively eyeing late 2026 or early 2027. So it's on. I kind of really want to ask to bring it back in.

I want to ask your viewers to type retreat in the chat. I don't know if that's a thing on Substack, if they want you to do a retreat.

I don't know. Let's see.

Let's get the feedback. Yeah. Yeah.

Amazing. Yeah. If not, we'll get it on the replay. But yeah, it's something we've been, um, yeah, we're definitely looking forward to and we have some ideas. And so, yeah, it's, um, yeah, I love the advice that you gave there, Darla. That's all. All completely aligned with, uh, with my perspective for sure.

And what I love about it—

Oh, it just makes me emotional. Go ahead. No, you go. I just like thinking about all of how my life has changed through that, you know, decisions to go to events makes me emotional. Go ahead.

No, I just want to say like how beautiful it is because like sometimes you want to Like we work with people trying to build online business, but we forget the magic of being in person. And then they try to establish connections like online only, right? And then both of the examples that you brought, like you go and you put yourself out there and then you interact with people and this is feeding your online business. And that's what we tell our clients as well. Like, hey, don't forget that you can talk to your neighbor about what to do. Don't forget that you can, right? That you can like establish connection, that you can go to a place and just share your your stuff and just put yourself out there because even if it's an online business, like you can have a solid foundation outside the online world and that's gonna accelerate actually your growth like a lot. Yeah.

I'm a huge fan of making an offer at your retreat for an integration program so people can stay in community, right? Because you go and you get this experience and you feel like a new person and you go back to your old environment. That the old you created, and there's a lot of friction. So having that community support after retreat, I'm just a huge believer in. And the experience of making an offer to a group of people in person who have been with you and have— you've guided their transformation, like, they're so receptive to the offer. People want it. I had class recently where I didn't make an offer and my client was like, man, I was so let down that you didn't make an offer, right? It was like, I'm in this, you know, transition. So anyway, um, once you get that experience cellularly of like, people want this, it changes how you interact with people online. It like, the energy of it is different.

Yeah. So good. Like people want it, right? Like that's, that's the magnetism. Like that's the thing that it's effortless, right? Because you've been building up the energy.

Yeah, I love that. And people do want it. We're just like in this energy. I'm there right now, right? Do they want it? Do they not want it? Do they want it? Do they not want it? Wait, Source told me they definitely want it. They may not know it, but they do. You know, I'm in that space.

Yes. Yeah. And just as a, yeah, just, I just thought of it just as a note of practicing what we preach and just another kind of plug for this in-person connection. That's actually what I'm doing right now. I'm actually— I'm in Cusco for a month living with 18 under— 18 other entrepreneurs. Um, oh my goodness. Because, uh, connection, inspira— also beyond the connection, just the inspiration you get from being around other people doing meaningful things. Like, for me, there's nothing else. Like, it's even from a space of like creation and developing ideas. Like, it's one thing to kind of be at home in your box, and then you get out there and you're just able to have these conversations and then just hear what other people are doing. And yeah, that just fills me up so much. So, um, so yeah, bottom line, anyone that's listening to this, find a room to get into, find a retreat, an event. And I, I promise you, I promise you it will, it will change your business if you're, if you're seeking more connection and, uh, for your business. So, um, and there's always a reason not to, right?

There's always a reason not to. Like, we don't have time, there's some— but like, yeah, I don't know, the more inconvenient I mean, we, we were just in Colombia together, you know, the more inconvenient it is sometimes, it's the more important it is that you make it happen.

Yes.

Yep. Oh, I skipped there. Um, yeah, I mean, I was going to say like the, uh, the pandemic kind of slowed me down for a while. It was like a huge part of my rhythm and it took me a couple of years to kind of get back into the flow, but. Once I started to experience that again, I just remembered like, gosh, like, this is so, so important, you know, to make time and space for this. Um, so yes. Well, Darrell, I know we're kind of coming up on time. I, I want to, um, I want to give you space to kind of share. I know you're kind of new here on Substack, so this may not be the best place to, to learn about you, but like, what, um, if someone has heard something that, uh, that, that kind of sparked them something in themselves that you shared and they want to learn more about your work that you're doing with retreats and other things you do, um, what advice would you have? What would suggest they check out? Where would they go? How can they learn more?

Yeah, they can follow me, Darla Ledoux, on Instagram. And then I have a Linktree that has a couple of my free gifts. So I have a, the ultimate 57-point checklist for world-class transformational retreats that consistently fill your high-level programs. Um, mouthful. That is over on Linktree as well as, um, my private podcast that I mentioned. So I have a public podcast, which you two have been on, called Activating Magic. And then I'm doing this through the end of the year, a private podcast. It's called Alchemy with Deela Dee. And this is where you can learn about my new event. So I think maybe tonight or tomorrow morning, I am going to be inviting people in there to come learn about my virtual event. It is December 11th to 13th. And it's on Zoom so people can join from anywhere. It's a very accessible ticket price. So, you know, I shared the woo-woo, like how it came through. If you resonate with that, come on in. And then shortly I'll have a very practical, you know, like, uh, page about it.

I loved it. Very nice.

And, um, yeah, I'll follow up with you just to make sure that we have, um, all those appropriate links. And, you know, we send out a replay for this to our audience. And yeah, we'll just make sure that all of those are there so people can easily, easily find you if, if they're, if they're looking to learn more. Yeah. Yeah. Well, um, yeah, thank you so much for, for your time and for being here.

This has been fun. Yeah. Yes.

Thank you so much.

Thanks for being co-conspirators on this journey of sacred business. I love it. Sacred sourced business. Absolutely, it is.

Cool. All right. Well, thank you, Diana, for being with us today. Stay in touch.

Thank you. Bye, everyone.