Three Showed Up. Two Became Friends. One Called It “Exactly What He Needed.”

I won’t sugarcoat it—hosting a retreat where 5 of your 8 guests cancel isn’t exactly the dream.

But this week? I learned something every retreat leader should tattoo on their soul:

Success isn’t about the headcount. It’s about the heart count.

The vibe was meant to be playful, masculine, and restorative. A group of grown men remembering what it feels like to laugh too hard, stay up too late, and act like they’re 23 again—with more wisdom and fewer injuries.
But when more than half of them dropped out (due to a wild domino of flight cancellations, work emergencies, and life doing what life does), I had a choice:
Wallow in the numbers, or lean in to the energy that was there.