Welcome to #PinkNicky’s Blog, your weekly dose of adventure ideas.
It’s Saturday morning, so grab your tea and toast.
What did I get up to this week: I have had an adventuretastic week at the Adventure Mind Conference. This week I have had breakfast with a future Atlantic rower, got a hug from a Neuroscientist, had lunch with a Everest climber, nipped to the supermarket with an event first aider, had dinner with an author, a glass of wine with a member of The Adventure Mind Research team and grabbed a curry with a podcaster and business analyst – my mind is boggled!!
The conference explored the importance of adventure to wellbeing and mental health. This year’s theme is ‘Small Adventures, Big Impact’. Especially now with the cost of living crisis, we need outdoor pursuits that are not expensive and activities to keep us sane.
Conference
I totally loved being immersed with 100’s of like minded people and loved even more delivering the marketing workshops. I wanted to give simple ideas to help these adventure businesses to stand out from the crowd.
The conference attendees were a self-selecting group, united by a love of the outdoors, an understanding of how adventure can benefit us all, and a vision to spread the message of how mother nature can have a positive effect on mental and physical wellbeing.
The Adventure leaders, practitioners, researchers, guides, students, educators, and therapists all understood that what they do can make a difference in people’s lives, through their adventure and outdoor activity programs. What we all need now, is to spread the message far and wide #adventuremind.
Takeaway: Come and join us in 2024 – provisonal dates 18/19th Nov (Bookings not open) and follow the hashtag #adventuremind and join in the conversation.
Comfort Zone
Over the course of the 2 day conference, I pushed myself out of my comfort zone twice. The first time I had to stand up and pitch the marketing workshop to 200 people, public speaking still gets my heart racing even after all the years of running events! and the second time, when jumping off a 50-foot pole into the air, in my Leap of Faith activity.
You are supposed to move from your Fight or Flight response to your Excite and Delight response with your deep breathing exercises. Needless to say, I felt panic rising and had tears rolling down my cheeks and jelly legs at the bottom!
Takeaway: I need to practice getting in touch with my inner zen!! Read more about Behavioural responses here
Community
Building communities and being part of adventure communities is my thing. I love being part of something bigger than me, embracing an entity that has an energy of its own and acts as a magnet to attract bobble hat, rucksack-wearing outdoor lovers from across the hills and dales.
The adventure community is full of people like me who love; being outside in the wind (not so keen on the rain), eating Cornish pasties up a mountain, dancing in the snow, walking for hours along remote paths, drinking hot chocolate as the sun comes up, researching kit, and snuggling up in a sleeping bag after a long day. Truly simple pleasures that can make your heart sing.
Finding your kindred crew can build confidence, forge friendships, create partnerships and open doors to all sorts of adventure shenanigans!
Takeaway: Join a community Explorers Connect Adventure Queens Blackdog Outdoors Wildstrong
My Favourite Photos:
Lovely to meet all my conference buddies: Elise, Gill, Maz, Zoe, Mandy,Charlie, Josephine, Jess, Emma, Julia, Ananya. (Stu sorry we did not get one!)
It’s time to get out of bed! and find today’s adventure!
Over and Out
#PinkNicky
