Unsettled Portrait Project
In January of 2020, two months before the world descended into chaos, I flew to Ubud to join a two week retreat with ‘BeUnsettled’.
It was here that I met a group of incredible individuals from all around the world who also value meaningful human connection and are in constant pursuit of personal and professional growth.
During the second week of the retreat I reached out to the group with the offer of capturing their portraits as they contemplated a few questions that I posed to them. The level of connection that I encountered as I conversed with each person during the sessions was unlike anything I had ever experienced before.
At the end of the session I asked them to share their takeaway from the two week experience.
Maurice Philogene: Philanthropist, Investor and Financial Freedom Guru
“I’ve made the right decisions. I trusted my instincts about travel, focusing on life and experiences rather than corporate titles and money. I did a good job not giving in to what society wanted from me. The result: I’m living my purpose.
I’ll take away to keep sharing my story and journey with people. The more I do, the more I find people like me. The more I build ‘my family & community’. I’ve wanted that for a while. And now, I’m finding them…and I’m finding my voice.”
Clari Mastronardi: BeUnsettled Experience Leader
“I am capable of loving and accepting being loved in return”
Instead of conversing, Clari chose to quietly contemplate each question I posed to her. The emotions she experienced are so beautifully etched on her face and in her body language, it was truly magical to witness and capture.
Sara Nahdi: Investment Banking and Corporate Finance
For Sara, the key takeaway from the trip and interactions was “that many muted goals were activated and awakened: My life direction (mentally and career wise), fitness and the pursuit of passive income (it’s something I always knew I wanted to do but never had an actual plan and commitment to do so).”
Nikki Webber Allen: Founder @ilivefororg, TED Speaker, Activist, Filmmaker
“I have so much respect and admiration for how intentional Balinese people are about practicing gratitude for even the smallest things in their lives. So often in Western cultures, we’ve been indoctrinated to focus on the next goal, the next acquisition, the next whatever, that we forget to be grateful for what we already have…and we have so much. As soon as I get home, I plan to create a daily ritual, similar to their morning offerings, to help ground myself in the present moment and to truly appreciate the many, many blessings in my life.”
Elisa Castelli: Travel Agent
“…development through people, ‘my people’, the people who share my weirdness and hunger to discover, experience and grow. I want to spread that strong feeling into the people where I live… make them curious about life and live without any fear.”
Alyson Earnest: Explorer, Writer, Encourager, Photographer
“The one thing I will take away from my experience with Unsettled is that it gave me the opportunity to recognise the significance of embracing the moments. The moments are the conversations; the adventures; the wanderings; the observations; the quiet. They are the physical, emotional discomforts. Even when they happen more than once, they are never experienced the same way again. There are no do overs, only new ways to experience them each time.”
Veronica Nespeca: Sales and Marketing Specialist
“Before coming to Bali I imagined this island as the most spiritual one. No surprise that I found it as it was in my mind. Everything so serene, so peaceful. The beauty of Bali together with the depth and genuine nature of the people I met made this experience unforgettable. This is what I will take into my life: the wellbeing I found in Bali that I hope will keep staying with me.”
Malcolm Coolidge: Education Philanthropy
“The experience of a full hearted community of committed adventurers gives me a feeling of calm and grounding to go ahead with more focus and discipline - as well as practical ideas and wisdom - toward reaching and growing my goals and vision. The power of friendship and community makes me whole.”