Journey Beyond Business members attend six meeting days a year, divided into three two-day workshops.

"Issues, Thoughts, and Feelings" is usually the first major activity at each meeting. This gives group members an opportunity to catch up with one another and share what has been going on in their lives: what's happened to them and those close to them, what they are doing in their business lives, what exciting new ideas they've had, what confuses or confounds them, what they're reading or thinking about, and what they've been feeling. All members agree to hold any information given in this context as confidential. "Issues" is high on the members' priority list and everyone who has something to contribute is heard.

When these discussions uncover a topic that is personally meaningful to most, or all, of the members, we use both group discussion and planned exercises  to  understand what the subject matter has to do with the individual life experience of each member. If the group wants to delve further, relevant readings may be “assigned,” or a film suggested,  so the conversation can be continued by email or at the following meeting. And while we are doing all of this, we’re also enjoying meals together and having lots of fun.

Occasionally workshops are held in a retreat setting, perhaps in the desert or at the beach. Spouses and significant others are invited to join in group activities, other than Issues, and something is always scheduled that makes use of the natural surroundings: a walk on the beach or a hike through desert wildflowers.

Of  course there are favorite topics and one of these is money. In the last year or two, we have discussed several books, as well as personal experiences, to define just what money really means to JBB members, as well as what they  have discovered about appropriate ways to deal with finances within their families. They also have read and talked extensively about making money and how their ideas about that have been affected by the current economy. Members also have taken a hard look at their own aging process, including their health issues, and how these new factors influence their sense of identity and security, their relationships, and their dreams about the future. The list of subjects that intrigue the group is a long one.

Sometimes We Just Hang Out

One-on-one meetings with the group leader: Barbara is available to meet individually with each member for two hours three times a year. This offers each person the opportunity to talk further about issues raised in the group, to get more concentrated personal feedback, and to report on progress with personal and business goals.

A couple of comments from our members:

Louis Kravitz: Chairman, Louis Kravitz & Associates, Inc. I enjoy the camaraderie of the group and value the knowledgeable, honest feedback, which I have found helpful to me personally as well as in business. My multi-talented fellow members are very intelligent and experienced. I learn something significant at every meeting. Now that I have given up my position as a CEO, I would attribute much of my success in making this transition to their high level input. Through my participation in JBB I have gained a deeper insight into who I am today, what I want to do in the next phase of my life and how I can do it. I am more confident because that feeling is now based on truly accepting who I am and what I am capable of doing.

Gary Reuben: Former CEO of two companies and retired Vice President of TEC International (with his wife Susan Reuben.) I enjoy the openness, honesty and truth telling in the group, the wisdom of men and women who have had success in the world and in business. I have great respect and deep caring for Barbara and the other members, for their courage, their willingness to open themselves to each other and to learning as well. I feel known at a very real level and I value the advice I can get on any issue I bring up, business or personal.