Originally published in the Summer + Fall 2018 issue.
You’ll be hard pressed to find an event that intersects the avenues of leadership, mindfulness, global consciousness, self-love, yoga, relationships and business better than the Lead With Love Summit in Aspen, Colorado, this upcoming October 25-28, 2018.
The tranquil and beautiful setting of Aspen in the off-season sets the perfect stage for the Lead With Love Summit, an immersive and transformational conference designed to focus on the mind, body, spirit and heart. It is an intentionally intimate gathering, as the home base of the Aspen Meadows Resort can only accommodate 500 guests. The event has been a sell-out every year, as the experience of spending time with the likes of previous speakers Deepak Chopra and Marianne Williamson nestled in the heart of the mountains almost seems too good to be true.
Change is currently afoot for the non-profit, as they’ve recently shifted the name of the organization — Aspen City of Wellbeing — to the name of the summit — Lead With Love — as well as updated the structure of their organization. Gina Murdock, founder + co-director, shares more on the reason behind the name change.
“We believe what you focus on grows,” shares Murdock. “With the success of our annual event, Lead with Love, we’ve felt an energy with this movement that feels very alive, joyful, relevant and impactful. The mantra ‘Lead with Love’ guides us individually and as an organization every day. It is what we aspire to and what we work towards and we’ve heard from our community that this phrase and movement is something that touches and inspires them as well.”
“We exist to shift culture from fear to love,” explains Nicole Lindstrom, program director for Lead With Love. “We do that through our Summit, local trainings, our service programs and retreats. We’re really excited about what we have to offer and how we can serve our community.”
And not to worry; all the hard work that the team has been getting up to in implementing workplace wellbeing in the community under the former name Aspen City of Wellbeing is still very much alive and well and now known as Project Wellbeing. The programs have seen tremendous success when partnering with the likes of Pitkin County, City of Aspen Public Works, Aspen Valley Hospital, and Aspen Community School to bring mindfulness, yoga and meditation to their workplaces. With the change in name, the LWL team looks to expand the service work locally and globally.
In its third iteration this year, the Summit is pushing to keep the content, speakers and overall theme relevant to its audience and resonant with what’s needed in the world. In order to better align with their mission and service work provided through Project Wellness, this year the Summit is turning it’s focus towards CEO’s of companies making a change, with the likes of Manduka, Whole Foods, Virgin Unite and many others being added to the line-up.
While last year featured different learning tracks for entrepreneurs or community members, this year the focused tracks will be in three different types of leadership: self, society, and global. The goal is that attendees will spend quality time with global thought leaders and be able to walk away with tangible ways to make a difference in their own personal leadership that can be carried forward to making an impact in their own communities and workplaces.
If you’re committed to being the change, if you love learning from some of today’s most inspiring leaders, if you’re into finding tribe and spending time with like minded individuals from all around the world, it’s best to block off your calendars for Oct 25-28 and grab your tickets early. See you in Aspen!
Lead With Love Summit is a four-day leadership conference open to all. Hosted at the Aspen Meadows Resort in Aspen, Oct. 25-28, 2018. Save $100 on your ticket with code “COYOGALIFE” For more information visit www.ileadwithlove.org.
Photo by Seth Beckton.
WHERE TO STAY
COLORADO LOCALS’ RATE AT LIMELIGHT HOTEL
Book your Lead With Love accommodations at the Limelight Hotel in Aspen.
The Limelight has an ideal location in Aspen and is also dog friendly. Enjoy a weekend getaway in Aspen — the Limelight is walking distance from shops and restaurants and just a short drive or bike ride to Lead With Love at The Aspen Institute.
Colorado Residents can take advantage of a special “locals’ rate” starting at $160 per night for Standard and Deluxe Rooms, and 20% off on higher room types. Must present valid Colorado ID at check-in. Available late August through November, 2018. Offer does not include parking and is on availability at the time of booking.
Shenna Jean is based in Aspen, Colorado. She’s a big fan of yoga, hiking, snowboarding, the Kansas Jayhawks and rosé. Shenna Jean loves her some personal and leadership development, be it a book, podcast, workshop or conference. She spends her days at the Aspen Art Museum and nights working on her photog skills and couples retreat company @adventuresandromance. Shenna is also a CO YOGA + Life® Ambassador. 
