After four years, the team returned to Pha Daeng Happy House to host an insightful Annual Progression.
This past October, our team travelled together to Pha Daeng Happy House, where we spent three days reconnecting with each other and our shared company values. This was the first year since the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic that we were able to host this company-wide event.
Among the returning team members were many new faces to the company who had never experienced an Annual Progression. As one of the newest team members, I reflected on my experience at this event.
The Annual Progression from the Viewpoint of a New Team Member
The Annual Progression began with many unique, funny handshakes, which felt fitting since many of our programs kick off in a similar way. As we paired with new partners and had small discussions, we all started to become more active and engaged. After this, we were ready to share our personal goals for this Annual Progression. Starting the event this way made everyone recognize what they could gain from these three days. My personal goals involved connecting better with my team and understanding my coworkers’ perceptions of the company’s mission and values. This Progression was an opportunity for me to have more authentic and in-depth conversations with all of my team, which would then allow me to create marketing materials that reflect the thoughts and feelings of those in the Progression community.
After many smaller discussions on the first day, the second day was filled with “Open Space” sessions, where the Progression team members volunteered to run workshops, discussions, trainings, or other forums throughout the day. Everyone had the freedom to go to the sessions they thought would be the most valuable to their specific goals and interests.
From sword dance instruction with Tiffy to beginner Mandarin Chinese lessons with Steff, I learned many unexpected things. I am not sure how much traditional sword dancing I will be doing in the future, but I felt inspired by seeing the passions of the people I work with. Even though I had not originally signed up to lead a session, I left the day empowered to volunteer as a yoga teacher for the following morning.
After two days of learning about each other and growing through the instruction of our teammates, we wrapped up the Annual Progression with a day focused on the company’s values, mission, and vision. This day helped us center around the overall company mission, Helping individuals, communities and organizations to Fuel Progression so that they may discover their highest potential.
In particular, I enjoyed the discussions about our core values. Assessing our personal and group thoughts about each of our values led us to a more consolidated list of company values:
- Seek Growth and Development
- Care for Each Other Like Family
- Practice Sustainability
- Love What You Do
- Take Responsibility and Drive Quality
We went on to make lists of desirable and undesirable actions and behaviors that can be used as a guide to carry out these values better in our everyday lives. This activity helped to make these concepts much more tangible and relatable for everyone on the team.
Once we enforced our shared values, then we split into groups to draw the vision of the company. Albeit not the most aesthetically-pleasing drawings, all of the creations conveyed a similar vision. It was evident that we all see a strong future for the company; one where we are a larger team that is able to fuel the progression of new audiences.
At the end of the Annual Progression, I was appreciative that I achieved the goals I set on the first day. I left this event with a clearer understanding of my teammate’s unique perspectives about our company mission and values. I also felt more connected to the Progression team since I was able to engage with people that I don’t typically interact with. This has now allowed me to refocus my marketing projects, so I can better amplify the company’s many voices in a better fashion.
Moving Forward After the Annual Progression
From this Progression, we left more united as a team and motivated to accomplish our goals. We look forward to future Annual Progressions as we continue to grow together.
