If you’re preparing for a quarterly planning retreat in your small business – whether it’s a few hours at a local coffee shop or a full-blown 2-day hotel stay like I did – this post is going to save you time, energy, and regret. And be sure to read to the end for a free bonus goodie for you to download and keep for your next quarterly planning retreat!
When I prepared for my 40-hour quarterly planning retreat for my business – my very first offsite retreat! – I knew I wanted to stay focused and not waste time running out for snacks or sitting on the bed trying to do deep work.
I packed in a way that supported clear thinking, long work blocks, and a cozy-but-efficient vibe I need to have in order to really think and plan in my business. Meaning, there was no way I was wearing jeans! But also, I didn’t want to slop around in sweats or pajamas and feel the warm, lazy vibes of a bear getting ready to hibernate for winter!
Without further ado:
Here’s everything I brought, what worked, what I’d skip next time, and what I totally forgot to pack.
Food & Snacks That Kept Me Focused
I packed enough food for every meal except Monday night dinner – which I spent at Texas Roadhouse with my kids. (It was such a nice brain break!)
To stay alert and energized, I focused on whole foods, pre-prepped snacks and meals, and a couple of comfort treats.
At home, we hardly ever eat out or grab fast food. So while the idea of having UberEats deliver all my snacks and meals for my quarterly planning retreat seemed divine, I also knew that I feel lethargic, fuzzy, and low-energy when I eat like that. Don’t get me wrong, I LOVE to eat like that. Just not when I need to focus.
So my goal was to pack food and snacks that were even healthier than what I’d eat at home. I wanted to keep my mind clear and my energy high. Of course, I did throw in some fun things, too!
Here’s what I brought:
- Washed & chopped fruits and veggies from home (I prepped these the morning-of)
- A fresh quinoa and veggie salad (for Sunday dinner + Monday lunch)
- Microwaveable popcorn (my go-to snack when I need to focus but don’t want to)
- M&M’s
- Starbucks espresso drinks (I don’t always feel comfortable at hotels as a woman traveling alone so I didn’t want to have to go down to the breakfast for coffee if I didn’t want to)
- Quest protein chips for a quick, filling, and crunchy snack
- Protein drinks to keep me going
- Good Thins crackers to top with guac or hummus
- Hot honey hummus (my favorite hummus of all time – I buy it in the grocery section of Walmart)
- Minute rice if I wanted a warm, comforting “belly filler”
- Sparkling waters (I love having bubbly drinks while I do deep thinking work)
- Guacamole (for crackers and to stir into my quinoa salad)
- Yogurts & fresh fruit for breakfast
- Bottled water (enough for 10 cups a day because when I’m hydrated, I can focus for longer periods of time and don’t get brain fog)
What I forgot:
- The hotel had a freezer and I totally spaced on that. I could have brought prepped frozen meals and saved even more time and effort! Plus a soft pretzel would have been ahhh-mazing during deep work
- Tea bags – I looooove having hot tea while I’m working and it just escaped my mind to pack this
- Mugs – same as above. I just forgot to pack these and with a mini kitchen in the room, it would have been lovely to have a mug of hot tea to hug while I worked
Paperwork I Actually Used
This was one of the biggest wins of the entire retreat.
I printed out tons of documentation ahead of time so I wasn’t switching between tabs or relying on WiFi. Every hotel says they have excellent WiFi – but you never know til you get there if they actually do. And I was not about to waste my quarterly retreat waiting for pages to load.
Plus, there’s just something about being able to scribble notes, highlight things, star or circle things… I love doing that when I’m concentrating and wanting to “connect the dots” in my brain.
Even though the internet was great, I didn’t want or need to be online all day – which helped me stave off distractions. I was surprised at how little time I spent on my computer during the retreat. (It was a pleasant surprise!).
Printed Stuff I Brought With Me
- My schedule + goals for each blog of time. I decided on 4-6 hour work blocks ahead of time and then assigned clear goals for each block. So no, I did not lay in bed in my sweats and binge Netflix!
- 3 months of printed calendar pages
- Income statements, KPI reports, and profitability stats
- Printouts of my ChatGPT feedback (I fed it 15 months of KPI data and then asked ChatGPT to analyze it and respond as various roles (kindly note: only my membership girls will have access to those prompts)
- Team documents: core values and roles/responsibilities, job description for new team member
- Instagram profile audits I had paid for (and never used)
- My annual and Q1 quarterly goals
- Q2 content mapping
- Walk Like Warriors 3-year vision and goals
- Financial review and projections (this, too, is reserved only for my membership girls)
Best part: Having this in hard copy meant I could mark things up, highlight what mattered, and not get sucked into tabs or notifications.
Honestly, I’m doing this every quarter moving forward. I LOVED having all of these printed out and stapled together. Sorting them across the massive dresser area made my heart go pitter patter. And if you know me you know, of course I had to print pretty covers for them, too. Just because we’re running a legit business doesn’t mean everything has to be gray, black, or ugly.
I tried to put the documents in the order in which I would work through them but one day in, they were a jumbled mess in the best possible way. I loved flipping back-and-forth across different metrics and supporting documentation.
The Cozy Clothes & Comfort Items That Set the Vibe for My Quarterly Planning Retreat
This was one of the biggest contributors to staying in flow. I wasn’t in stiff clothes or PJs – I dressed like I meant business, but in full comfort.
My must-haves:
- Ugg slip-on slippers (gift from my in-laws)
- Buttery-soft loungewear
- My favorite Pink Lily blanket from home
- My one-sentence-a-day journal
- A brand new Moleskine journal (this ended up being a key part of the retreat)
- My 2025 bullet journal
- Over-the-ear Beats headphones (noise canceling helped me LOCK IN)
- A full set of office supplies — pens, Post-its, highlighters, index cards, stapler, tape, lens wipes
- A backup battery pack and extra cords (never trust hotel outlets)
- Sparkling water with fresh fruit (I need fun drinks when I do deep focus work)
- And my ultimate kick-booty-focus-hack: Bubble Yum
What I forgot/didn’t bring and had regrets
- I left a few last-minute printouts in the printer – next time, everything gets packed 48 hours before. I thought of some things the morning-of and didn’t end up needing them but in the future, I’ll stick with what I decided upon ahead of time. I don’t know why but whenever I’m going on a trip, I do a last-minute scramble that is never necessary!
- I packed highlighters and didn’t check them… all but one of them was dry. Next time, brand new office supplies will be purchased. Woohoo! I do love me fresh office supplies.
- My Bible. I left it at home because it’s so big and heavy and I figured I could just use the Bible App on my phone. It’s sooo not the same. Next time, my paper Bible comes with me even if it makes the suitcase that much heavier.
The Suite Was the BEST Decision of All
Getting a suite was 100% worth it. It wasn’t even that expensive as it was just a well-worn Comfort Inn & Suites a few towns over (it was about 35 minutes from the house).
I had space to spread out, different zones for different activities, and a full fridge for the food I brought. It had several desktop areas measuring almost 20 feet! I could spread everything out instead of digging through my work bag. The one thing I hate about traveling is living out of bags and suitcases so this was a big deal for me: space.
It saved me time, energy and money. Whoa. You might be thinking that’s a bit weird. How did it save me money? Well, it was obviously more expensive than doing the retreat from home. But because I could prep my own food without relying on takeout or UberEats, my food cost was zero besides dinner out with the kids on Monday night.
Bringing My Membership Girls With Me
Another big win? My Success Squad Alumni Membership girls came with me – virtually. They’ve got a private Instagram page (it’s only open to graduates of my signature program, The Success Squad, who enroll in the membership). I brought them along in Instagram Stories for many different parts of the retreat. I let them know my goals, what was working, and what I was thinking about and doing for the retreat – every step of the way. They always get a behind-the-curtain view into my business. No secrets. No gatekeeping. They love it and I do, too! OK, back to the retreat…
They enjoyed it and some of them even booked hotels and went on their own retreats within a week! (They are my little implementing butt kickers and I love them to pieces because they get stuff DONE!).
Hopping into Instagram stories with them throughout the retreat was good for them but it also gave me a sense of accountability and connection. Honestly, it helped me stay focused on what I was supposed to be doing instead of bouncing between tasks.
I posted my goals for the next 4-6 hours and then I would come back later and show those goals with check marks for done or red x’s for not done. This really did give me a kick in the rear whenever I started to let my mind wander or when I started to get tired.
What I Packed but Didn’t Use
I brought a second monitor and didn’t need it. A major reason I didn’t need it was because I brought all those printed documents with me. There’s just something about paper that I still love. Again, printed out PDF’s was a big, big win of the time away and I plan to always do this going forward.
So the second computer monitor was not needed. And the simplicity of one screen helped me stay focused. Next time, I’ll leave the second monitor at home.
You Can Do This From Home!
You don’t have to book a hotel to make this work. Some of you only need 2-4 hours for your retreat. Others of you who are running a more complex business or who want to grow fast? Here’s what you’ll want to do:
Block off one full day (or even two half days) at home, tell your people you’re unavailable, and create a “do not disturb” environment.
Wear something cozy but intentional, prep your snacks, drinks, and/or meals ahead of time, and print everything you need so you’re not stuck on screens or typing stuff into Google Drive or searching your inbox every 10 minutes. If you’re doing this from home, then it’s pizza night that night. Have another driver in your home pick it up or have it delivered. Don’t think about home/meals. Think about your business. For the full retreat block. Your brain needs to go DEEP and not be distracted.
Personally, I think off-sites are always better. So go out if you can. Head to a coffee shop or study room. If you need to be home? You can leave the house in the morning, grab a coffee, and come back to “start fresh” if it helps. That small shift can reset your mindset.
Remember:
It’s not about where you are, it’s about creating space to think clearly and work deeply.
A quarterly retreat for your small business helps you rise up, up up – taking a bird’s eye view of what’s actually happening instead of being soooo caught up in all the day-to-day activities and endless to-do’s. If you are a small business owner or entrepreneur, you absolutely need to start having a quarterly retreat.
I recommend you pop open your calendar right now, go to the last Friday in the quarter, set a 4 or 8 hour (or, heck, a 40 hour!) block titled: Quarterly Planning Retreat. Set this to recurring on the last Friday, every 3 months.
Then, stick to it!
Ready for your FREE bonus gift? I told you, we are all about pouring into you and helping you thrive. And one way to do that is going into your quarterly retreat armed with the supplies you need so you’re ready to rock-and-roll.
Want a list of my favorite supplies I used on the retreat? It’s free! Click here to grab it!
Coming Up Next…
In our next blog post, I’ll walk you through the exact journaling prompts I brought with me – including the ones that created actual shifts in my thinking … and the ones I’ll never use again.
Missed the first blog post in the series? Click here to read about why I took it, the exact schedule I followed, what worked, and what didn’t.
