Takeaways:
- A recap of the Cut Loose Collage vision board workshop for a team retreat in Vermont.
- Hands-on collage offered an active way to unwind, relieve stress, and share creative ideas.
- Team members built rapport and shared their vision for the organization’s future.
I recently traveled up to Vermont to lead a Cut Loose Collage workshop for a team retreat for ServiceNet’s Prospect Meadow Farms. The group spent their retreat reflecting on past work, discussing organizational goals, and planning ahead. They wanted to wrap up the retreat with an activity that felt creative, grounded, and aligned with their focus.
We made collage vision boards. I created an example structured around past, present, and future. Some participants used that model, while others created top-to-bottom layouts or arranged ideas radiating outward from a central focal point.
The workshop centered on the core values of Cut Loose: unwind, create, and connect. Here are three things I observed during the session.
Observation 1: Immediate Stress Relief
Social work is demanding, and the need to unwind was clear from the start. Once the magazines and scissors came out, the room relaxed. People moved between tables, traded clippings, compared finds, and laughed. It gave the team space to step away from formal discussions and recharge through hands-on creative work.
Observation 2: Cross-Team Camaraderie
The retreat brought together colleagues who work in different departments and rarely see one another day-to-day. Working side-by-side with collage materials created an easy, low-pressure way to talk. It sparked conversations naturally and helped build rapport across teams that usually operate in separate silos.
Observation 3: Fresh Ways to Communicate Big Ideas
At the end of the workshop, everyone shared what they made. Talking through selected images and phrases helped participants express perspectives and feelings that do not always surface during standard meetings. The teams used their finished boards to speak openly about where they see the organization heading and what matters most to them moving forward.
Watch the recap video from the Prospect Farm retreat workshop.