Holisticism Is Offering Free Virtual Wellness Workshops for the Next 6 Weeks
Hi, it's me, Michelle.
I'm dropping in to let you know Holisticism is planning to host at least five free virtual wellness and well-being workshops a week — most likely for the next six weeks, but maybe for longer.
Because the majority of the world is responding to COVID-19 with self-quarantine or forced quarantine, we wanted to provide you with ongoing support and resources that contribute to your well-being.
Our mission at Holisticism has always been to make well-being more accessible and equitable. And for the last 2.5 years, we've been hosting affordable virtual workshops and trainings so that anyone anywhere (with the luxury of the internet!) could join in on learning about wellness resources and tools.
So, it was kind of a no brainer to respond to mass anxiety and hysteria by offering access to trainings, virtually, for free.
These trainings and workshops TRULY run the gamut in terms of topics — from Reiki Energy healing sessions to workshops on how to bring your in-person business online.
We have over 25 classes up as of this publish, but I expect we'll have more in the next few days and weeks.
You can go sign up for those classes here. Can't join for the live class? You can catch the audio or video replay that we'll send to you after the event for free!
Our hope is that you find something, where it's a meditation class or an idea of how to monetize your audience, that helps you find solace and strength during this time.
That being said, I'm not convinced our approach is the most correct answer.
Things I'm still thinking about
While we've eliminated the stress of financial payments for workshops for many people, I'm still in problem-solving mode on a few line items.
Paying practitioners.
The primary reason we continue to ask for payment for our online workshops is to pay our practitioners. We've never not paid practitioners for their time, in all of Holisticism's history. While I'm extremely humbled by the number of practitioners who have volunteered their time to teach these workshops for free, I recognize that many teachers and healers make the majority of their income from speaking engagements, group events, and one-on-one sessions. All of which may be canceled indefinitely due to COVID-19.
This puts us in a tight spot. We want to offer opportunities for practitioners to make an income while also keeping our workshops accessible to those who need them right now. And the truth is, many practitioners can't offer their services unless they’re paid for their time (as they should be).
Unfortunately, we are also a 2-person, female-founded small business that is self-funded, which means that in order for us to stay in business and pay practitioners for their time we’d need to take some ticket fee or energetic exchange. The revenue we set aside for impact work has already been given out in the form of scholarships and support in our community programs.
So, we can either continue to rely on the kindness of practitioners who volunteer their time, or we can do that and try to find a solution that would also support practitioners experiencing financial instability right now.
Possible solutions I'm still mulling over:
Sliding scale energetic exchange for tickets, you pay what you can or what you think the class is valued at
Wellness patrons who can afford to finance ticketing for others (sponsor another ticket holder)
Raising donations to a certain monetary level (let's say, $350) where as many people who want to can pay as much or as little as they want in order to get us to the cut-off number ($350). If we don't raise the minimum of $350, then we don't have the class. If we do, it's pay-what-you-can for anyone who buys a ticket after the cut off
Getting out of navel-gazing mode.
I refuse to believe that well-being is anything but a basic human right. Even though the oppressive systems of patriarchy and capitalism would like us to believe otherwise, wellness and well-being should not be a luxury or a privilege that you "earn."
That being said, it can feel tone-deaf to host workshops on Tarot or Breathwork while there are people worried about things like income, food, or housing instability because of COVID-19.
I believe that when we heal and help ourselves, we're in a better position to help others. And during this time, a workshop on how to monetize your audience might be more helpful than a workshop on calming yoga poses TO SOME PEOPLE. Not all! But some.
And to many people, both of these workshops will be helpful. And so will using their privilege to help those who experience marginalization due to systemic oppression and COVID-19.
Possible solutions I'm still mulling over:
Adding more business-oriented workshops to the schedule (if you want to see more of this, please comment below!)
Adding more workshops on social action and activism to our schedule
Taking donations for certain causes at the end of each workshop, depending on the focus
Conclusion
Thank you for showing up and sharing what we're making for our community — digital, IRL, and beyond — as we all stumble through this time of "new normal."
We're grateful for you, and we're committed to our mission to wellness accessibility in every single thing we do.