This Byron Fellowship Reflection Post was written by Jillian Richardson ’19. It was originally published to her personal blog on August 4, 2019. This version has been lightly adapted for the Byron Blog; you can view the original post here, and learn more about Jillian on her website.
This past summer, I had the honor of participating in the Byron Fellowship, a 5-day journey for people who want to step into leadership and create social impact on a global scale. Thanks to the magical facilitation of our mentors, we went from being a group of strangers to a tightly-knit crew of friends who cried together, danced together, and laughed until we lost our voices.
My favorite moment of the week was when we sat around the campfire and shared our visions for the future. We were encouraged to dream big, channel our big-dreaming inner child, and imagine ourselves as a catalyst of change. For those of you playing along at home, this is the template that we used:
Once upon a time…
Every day…
Until one day…
Because of that…
Because of that…
Until finally…
When was the last time you heard someone dream about the future, no holds barred? No limits? It’s scary to be that optimistic. It’s so vulnerable it hurts. And it’s so beautiful that I cried for the entire dang circle.
Until the entire cohort publishes their vision in one document, I will share my own:
The Vision
Once upon a time, most people felt like they didn’t belong. They didn’t know that there were spaces where they could feel seen, heard, and appreciated. Most people only had one friend, and they didn’t even let that person see what was truly inside of them.
Every day, people were deeply lonely. Older people died alone. People of all ages were taking their own lives because they didn’t feel like they mattered, and no one would miss them. The world walked along with a deep desire for something more, but it was too painful to even admit that it was true.
Then one day, a brave Amazonian goddess dared to step up and say that more connection was possible. She shared her story of not belonging, and helped people feel less alone in their loneliness. She lifted up the work of the kind warriors who were brave enough to call themselves gatherers.
Because of that, she created a magical tool that allowed people to easily find spaces where they could feel like they mattered, even if they had only moved there that day.
Because of that, more people believed that they were welcome on this planet. And they stayed.
Until finally, every town on earth was filled with spaces, every day of the week, where people feel like they belong. Every person felt empowered to create their own community and had the tools to do so. Everyone felt seen. Everyone felt heard. Everyone knew that they mattered.
What I Need Help With
Being part of this fellowship has inspired me to make bold requests in order to get closer to achieving my mission. Right now, these are mine:
- I want an organization that cares about reducing loneliness and improving health to be a business partner for the The Joy List. While I still want to work on the project, I don’t want to be in charge of its expansion. That is not my gift, and I know that this challenge could be an immense source of (dare I say it) joy for someone. I’d love to connect with funds, healthcare organizations, and any other institution that you think might be interested in partnering with the newsletter. (I’m looking at you, AARP!)
- Connections to press that can promote my book, Unlonely Planet. My goal is to reduce shame around loneliness and give people the tools to create a deeper community.
- Connections to speaking opportunities to spread my message about how we can reduce loneliness and make the planet a more connected place. (Bonus points if they’re paid!)
Have any answers for me? Let’s chat! Email hey@joylist.nyc. I look forward to hearing from you.
