Finding the Heart of Cloud9 — Cloud9 Experiences GmbH

My reflections on our first Heartset Retreat in Zermatt

Our very first Cloud9 Heartset Leadership Retreat brought nine wonderful people to Zermatt for three unforgettable days of mountain air, inspiring conversations, music, movement, and genuine human connection.

When I started Cloud9 Experiences, I had one dream: to create spaces where people could slow down enough to reconnect with themselves and with each other, in my favourite place in the world: Zermatt. I imagined bringing together extraordinary people, beautiful surroundings and a thoughtfully designed programme that would give people permission to pause, reflect and simply be.

For months before the retreat, so many questions and doubts occupied my mind: Is the programme thoughtful enough? Will anyone sign up? Will professionals be open to something that includes music, emotions, and mountains? Will they think it isn't "leadership" enough? And perhaps, underneath all those questions, was the biggest one of all: Will I be enough?

It was a rollercoaster of excitement, doubt, creativity and countless iterations. Lilia and I spent hours shaping the programme together, questioning every exercise, every transition and every conversation. Running a pilot meant further refinements, adjustments, challenging ourselves, trying to understand each other. Looking back, I realise that every one of those conversations helped shape what the retreat eventually became.

As someone who naturally enjoys thinking through every detail, I wanted everything to feel intentional. The program itself, the reflection questions, every handwritten welcome note, every room allocation, every meal, every transfer and every small surprise had a purpose. Making people feel welcome and genuinely cared for has always come naturally to me; it is simply part of who I am.
However, a few weeks before the retreat, I made a conscious decision. I had done everything I possibly could to prepare, and it was finally time to let go. Not because I cared any less, but because I realised that I needed to stop trying to control every possible outcome. I needed to trust the process, trust the people around me, trust myself, and trust that the universe would take care of the rest. Looking back, I think that decision changed the way I experienced the retreat just as much as it changed the experience for everyone else.

After the retreat, one participant wrote "This retreat does not teach you about leadership. It changes the instrument you lead with: yourself." I remember reading that sentence over and over again because it wasn't something we had ever written. It wasn't on the website nor in the programme - it simply wasn’t part of the promise we had made. And yet, somehow, that became the experience someone described. It was far beyond anything I had imagined when we first started designing the retreat. This was one of the most important personal lessons: I can’t control nor plan the outcome - and this is good - because I would have probably aimed for something less.

Reading through the feedback afterwards has been one of the greatest gifts. Not because the retreat received an average recommendation score of 9.7 out of 10—although, of course, that made me incredibly happy—but because of the words people chose. They didn't write about frameworks, productivity or becoming better managers. Instead, they spoke about feeling deeply seen, about listening differently, about choosing love over fear, about grounding themselves before difficult conversations, about asking for help and about reconnecting with themselves. Their "carry-home" reflections went much deeper than I had ever imagined, and reading them reminded me that leadership begins with the relationship we have with ourselves.

I often asked myself what success would look like and how I would measure it. Now I know it goes so much beyond a Net Promotion Value Score. Reading feedback where someone says, "I have never listened to music - or to people - with so much presence in my life." - this felt like success. Seeing strangers hug goodbye like old friends. Watching guards come down and creating a weekend that continues long after everyone has gone home and where people describe themselves as feeling more connected, grounded, peaceful, inspired, and even enlightened.

This is what I want Cloud9 Experiences to be known for. Not beautifully organised events, but creating environments where people feel safe enough to let their guard down, connect authentically and discover something they didn't expect to find.

I feel incredibly grateful to have shared this journey with Lilia and Karen, who each brought something completely unique to the experience. Lilia brought the Heartset philosophy and inspiration, but much more than that, she created an atmosphere of openness and trust from the very beginning. Her background as an opera singer quietly shaped the retreat through the way she used her voice, embraced moments of silence and shared beautiful songs throughout the weekend. As one participant beautifully described, "Lilia has a remarkable presence that immediately creates a sense of safety, openness and trust." Another reflected that she "held the space with warmth, authenticity and grace, making it feel both deeply personal and profoundly collective." Perhaps the greatest compliment of all was that people didn't simply learn from Lilia—they felt safe enough to learn from one another.

Karen added another powerful dimension that elevated the entire experience. While everyone was deeply moved by her extraordinary music and violin playing, it was her honesty, humility, curiosity, thoughtfulness and brilliance that people remembered most. She invited us into her own journey as a musician, sharing not only the beautiful moments but also the discipline, doubts and perseverance behind them. One participant captured it beautifully: "She shared her story with such honesty and humility, and it was clear that her lessons came from lived experience rather than theory." Another described her as "a hidden gem," reflecting that "the wisdom she shared through her life lessons had a profound impact." Watching Karen perform became something entirely different once you understood the person behind the music. As one participant wrote, "Having her play on Day 1 and then again at the closing is so powerful. You experience the music differently." Her presence added extraordinary richness to the retreat, weaving together story, music and humanity in a way that transformed the experience from beginning to end.

I feel incredibly grateful and privileged to have not only designed but also experienced this retreat. It was transformational, deeply meaningful and, in many ways, it has become the heart of what I hope every Cloud9 Experiences will feel like.

None of this would have been possible without the extraordinary people who brought it to life. Lilia and Karen, for not only sharing their expertise, passion and talent, but also their hearts. Every participant showing up with openness, courage and generosity. They embraced the experience wholeheartedly and co-created something far more meaningful than any program alone could ever achieve. All the wonderful collaborators and partners in Zermatt, whose warmth, professionalism and care helped create the atmosphere I had hoped for. To my mentor, friends, husband and family for their unwavering love, encouragement and support, not just throughout this retreat, but throughout the journey of building Cloud9 Experiences.