Natalie Audelo

We don’t build community .

We build containers where community has a chance to emerge.

“Carved out my lane and chilled.”

It’s humbling to remember: we go knocking all the time. Yes, there’s always someone we can help, but there’s always someone whose help we need. The worst thing that can happen in life is not putting your room—your life—on hold to help other people. The worst thing is when you’ve been so successful at ignoring the knocks that people stop knocking on... See more

Over the subsequent years, Feÿtopia evolved into a community of people who live at the castle in the ‘off season’, roughly November-April, for anywhere from a few days to the whole season. Community members are encouraged to co-create the experience of living at the castle: meals, parties, and improvements to the grounds can be planned by anyone.

“We have lost a sense of play. After 2020 did her big one, we’ve been looking for play..... with Pickeball, with trivia nights, and frickin’... improv. And in reality, you can just leave your house and have a nice playful moment with someone else. [...] We live in a fear-based culture.”

Organizations that share their “flight plans” with employees reduce uncertainty about where they are headed and why. Ongoing communication is key: A 2015 study of 2.5 million manager-led teams in 195 countries found that workforce engagement improved when supervisors had some form of daily communication with direct reports.

This reorientation toward meaning over materialism is beginning to take root elsewhere, too.