A few weeks ago, the LeftTurn Strategy team packed our bags, left our laptops (mostly) closed, and headed to a cottage for two nights together.
There was an agenda, of course.
We spent time talking about the future of our business, our goals for the next 18 months, and what it means to approach a significant milestone: LeftTurn’s 10th anniversary next year.
We discussed growth. We explored new opportunities. We talked openly about artificial intelligence and what it means for service-based businesses like ours. We asked ourselves important questions about how we continue to evolve, stay relevant, and create value for our clients in a rapidly changing landscape.
But if we’re being honest, the strategic planning wasn’t the most important part of the trip.
The most important part was simply being together.
Making Time for What Matters
Over the years, as founders and business partners, we’ve made a conscious effort to invest in our own leadership relationship.
In fact, we recently shared reflections from our 10-day European working trip—a chance for us to step away from daily operations, think strategically, and focus on the future of the business.
When we returned home, we realized something important.
Over the years, we’ve intentionally invested in our founder relationship because we know that healthy leadership creates a stronger business. But as we planned for our trip, we found ourselves asking a simple question:
If investing in our relationship helps strengthen the company, shouldn’t we create similar opportunities for the entire team?
The answer was an easy yes.
As a fully remote organization, we don’t have daily hallway conversations, lunch breaks together, or spontaneous chats around the coffee machine. While remote work offers incredible flexibility, it also means that connection doesn’t happen by accident.
It has to happen intentionally.
That’s what this retreat was really about.
Not just planning.
Not just productivity.
People.
Beyond the Zoom Screen
At LeftTurn, we’re a small team of women with full lives outside of work.
We have families, partners, children, aging parents, volunteer commitments, community involvement, and countless responsibilities that don’t stop when the workday ends.
The reality is that modern life can be busy and demanding.
That’s why creating space to connect as humans—not just colleagues—felt so important.
Over two days, we cooked meals together, went for long walks, sat around the fire, shared stories, laughed, and learned new things about one another.
One highlight? An evening spent learning how to play mahjong.
For a group that spends our days solving communication and marketing challenges, it was surprisingly refreshing to focus on something entirely different. There were Chinese characters to decipher, tiles to sort, rules to remember, and just enough confusion to keep everyone humble. We were simply learning something new together—and laughing our way through it. (And we got hooked and played over coffee again the next morning!)
Overall, there were no deadlines to chase. No client meetings to rush to. No pressure to perform. Just time.
Time to get to know one another outside of project plans and Google Chat messages.
Those moments may not show up on a balance sheet, but they matter more than many people realize.
Trust is built during conversations that have nothing to do with work.
Collaboration improves when people genuinely understand one another.
Creativity flourishes when teams feel psychologically safe and connected.
And ultimately, businesses perform better when people feel supported, valued, and seen.
Preparing for the Future Together
Of course, we didn’t completely leave business behind.
Some of our most exciting conversations focused on the future of our industry.
Like many agencies and professional service firms, we’re paying close attention to the evolution of artificial intelligence. AI is changing how work gets done, how businesses operate, and what clients expect.
Rather than asking whether AI will impact our industry, we’re asking how we can embrace it thoughtfully, strengthen our business through it, and continue delivering the strategic thinking, creativity, and human insight that technology alone can’t replace.
Our retreat gave us the opportunity to explore these questions together. The conversations were energizing because they weren’t happening in isolation. They were happening as a team—bringing together different perspectives, experiences, and ideas about what the future could look like.
We don’t believe the future belongs to businesses that resist change. We believe it belongs to organizations that remain curious, adaptable, and committed to continuous learning while staying grounded in the relationships and values that matter most.
As we prepare to celebrate 10 years in business, those conversations feel more important than ever.
Why We Prioritize Time Freedom
This retreat also reinforced something we’ve believed since the beginning of LeftTurn: time is one of our most valuable resources.
Long before flexible work arrangements became common, we were building a company around the idea that success shouldn’t come at the expense of personal well-being.
One way we put that belief into practice is through Limited Operations Days.
As we approach the Canada Day holiday, our team will once again enjoy an extended period away from work. We extend the Canada Day statutory holiday with two Limited Operations Days, creating additional time for our team to spend with family, friends, and the people who matter most.
We’ll do it again in August, when our entire team takes part in a full week of Limited Operation Days around the Civic Holiday long weekend.
In fact, creating collective downtime has been part of our culture for nearly 10 years.
Rather than encouraging everyone to take fragmented breaks throughout the summer, we’ve found tremendous value in occasionally stepping away together. When the team rests together, people can truly disconnect without worrying about what’s happening back at work.
Or, in our case, back to a sea of Google Chat messages and calendar notifications.
The result is a team that returns refreshed, energized, and ready to do great work.
The Business Case for Human Connection
There’s a tendency in business to separate culture from performance.
To treat team-building as something “nice to have” rather than something essential.
We see it differently.
Investing in people isn’t separate from building a successful company.
It is building a successful company.
When people trust one another, they communicate better.
When they feel connected, they collaborate more effectively.
When they have opportunities to rest, they avoid burnout.
When they feel supported, they bring their best selves to work.
As we look ahead to our 10th anniversary next year, we’re proud of the business we’ve built. But we’re even more proud of the people who make it possible every day.
The strategy sessions were valuable.
The conversations about growth were important.
The discussions about AI and the future of our industry were necessary.
But the moments we’ll remember most are the walks, campfires, shared meals, and mahjong lessons.
Because while technology continues to transform how work gets done, it hasn’t changed what great businesses are built on:
Trust.
Relationships.
Human connection.
As AI reshapes the future of work, we’re convinced of one thing:
The organizations that thrive won’t simply be the ones that adopt new technology.
They’ll be the ones that strengthen the human connections technology can never replace.
What are you doing to invest in yours?