Mark:
Not long ago, we wrote about how different Renee and I are, how we exemplify the classic book Men Are from Mars, Women Are from Venus. Our brains are wired in entirely different ways, but together we create a powerful synergy. Still, no matter how aligned we are as a couple and business partners, we’ve learned one essential truth:
It takes a village.
It takes a village to raise a family. It takes a village to run a mission-driven business. And it definitely takes a village to create the kind of transformational impact we envision.
We’ve always been committed to showing up for our community, but what continues to move us deeply is the way our community consistently shows up for us and each other.
Renee:
When Eden and Xen were born, we didn’t have much of a support system. No family nearby. No strong community yet. Mark was still in corporate sales, and I was a brand-new mom, just trying to find my footing, physically, emotionally, and in every way.
When the twins turned three, we packed up and moved to Ohio to be closer to my family. It was the right move at the time, definitely helpful in some ways, but after two brutal winters, we knew we weren’t meant to stay. So we packed up again and returned to Orlando, essentially starting over.
Only this time, we came back with intention.This time, we had a vision for the kind of life and community we wanted to build.
Mark:
I knew I wanted to be surrounded by other people who were living on purpose, committed to their growth, their mission, and making a real difference in the world. Renee and I had already begun to work together, combining my visionary energy with her organizational brilliance.
Still, there were days I questioned whether I could really do it. Was this dream of building a purpose-driven business and community even possible? I almost gave up.
But instead, I recommitted to my mission: Elevating human consciousness to Love and Above.
That commitment gave birth to our earliest community: A growing email list from our Personal Transformation Summits. New relationships with leaders, coaches, authors, and speakers. All of us bound by a shared desire to awaken, to serve, and to rise together.
Renee:
When our twins started school, I didn’t jump right into leadership. I started like many moms do. I volunteered as a kindergarten classroom helper, trying to stay involved and support where I could.
In first grade, I stepped into the role of Recording Secretary for the PTA. And then? I somehow ended up serving as PTA President for the next three years. That was not the plan; that position was only intended as a two-year term, but no one else felt ready to take it on, and I cared too much to leave things hanging.
That season taught me a lot. Not just about organizing events, managing volunteers, or keeping track of the budget (though there was plenty of that). It taught me that real leadership isn’t about doing more, it’s about knowing when to let go and prepare someone else to take the reins.
That lesson stuck with me.
And it’s one I carried into our business. Just last year, I trained three different team members to fully step into roles I’d been holding for a client. Not because I couldn’t do it, but because that’s what strong communities require: shared responsibility, trust, and growth.
Mark:
Looking back, I can see just how much each phase of our life, parenthood, partnership, business, even the hard resets, has helped shape the community we now hold space for.
Today, we are blessed to serve an extraordinary group of transformational leaders. Our MetaMind mastermind. Our Soulful Leadership Retreat family. The JV Directory community. Our clients. Our collaborators. Our co-creators.
It’s a diverse ecosystem of mission-driven humans: authors, speakers, coaches, healers, visionaries, and seekers.
And we didn’t build it overnight.
It started with a single spark: a desire for more meaning, more connection, and more joy. That desire became a vision. And that vision grew clearer as we moved toward it, one aligned step at a time.
Renee:
So what does it really take to build a community?
Shared vision. Collaboration. Commitment.
It takes people who believe in something bigger than themselves. It takes trust. It takes humility, the willingness to ask for help and offer it when you can. It takes celebration, struggle, repair, and resilience.
But most of all, it takes heart.
Mark and Renee:
If you’re dreaming of building something that lasts, whether it’s a family, a business, or a movement, just know: You don’t have to do it alone. You can’t do it alone.
Let yourself be seen. Let yourself be supported. And be that support for others.
Because at the end of the day, it’s not just what we build… It’s who we build it with.
Thank you for being part of our village.