Reflections from a Retreat That Got It Right.

When you hear the words AI and retreat, especially a luxury retreat, you probably don’t imagine they belong in the same sentence.

Technology feels fast, transactional, even relentless. Retreats feel slow, intentional, restorative.

So when I recently attended an AI retreat at the breathtaking Villa Riad in Byron Bay hosted by the ever-inspiring Lisa Messenger and Cam Elliot, I was curious: could these worlds really fit together?

The answer was a resounding yes.

It was called an “Advanced AI Retreat,” but what it really offered was something far more grounded, far more powerful, and far more human.

📸 Michelle Crawford and Lisa Messenger: AI Can Still Be Human.

Beyond the buzzwords

We explored over 15 tools across video, photography, large language models, and automation. We played, we tested, we learned. But none of that was the real takeaway.

The real power came from the way we approached it.

It wasn’t about becoming robotic. It was about becoming more human.

That’s what set this retreat apart. It didn’t just teach us how to use AI. It invited us to ask why we’re using it.

To what end?
To scale what?
To reflect which values?

In a world that’s rushing to automate everything, this retreat gave us space to reconnect with the deeper questions.

It’s not just the tools. It’s the inputs.

AI isn’t magic. It’s mimicry. It gives us back what we feed it.

If we feed it clarity, connection, and integrity, it can amplify our work in all the right ways. But if we throw in disconnection, distraction, and speed-for-the-sake-of-speed... well, you can guess what comes out the other side.

The key to keeping AI human?

The input.

That’s where Being More Human and my work as a leadership strategist meets AI head-on. I’m not interested in using technology to remove humanity. I’m here to help people use it to expand their humanity. To run their businesses in a way that’s smarter, lighter, and more deeply aligned with who they are.

“Advanced” isn’t about being ahead, it’s about being awake.

Lisa shared something beautiful during the retreat: she probably won’t call it an “advanced” AI retreat again.

Why?

Because AI is moving so fast that “advanced” becomes outdated before the session is even over.

And yet… something was advanced about this experience:

• The quality of the conversations

• The care in the community

• The integrity behind every question

That’s the kind of advancement I want more of. The kind where we don’t just learn tools—we evolve as leaders.

This is just the beginning.

I left the retreat energised, not just by the tech, but by the people. By the possibility. By the reminder that we don’t have to choose between AI and humanity.

We just have to lead the tech, not be led by it.

At Being More Human, we’re integrating AI in a way that complements our deepest values, not competes with them. Because business doesn’t need to become more artificial. It needs to become more human than ever.

So here’s the invitation.

If you’ve been sitting on the fence with AI, this is your moment.

You don’t need to know it all.
You don’t need to do it perfectly.
You just need to start with intention.

Because when we do, AI becomes a partner, not a threat. A tool that reflects what we stand for, not one that overrides it.

AI can still be human—if we give it the right fuel.

Let’s keep building from that place.

Let’s build a profession that values both legal excellence and human leadership.
Because technical skill might get you to partner, but people leadership is what sustains the firm.

💬 What’s one leadership lesson you wish you’d learned earlier in your career?