September 16, 2025 • 37 mins
Tracey celebrates eight years of The Charging Station podcast and shares her exciting new venture: Graced and Grounded Journeys, a travel business focused on creating transformative experiences for women seeking rest and healing.
• Graced and Grounded Journeys combines Tracey's passion for travel with her expertise in grief coaching
• The business focuses on curating intimate group getaways and faith-based healing retreats
• Thailand holds special significance as the place where Tracey experienced profound peace
• The Soulful Escape to Thailand retreat (October 22-30, 2026) will include luxury accommodations in Bangkok and Phuket
• Retreat highlights include workshops, tuk-tuk food tours, visits to floating markets, and speedboat excursions
• The retreat is designed for women who need intentional rest, release from daily responsibilities, and reconnection with themselves
• Travel provides a unique opportunity to disconnect from everyday stresses and responsibilities
• True healing requires consistent work, similar to maintaining physical fitness
• Future plans include domestic retreats within the United States
For more information on Graced and Grounded Journeys or to join the waitlist for future retreats, check the link in the show notes or follow @GracedandGroundedJourneys on social media.
Join the waitlist for the Soulful Escape to Thailand Retreat October 22-30, 2026.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:27):
Welcome to the Charging Station podcast.
It's your girl, tracy Massey,of Living my Empowered Life.
Hello, hello, hello.
Welcome back to this episode,season nine.
I've been doing this for eightyears.
The charging station isofficially eight years old, so
(00:48):
how can I be on nine episodes?
Well, child, I don't know.
Excuse me, not nine, lord.
Then I hiccup in the middle ofthis.
This is just ratchet.
I didn't mean nine episodes, Imeant nine seasons, but I don't
know.
But we're here Anywho.
I meant nine seasons, but Idon't know.
But we're here Anywho.
I am so happy to have you here.
If you're new here, welcome,welcome, welcome.
(01:10):
Come on in.
Have a seat on the couchy couch.
Make sure that you arefollowing us, everybody.
Make sure you're following uson the socials.
You can find me at Instagram,facebook, youtube Threads and
TikTok, all under Living myEmpowered Life.
And if you are a returninglistener, hey, boo, you know I
(01:30):
love me some.
You welcome back Everybody.
Go ahead, grab your coffee,grab your tea, grab your water,
grab your wine, whatever yourbeverage of choice is.
Just go ahead, grab that thing.
Have a seat on the couchycouchy couch, y'all.
This might be a quick, lightepisode because I want to give
you some life updates.
I want to give you a little teaon tea part infinity.
(01:51):
I touched on a little bit inthe last episode that I did with
my sister, michelle, sisternumber two.
Make sure you go check out thatepisode.
Hopefully I can get both of mysisters on an episode.
They've already agreed to it,but we just want to make sure
that we're all able to connecton the same day.
(02:13):
It's kind of quiet, that kindof thing, because there's a lot
of planning and stuff going intopodcasting that a lot of people
don't know or understand.
So when you start talking aboutdoing remote recording, yeah,
that's a different beast.
So I just want to make surethat we got everything ready and
to go for whenever we do recordthat episode.
(02:35):
But there will be anotherbranches episode with both of my
sisters and it'll be cool toget the perspective of both of
them at the same time.
Like I already know what theirperspectives is Perspectives are
time.
Like I already know what theirperspectives is perspectives are
, yeah, I already know whattheir perspectives are, but
we're going to let you in onwhat they are.
So, anywho, a couple of lifeupdates.
(02:57):
Last time that we were on lastepisode, I briefly touched on a
new venture that I have started,and it is called Graced and
Grounded Journeys.
Graced and Grounded Journeys ismy travel business, so I'm not
doing travel in the traditionalsense, where I'm not booking
(03:20):
individual travel.
So I'm not doing personaltravel for people.
I am curating, though.
I'm curating my own retreats,I'm curating my own events, and
I'm also going to begallivanting all over the place,
and I'm excited about that.
I have been learning a ton ofthings.
Fun fact, I was in the travelindustry a few years ago.
(03:43):
So back in 2015, 2016, I gotinto the travel business and
loved the perks of it, did notnecessarily like booking
individual travel, and I'm goingto tell you why y'all.
I'm going to tell you whyPeople who don't travel don't
seem to understand the processof booking travel, don't seem to
(04:08):
understand the process ofbooking travel.
So I actually had people whowanted to get like first class
flights and five-star resorts,all-inclusive resorts for 500
bucks.
Baby, those days are long gone.
You'd be lucky to find a firstclass flight for $500.
So after going back and forthwith some of that, I was just
like yeah, you know, this is notfor me.
And I also feel like God'stiming was perfect, because if I
(04:31):
had kept going, I know it wouldhave been successful.
But also COVID happened.
So the travel industry took abig, big, big, big hit, and that
would have been me.
But I'm back at it now Again.
Like I said, I'm doing my ownteam and so far I'm loving it.
(04:53):
I've gotten certifications inThailand.
If you've listened to me for awhile or follow me on socials,
you know my love for thiscountry.
I love Thailand.
I visited once and just fell inlove.
That was the most peace I haveever felt in my entire life and
(05:14):
I was getting ready to move toThailand and then COVID happened
.
So I didn't get to do that, butit has always held a special
place in my heart since my lastvisit and I have been dreaming
of the day that I can get backthere.
So now that I'm certified, I'ma certified Thailand expert and
(05:35):
now I get to take a group of 10back with me.
So let me tell you about Graceand Grounded Journeys before I
go into this Thailand trip.
So at the time, depending onwhen you listen to this podcast
episode, we are in the planningstages right now, so I'm going
to give you a little glimpseinto what I'm doing with the
(05:55):
planning, what the trip is goingto consist of, where we're
going to go, how you canregister.
So if you're listening afterthis, after we go, I'm sorry you
missed this one.
There may be others, but makesure you're following me so
you'll know when there's anotherretreat.
I'm going to try to do one ofthese annually and my thought
(06:17):
process process is to have othertrips later, like locally, so
to speak quotation marks andwhen I say local I'm meaning
within the United States.
So international trip is thefirst one.
So let me tell you about Graceand Grounding Journeys.
Grace and Grounding Journeys isyour new favorite way to travel
with purpose, rest, withintention and heal in community.
(06:39):
So I started Grace andGrounding Journeys out of my
love for travel and my love forseeing people get breakthroughs,
and I knew, I know what traveldoes for me.
It is a great way for me tojust disconnect from the world,
silence the noise and connectwith myself, connect, reconnect
(07:00):
with God.
I get so many downloads andideas in all of these things
when I'm traveling because I'mrested.
It's a different.
I don't know about you, but forme, being away from home does
something different.
For me, I can even go to alocal hotel and have a
staycation for my self-careweekends.
(07:21):
I can have a staycation andjust be refreshed because I'm
away from my house.
Now, I'm not saying that myhouse is chaotic, but y'all know
what I mean, especially forwomen.
We always tend to findsomething that needs to be done
in the house.
So if I'm away from the house,I'm not thinking about what
needs to be done, what I didn'tget to do, the pile of clothes
that need to be folded, the pileof clothes that need to be
(07:42):
washed, the dishes that need tobe washed.
I'm not thinking about all that.
And God forbid not God forbid,but God bless you all who are
mothers and wives.
Now you got to think about thekids.
Did I pick up little Johnny andlittle Elizabeth from their
afterschool activities?
Does my husband need to eat?
I don't have thoseresponsibilities, but I still
(08:02):
have a life and all of thosethings can be heavy on you and
you don't have a moment to justsit, be still and think.
Sit, be still and just be.
And so traveling for me doesthat.
It gives me the opportunity tojust be.
Now, I do take trips, sometimesthat are for adventure, and I do
(08:24):
take trips sometimes that arejust for planning purpose
refreshing.
So Grace and Grounded Journeyswas born out of that, and I'm a
firm believer that you don'thave to pause your healing to
travel.
Matter of fact, I have at-shirt that says grief has no
time limit, but my travelrewards do.
I'm going to use the travelrewards up, okay.
(08:47):
I have another t-shirt thatsays my healing has a passport.
I'm going to use this passportand I'm going to get my healing
as I am traveling.
So that's kind of where Graceand Grounded Journeys came from.
So the heart behind it is Icreated Grace and Grounded
Journeys for women like us whoare navigating grief, who are
(09:10):
navigating growth, or they justwant space to breathe and be
like I said before.
And what we're going to do?
I'm creating intimate groupgetaways.
I'm doing faith-based healingretreats.
It's not going to be what y'allmay think is spooky stuff no,
but I'm creating a space whereit's sacred for you to reclaim
(09:31):
your rest.
I'm excited.
I can't even talk, but I'mcreating a safe space for you to
gain and build community, foryou to rest and reclaim your joy
.
So that's what Grace andGrounded Journeys.
My hope is for Grace andGrounded Journeys to do so.
(09:52):
G&g for short, g&g is for thewoman who needs a break without
guilt.
You know, we deal with the momguilt, we deal with the wife
guilt, we deal with the guilt ofjust breaking away from
everything.
We're creating a space for younot to feel guilty about you
getting away and traveling.
This GNG is for the woman whois ready to rest, release and
(10:19):
reconnect.
You need to release all ofthose things that have been
holding you down all of thistime.
Reconnect with self, becauseone thing about us as women we
put everything and everyoneahead of ourselves, and then we
wonder why we're burned out.
We're wondering why we'resnippy, wondering why we're
(10:42):
snippy.
And baby, when you add inperimenopause and menopause, the
emotions, the hormones andeverything is going to go flying
every which way, it's going toturn you every which way but
loose.
So you need a space where youcan just exhale and not have to
worry about anybody calling yourname and asking you for
anything.
(11:04):
Gng is for the woman who cravescommunity and a place that holds
space, a community that willhold space for you and not
pressure.
The community that I have beenbuilding over these years is
small but mighty, and I see allof these women in my DMs.
(11:24):
I see all of these women whenwe are out and about doing
things.
You all have so much in common.
This is my way.
Grace and Grounded Journeys ismy way to bring this community
together face-to-face.
Get it offline and everybody beface-to-face, and then you have
that good girlfriend that youcan call up when you need
(11:45):
something.
Got your prayer partner, yougot your workout partner.
We're really creating acommunity of support.
Accountability, whatever.
The mission of Grace andGrounded Journeys is a
faith-based travel experiencebrand created and curated for
women seeking intentional rest,healing and transformation.
(12:07):
One thing about Grace andGrounded Journeys is I'm
incorporating coaching intothese retreats, so I will be
teaching my proven methods.
I will be teaching workshopswhile we're on these retreats.
Now, don't get me wrong.
We're not going to be sittingin a conference room all the
ding-ding time.
I'm going to go over the agendafor the Soulful Escape to
(12:30):
Thailand, which is happeningOctober 22nd through 30th 2026.
I'm going to go over thatitinerary for you.
This has been released to thepublic, but here's how you get
on the list.
First, let me just back up.
I feel like I'm all over theplace, but I'm trying to.
I'm not, I don't have any notes, I'm just winging it today.
So y'all just go with me.
All right, just flow with me.
(12:56):
So October 22nd through the 30th, 2026 is the Soulful Escape to
Thailand.
During that time, I haveintentionally built this
itinerary, first of all for itto be an all-inclusive package.
We're taking care of everything.
You basically just show up andin this itinerary I have space
for rest, I have space for me toteach and we have space for
(13:24):
people to explore, because thereis no way we're going to fly
halfway around the world and notexperience the beauty of
Bangkok and the beauty of Phuket.
So we're going to Bangkok andPhuket.
We're spending four days inBangkok and spending four days
in Phuket, and in that time Iwill be teaching my workshop,
one of my workshops.
Now let me tell you somethingthis workshop that they're
getting basically for free thewomen who are blessed enough to
(13:50):
get a hold of me for eight wholedays and have me teaching them
and they get one-on-one.
First of all, my one-on-one isnot available anymore.
I don't do one-on-one coachinganymore, at least not right now,
at least until the Lord sayotherwise.
But you're getting meone-on-one coaching and you're
(14:10):
also getting a workshop.
Those two things alone youcan't get for a few hundred
dollars.
You cannot get them for a fewhundred dollars.
The workshop itself let me backup my one-on-one coaching
itself you have to commit to sixmonths.
Six months worth of coaching.
(14:31):
At the time when I used to doit on the retainer, six-month
retainer was $5,000.
But these ladies are gettingfive-star luxury flights,
coaching, all of these things.
(14:52):
So that alone is a deal withinitself.
But we're going to go back intothis itinerary in just a little
bit.
But let me continue to tell youabout Grace to Grounded Journeys
.
So if you are wanting a placeto get intentional rest, healing
and transformation, look outfor the next retreat, depending
(15:12):
on when you're listening to thispodcast.
So, because I love to travel somuch, I was like you know what
T?
It might be time for you to getback into the travel space.
Because one thing about being atravel consultant, travel agent
, whatever you want to call it,I call myself a travel
consultant because I consultwith you about what you want to
(15:34):
do.
Well, when I did it for people,individual people the one thing
about being a travel agent weget some good perks, y'all.
You get perks with hotels, youget perks with cruises.
You get perks with the.
You get perks with cruises.
You get perks with the well,maybe not the railway, you used
to get perks with the railways.
You get perks for river cruises.
(15:56):
You get perks for these thingscalled fam trips familiarization
trips where you actually go toa resort and you pretty much
stay there for pennies on thedollar.
But with fam trips you'reworking because you have to tour
(16:19):
wherever you are.
So say, you go to a resort inJamaica I'm just going to use
Jamaica because that's anotherone of my favorite places.
You go to a resort in JamaicaI'm not going to name a resort
because you know we're notgiving away free ad space but
you're on this resort, you flyin, you meet with, say, the head
of sales or marketing orwhomever they have you touring
(16:41):
with.
You have to experienceeverything about that resort
from top to bottom all of theservice, all of the food, all of
the amenities.
And you are actually workingthe time that you're there.
And what you do is you write areview or you do things like
(17:01):
what I'm doing right now you putit on your podcast and you
advertise what that resortoffers and you provide that
resort to your clients to sell.
So fam trips can be fun, butthey are a lot of work.
You get things like inspectionson cruise ships.
(17:23):
You can go on a particularcruise and do an inspection
where you are going from the topto the bottom of the ship and,
again, experiencing everythingthat the cruise ship has to
offer, from the entertainment tothe food to the cabins.
All of those things, theactivities you experience, all
(17:45):
of those things.
You may not be cruising withthem, but you're inspecting the
ship and so you can go back andprovide.
You can be knowledgeable aboutthe product that you're selling
to your clients.
So a lot of perks.
The only perks we don't get iswith the airlines, because y'all
know the airlines chair.
They used to give travel agentstravel consultings good rates,
(18:08):
but not anymore.
Gone are those days.
But you can get a lot of perkswith being a travel consultant
and you can do like I'm doingCreate your own groups, create
your own trips, things like that.
You can go on the trips withyour group.
So, like the group that we havegoing to Thailand, the group
(18:28):
doesn't happen if I don't go.
So I have to go and at the sametime I'm working because I'm
providing a service for thepeople that are coming, but I'm
also looking at the hotels thatwe're staying in.
I'm looking at the actualattractions, the tours that
we're going to take.
So I'm taking in all of thatinformation so I can present
(18:50):
that to people who may beinterested in traveling to
Thailand.
So I love traveling and for me,2025 has been the busiest
travel year.
Actually, 2025 feels like Tracyof old, where I used to stay
gone.
It was nothing for me to get inthe car and be in the mountains
(19:13):
for a weekend, or I would godown to Atlanta for the weekend.
I was going somewhere, I was ona flight.
It was nothing for me to dothat, and I'm loving the fact
that 2025 has rebirthed thatwithin me and 2026 is about to
take it up a whole nother level,because when I tell you I'm
going to be outside, I'm goingto be outside.
(19:35):
The only thing that's holdingme back is this PTO.
So I got to figure out my paidtime off, because I do have a
nine to five y'all.
I got to think about the nineto five.
The nine to five put the foodon the table.
It pays the bills.
It allows me to keep doing thispodcasting thing.
So I got to figure out the PTO,but I will be outside, okay.
(19:55):
But I realized in 2025, you know, I spent a lot of money on
hotel rooms and rental cars andthings like that and I was like
girl, if I had my travel agentcertification back, I can do
this for a fraction of the costand also still get points in my
(20:21):
travel rewards.
So I was like, huh, let me dosome research.
And so I was able to find ahost agency.
And there may be people onlinewho say you don't need a host
agency.
That may be true For me.
I needed a host agency becauseI knew what I wanted to do.
I wanted to have mentors, Iwanted to have access to
(20:43):
education, things like that.
So I found a host agency.
That has been fabulous.
Fabulous, the education thatthey give us.
We have contacts in differentarenas of the industry.
It's just been.
I don't have anything negativeto say about them.
So I've been doing a lot oflearning.
(21:06):
It has been fun and 2025 hasbeen my.
I thought 2025 was going to bemy travel year.
No, I think 2026 and beyond isabout to be my travel year.
But I'm happy that I'm able topair two of my loves into one
thing, because it was driving menuts trying to figure out how
can I put all of my loves intoone thing.
(21:26):
Because it was driving me nutstrying to figure out how can I
put all of my passions into onepackage and then not look crazy,
because you listen to theinternet gurus and things like
that, the coaches and everything, and some of them do have great
skill and knowledge about a lotof things.
But at the end of the day, Ihad to choose what was right for
(21:49):
me and now that I've done that,I feel free.
I don't feel bound into thislittle box of being the grief
coach, because I'm going to behonest with y'all Coaching
people through grief is hardbecause you run into two things.
You run into people who want aquick fix and get upset when
it's not fixed quickly, or youhave people who don't do the
(22:13):
work, and that's two of mybiggest pet peeves, even though
you see me thriving throughgrief y'all.
I've been doing this for years,decades, decades 20 years since
my daughter passed away.
We can go 30 years since mymother passed away.
(22:33):
So I've been doing this for along time and also I continue to
do the work.
It's not like I wake up one dayand like, oh yeah, my grief is
gone.
No, let April 16th roll around,I'm gonna be in the whole wave
of it, but now I have the toolsto adjust and maneuver and
(22:54):
thrive through it.
So when people see the finishedproduct, they don't understand
the work it took to get there.
It's like working out In orderto get to and keep the physique
that you want.
You got to work out every day.
You have to move your body somekind of way every day, and
(23:16):
grief is the same way.
In order for you to combatgrief and kick it in as high
parts, as I say, you have to dosome kind of work every single
day.
So now that I'm able to stepoutside of just grief coaching
which is important, don't get mewrong, I still do it, but I do
(23:38):
it in a way that I want to do it.
I do it in a way that fuels meinstead of drains me.
Ha, there we go.
I grief coach in a way thatfuels me instead of draining me,
and so now I get to pair mylove for travel with helping
people get the breakthrough thatthey deserve, that they desire
(24:00):
and that they deserve.
So a couple of things that I'mworking on with Graced and
Grounded Journeys, of course,the Soulful Escape to Thailand
2026.
That's my big priority rightnow.
But I'm also working on a blog.
I got this really cute, nicelittle fancy camera that takes
(24:22):
really great video and reallygreat pictures.
That takes really great videoand really great pictures.
And so, with my travels, I'mgoing to be doing blogs about my
travels and I'm going to comefrom a perspective of this is
what I do, how I combat my griefwhile I'm traveling or showing
you different cultures, thingslike that.
(24:43):
So anything that y'all know.
If you've been following me fora minute, you know that I share
a lot of things, so I'm goingto be sharing with you my actual
journey in this next phase ofmy life.
I'm also going to be creatinggroup retreats.
I think our first well, ourfirst retreat, I know, is going
to be international, but I'malso wanting to do some local
(25:07):
retreats, and when I say local,again, that's within the United
States.
I'm probably going to start inmy native North Carolina, south
Carolina, georgia areas, becauseI do realize that some people
are not going to get on a planebut they want to break through
(25:33):
through.
So I'm trying to think of waysto make it easier for people to
get to wherever we are.
So I'm excited about it, I amlooking forward to it, I'm
looking forward to getting backto Thailand to experience that
peace that I felt, and also I'mhoping and praying that the
women that come along on thistrip get the breakthrough that
they're looking for.
I'm hoping that they gettransformed, find peace, joy,
(25:54):
all of that good stuff, becausethat is my goal, that is my
intention, and I'm just really,really, really, really excited.
So if you have any questionsabout Grace and Grounded
Journeys, I put the link in theshow notes to sign up for the
email list.
I'm going to be honest by thetime you guys hear this podcast,
(26:18):
it just may be sold out.
So don't get mad, please don'tget mad at me, don't get mad,
don't, please don't get mad atme.
But I will.
Will you signing up?
We'll put you on my email listfor Grace and Grounded Journey
so you will get informationfirst Anytime you're on my email
list.
You get the info first before Irelease it out to the public,
(26:40):
because I understand our emailsare like gold right now.
So I treat my email list likey'all, y'all the VIP, you the
vips, you the very importantpeople, so you always get the
information first.
Those who are on my email listright now with Grace, the
Grounded Journeys they got theitinerary first.
Oh, let me tell you about thisitinerary.
(27:02):
Girl, hold on, hold on, hold on, because I want to get it right
, I want to get it right, I wantto get it right.
So, first, we are going to flyout from the US of A and we're
flying into Bangkok.
So, like I said, we'll be therefor four days in Bangkok.
(27:22):
While there, of course, we'regoing to be doing some touring.
And hold on, just a second, I'mtrying to pull up the itinerary
.
Itinerary is such a funny word,especially when you Southern.
Y'all hear how my Southern cameout when I said itinerary.
Okay, here we go.
So this itinerary, y'all.
(27:45):
I put my heart and soul intothis and I hope that it shows.
I hope that it shows.
So we're going to fly from theUS to Bangkok.
Of course, when we land inBangkok, we'll be greeted by our
guide.
So we have an English-speakingguide who, of course, is a Thai
native, and we will be escortedin our private transport from
(28:10):
the airport to our hotel.
I'm not going to tell you wherethe hotel is.
Okay, you got to get on thewait list for that.
You got to get that info.
So once we get to the hotel, wewill have time, you know, to
get settled, get dressed for theevening, because there I will
be hosting a welcome dinnerwelcoming everyone to Thailand
(28:31):
and kind of going over theitinerary, what to expect on the
trip, things like that.
Just reiterating, because I'mplanning on doing a virtual
meetup for everyone who's goingto go on the trip, because I
want people to feel comfortablewhen they book this.
So we'll have a welcome dinner.
(28:54):
I will say our hotel is fivestar.
It's in the heart of downtownBangkok.
We got a view of the river, themain river that runs through
the city, and our restaurant,where we're having our welcome
dinner, is on the rooftop.
So it's going to be real cuteand sexy.
It's going to be a vibe.
It's going to be such a good,good, good vibe.
(29:16):
So throughout the tours,throughout our stay there, we
will have an English speakinglocal guide and all of our
interest fees will be includedin this tour.
So on our first day in Bangkokwell, actually, let me back up
(29:37):
after I welcome dinner, we willhave the opportunity to do a
tour.
Nope, nope, I changed that,nevermind, nevermind, nevermind,
I changed that, nevermind.
So after our welcome dinner,you know you go back to your
room if you want to.
(29:58):
You're probably gonna be jetlagged.
So you just get some rest orwhatever, or you can explore the
city a little bit.
But on the second day we getbreakfast at our hotel.
So we get all breakfast mealsand then we will move into the
workshop.
So I'm doing a two-hourworkshop and this first day is
(30:22):
just laying the foundation forwhat we're going to work on
workshop, and this first day isjust laying the foundation for
what we're going to work on.
And then that evening is whenwe're going to do a tour of the
city.
So we're actually going to do afood tour of Bangkok, where
we'll be chauffeured around inthe traditional tuk-tuk.
So I'm excited about that.
If you've never been in atuk-tuk, it's an adventure.
Tuk-tuk, tuk-tuk everywhere.
(30:43):
Okay, it's an adventure.
So it's an adventure.
We're going to do a food tourinto Bangkok and visit one of
the night markets, things likethat.
Day three, we're going to go tothe railway market.
This is the place.
I don't know if you've seen itonline?
If you haven't, you can look itup.
This is the place where thetrain actually goes through the
(31:07):
market, where you're going to beshopping, y'all.
I'm telling you, thailand hassome primo shopping.
So the train goes through theactual marketplace and the
vendors at the marketplace pullall of their products out of the
way so the train can comethrough.
It's pretty amazing to see.
(31:27):
So we'll be doing that thatmorning and then, once we do the
market, we'll go to thefloating market.
So I don't know if you've seenthis online, but the floating
market is where you actually areon a boat and you're shopping
on the river and you're visitingvendors and things like that.
So that's going to be prettycool.
(31:47):
So after that, we go back tothe hotel and then you have time
to yourself for that evening.
The next day we're doing parttwo of the workshop, and this is
the final day of the workshopand this is where they can.
This is where implementation isgoing to happen.
Implementation is going tohappen, and so day two is where
(32:11):
they're going to take what theydid on day one and then use day
two to actually make a plan, andthen the rest of the trip you
have time for the reflection ofthat.
So I told you it's going to bereal quick and I'm just going to
give y'all a little taste.
That's just what we're going todo in Bangkok.
But then I'm not going to tellyou everything we're going to do
in Phuket.
But I will say this, I will saythis when we fly from Bangkok
to Phuket, we're going to belanding at another five-star
(32:32):
resort.
It's absolutely stunning wherewe're going to be.
But I will say one of the tourswe have, we're going to be on a
speedboat, a private speedboat.
I'm excited about that and Ialso have something special
(32:55):
planned at the end of theretreat just to culminate and
close out everything that we'vedone, transformations we've had
and it's just a good way torelease whatever we brought with
us, whatever came up during theworkshop.
So I'm super duper excited.
When I tell you I put my heartinto this retreat, I must say,
(33:16):
if I do say so myself, I'm proudof myself.
I'm proud of myself for this.
Baby, if you can't sellyourself that you're proud of
yourself, I don't know whatyou're doing.
You're doing life wrong, baby,if you can't tell yourself that
you're proud of yourself, Idon't know what you're doing.
You're doing life wrong.
But yeah, I am looking forwardto having this experience with
10 beautiful women.
I don't know who they are atthe moment, but I'm pretty sure
I will by the time y'all getthis podcast episode.
(33:37):
I'm just saying, I'm justsaying, but again, I'm putting
the link in the show notes aboutthe retreat you can check out
Grace and Grounded Journeys.
Grace and Grounded Journeysdoes have its own Facebook and
Instagram page.
It's Grace and GroundedJourneys on both, or you can
just follow me on Live In myEmpowered Life, because I do
cross post on both.
(34:00):
But I just wanted to share thatupdate because some of y'all got
on me because I didn't go intodetail.
I didn't go into detail on thelast episode, but it wasn't that
wasn't the time it was.
Last episode was the focus onmy sister, so I just wanted to
share Grace and GroundedJourneys with you.
I will be sharing more likeeven on socials.
(34:20):
My plan is to show a few of thebehind the scenes things Y'all
going to get whatever face Igive you, because who putting on
makeup every day?
Okay, who's doing that?
Not me, not me.
Unless I'm going into theoffice, you're not going to get
a face full of makeup every day.
Matter of fact, if you couldsee me right now, my lashes are
a little lacking because in acouple of weeks I'm going to be
(34:44):
in a wedding and I'm just tryingto keep all of my beauty
services held off until it'stime closer to the wedding,
because I don't want to belooking crazy at my friend's
wedding.
Right, I'm a bridesmaid, I gotto be cute, but anyway, y'all, I
just wanted to touch base rightquick.
Let you in on what's happeningon this end and thank you again
(35:07):
for coming along with me on thisjourney.
I hope this encourages you topivot.
I know pivot is the popularword now, but yeah, pivot and
step out on faith.
Like, do what if you had, ifyou can remember that one thing
(35:28):
that you wanted to do and didn'tdo it because of whatever
circumstance?
If you could do that thingright now, even if it's just a
taste of it, do it, do it.
Life is too short to not trynew things, do it.
And if you want information onhow to become a travel
consultant, hit me up.
(35:49):
I will give you the name of thehost agency that I'm with.
Again, I say that it's amazing.
There is a monthly fee, or youcan pay it quarterly, but it's
worth it.
It's worth it.
And the commission ain't badeither, y'all, I'm telling you,
the commission is not bad.
The training is awesome and youget to see the inside scoop in
(36:13):
this travel industry.
But yeah, anyway, I'm not goingto hold you up.
This has been long enough as itis.
I feel like I've rambledthrough the whole thing.
But if you have questions, youknow how to hit me up.
Hit me up, y'all.
I hope that this has inspiredyou in some kind of way.
Per usual, I hope it hasinspired you and I hope that
you'll come back next week forthe next episode.
(36:34):
And if you think of somethingthat you want us to talk about,
let me know.
Oh, oh, oh.
And before I go, before I letyou go, this is the last thing
for real.
For real, if you are a womanand you have a business, hit me
up.
I am going to start listingadvertisers for the Charging
Station podcast and I want tosupport women.
(36:56):
I want to support blackwomen-owned businesses, and it
won't be an astronomical fee,because I want to support your
business.
So hit me up, let me know ifyou're interested and we can get
something on the books for you,but in the meantime, please
know that I love you.
God loves you.
(37:16):
It ain't nothing you can doabout it.
Boo, until next time.
Bye.
Welcome to the Charging Station podcast.
It's your girl, tracy Massey,of Living my Empowered Life.
Hello, hello, hello.
Welcome back to this episode,season nine.
I've been doing this for eightyears.
The charging station isofficially eight years old, so
(00:48):
how can I be on nine episodes?
Well, child, I don't know.
Excuse me, not nine, lord.
Then I hiccup in the middle ofthis.
This is just ratchet.
I didn't mean nine episodes, Imeant nine seasons, but I don't
know.
But we're here Anywho.
I meant nine seasons, but Idon't know.
But we're here Anywho.
I am so happy to have you here.
If you're new here, welcome,welcome, welcome.
(01:10):
Come on in.
Have a seat on the couchy couch.
Make sure that you arefollowing us, everybody.
Make sure you're following uson the socials.
You can find me at Instagram,facebook, youtube Threads and
TikTok, all under Living myEmpowered Life.
And if you are a returninglistener, hey, boo, you know I
(01:30):
love me some.
You welcome back Everybody.
Go ahead, grab your coffee,grab your tea, grab your water,
grab your wine, whatever yourbeverage of choice is.
Just go ahead, grab that thing.
Have a seat on the couchycouchy couch, y'all.
This might be a quick, lightepisode because I want to give
you some life updates.
I want to give you a little teaon tea part infinity.
(01:51):
I touched on a little bit inthe last episode that I did with
my sister, michelle, sisternumber two.
Make sure you go check out thatepisode.
Hopefully I can get both of mysisters on an episode.
They've already agreed to it,but we just want to make sure
that we're all able to connecton the same day.
(02:13):
It's kind of quiet, that kindof thing, because there's a lot
of planning and stuff going intopodcasting that a lot of people
don't know or understand.
So when you start talking aboutdoing remote recording, yeah,
that's a different beast.
So I just want to make surethat we got everything ready and
to go for whenever we do recordthat episode.
(02:35):
But there will be anotherbranches episode with both of my
sisters and it'll be cool toget the perspective of both of
them at the same time.
Like I already know what theirperspectives is Perspectives are
time.
Like I already know what theirperspectives is perspectives are
, yeah, I already know whattheir perspectives are, but
we're going to let you in onwhat they are.
So, anywho, a couple of lifeupdates.
(02:57):
Last time that we were on lastepisode, I briefly touched on a
new venture that I have started,and it is called Graced and
Grounded Journeys.
Graced and Grounded Journeys ismy travel business, so I'm not
doing travel in the traditionalsense, where I'm not booking
(03:20):
individual travel.
So I'm not doing personaltravel for people.
I am curating, though.
I'm curating my own retreats,I'm curating my own events, and
I'm also going to begallivanting all over the place,
and I'm excited about that.
I have been learning a ton ofthings.
Fun fact, I was in the travelindustry a few years ago.
(03:43):
So back in 2015, 2016, I gotinto the travel business and
loved the perks of it, did notnecessarily like booking
individual travel, and I'm goingto tell you why y'all.
I'm going to tell you whyPeople who don't travel don't
seem to understand the processof booking travel, don't seem to
(04:08):
understand the process ofbooking travel.
So I actually had people whowanted to get like first class
flights and five-star resorts,all-inclusive resorts for 500
bucks.
Baby, those days are long gone.
You'd be lucky to find a firstclass flight for $500.
So after going back and forthwith some of that, I was just
like yeah, you know, this is notfor me.
And I also feel like God'stiming was perfect, because if I
(04:31):
had kept going, I know it wouldhave been successful.
But also COVID happened.
So the travel industry took abig, big, big, big hit, and that
would have been me.
But I'm back at it now Again.
Like I said, I'm doing my ownteam and so far I'm loving it.
(04:53):
I've gotten certifications inThailand.
If you've listened to me for awhile or follow me on socials,
you know my love for thiscountry.
I love Thailand.
I visited once and just fell inlove.
That was the most peace I haveever felt in my entire life and
(05:14):
I was getting ready to move toThailand and then COVID happened
.
So I didn't get to do that, butit has always held a special
place in my heart since my lastvisit and I have been dreaming
of the day that I can get backthere.
So now that I'm certified, I'ma certified Thailand expert and
(05:35):
now I get to take a group of 10back with me.
So let me tell you about Graceand Grounded Journeys before I
go into this Thailand trip.
So at the time, depending onwhen you listen to this podcast
episode, we are in the planningstages right now, so I'm going
to give you a little glimpseinto what I'm doing with the
(05:55):
planning, what the trip is goingto consist of, where we're
going to go, how you canregister.
So if you're listening afterthis, after we go, I'm sorry you
missed this one.
There may be others, but makesure you're following me so
you'll know when there's anotherretreat.
I'm going to try to do one ofthese annually and my thought
(06:17):
process process is to have othertrips later, like locally, so
to speak quotation marks andwhen I say local I'm meaning
within the United States.
So international trip is thefirst one.
So let me tell you about Graceand Grounding Journeys.
Grace and Grounding Journeys isyour new favorite way to travel
with purpose, rest, withintention and heal in community.
(06:39):
So I started Grace andGrounding Journeys out of my
love for travel and my love forseeing people get breakthroughs,
and I knew, I know what traveldoes for me.
It is a great way for me tojust disconnect from the world,
silence the noise and connectwith myself, connect, reconnect
(07:00):
with God.
I get so many downloads andideas in all of these things
when I'm traveling because I'mrested.
It's a different.
I don't know about you, but forme, being away from home does
something different.
For me, I can even go to alocal hotel and have a
staycation for my self-careweekends.
(07:21):
I can have a staycation andjust be refreshed because I'm
away from my house.
Now, I'm not saying that myhouse is chaotic, but y'all know
what I mean, especially forwomen.
We always tend to findsomething that needs to be done
in the house.
So if I'm away from the house,I'm not thinking about what
needs to be done, what I didn'tget to do, the pile of clothes
that need to be folded, the pileof clothes that need to be
(07:42):
washed, the dishes that need tobe washed.
I'm not thinking about all that.
And God forbid not God forbid,but God bless you all who are
mothers and wives.
Now you got to think about thekids.
Did I pick up little Johnny andlittle Elizabeth from their
afterschool activities?
Does my husband need to eat?
I don't have thoseresponsibilities, but I still
(08:02):
have a life and all of thosethings can be heavy on you and
you don't have a moment to justsit, be still and think.
Sit, be still and just be.
And so traveling for me doesthat.
It gives me the opportunity tojust be.
Now, I do take trips, sometimesthat are for adventure, and I do
(08:24):
take trips sometimes that arejust for planning purpose
refreshing.
So Grace and Grounded Journeyswas born out of that, and I'm a
firm believer that you don'thave to pause your healing to
travel.
Matter of fact, I have at-shirt that says grief has no
time limit, but my travelrewards do.
I'm going to use the travelrewards up, okay.
(08:47):
I have another t-shirt thatsays my healing has a passport.
I'm going to use this passportand I'm going to get my healing
as I am traveling.
So that's kind of where Graceand Grounded Journeys came from.
So the heart behind it is Icreated Grace and Grounded
Journeys for women like us whoare navigating grief, who are
(09:10):
navigating growth, or they justwant space to breathe and be
like I said before.
And what we're going to do?
I'm creating intimate groupgetaways.
I'm doing faith-based healingretreats.
It's not going to be what y'allmay think is spooky stuff no,
but I'm creating a space whereit's sacred for you to reclaim
(09:31):
your rest.
I'm excited.
I can't even talk, but I'mcreating a safe space for you to
gain and build community, foryou to rest and reclaim your joy
.
So that's what Grace andGrounded Journeys.
My hope is for Grace andGrounded Journeys to do so.
(09:52):
G&g for short, g&g is for thewoman who needs a break without
guilt.
You know, we deal with the momguilt, we deal with the wife
guilt, we deal with the guilt ofjust breaking away from
everything.
We're creating a space for younot to feel guilty about you
getting away and traveling.
This GNG is for the woman whois ready to rest, release and
(10:19):
reconnect.
You need to release all ofthose things that have been
holding you down all of thistime.
Reconnect with self, becauseone thing about us as women we
put everything and everyoneahead of ourselves, and then we
wonder why we're burned out.
We're wondering why we'resnippy, wondering why we're
(10:42):
snippy.
And baby, when you add inperimenopause and menopause, the
emotions, the hormones andeverything is going to go flying
every which way, it's going toturn you every which way but
loose.
So you need a space where youcan just exhale and not have to
worry about anybody calling yourname and asking you for
anything.
(11:04):
Gng is for the woman who cravescommunity and a place that holds
space, a community that willhold space for you and not
pressure.
The community that I have beenbuilding over these years is
small but mighty, and I see allof these women in my DMs.
(11:24):
I see all of these women whenwe are out and about doing
things.
You all have so much in common.
This is my way.
Grace and Grounded Journeys ismy way to bring this community
together face-to-face.
Get it offline and everybody beface-to-face, and then you have
that good girlfriend that youcan call up when you need
(11:45):
something.
Got your prayer partner, yougot your workout partner.
We're really creating acommunity of support.
Accountability, whatever.
The mission of Grace andGrounded Journeys is a
faith-based travel experiencebrand created and curated for
women seeking intentional rest,healing and transformation.
(12:07):
One thing about Grace andGrounded Journeys is I'm
incorporating coaching intothese retreats, so I will be
teaching my proven methods.
I will be teaching workshopswhile we're on these retreats.
Now, don't get me wrong.
We're not going to be sittingin a conference room all the
ding-ding time.
I'm going to go over the agendafor the Soulful Escape to
(12:30):
Thailand, which is happeningOctober 22nd through 30th 2026.
I'm going to go over thatitinerary for you.
This has been released to thepublic, but here's how you get
on the list.
First, let me just back up.
I feel like I'm all over theplace, but I'm trying to.
I'm not, I don't have any notes, I'm just winging it today.
So y'all just go with me.
All right, just flow with me.
(12:56):
So October 22nd through the 30th, 2026 is the Soulful Escape to
Thailand.
During that time, I haveintentionally built this
itinerary, first of all for itto be an all-inclusive package.
We're taking care of everything.
You basically just show up andin this itinerary I have space
for rest, I have space for me toteach and we have space for
(13:24):
people to explore, because thereis no way we're going to fly
halfway around the world and notexperience the beauty of
Bangkok and the beauty of Phuket.
So we're going to Bangkok andPhuket.
We're spending four days inBangkok and spending four days
in Phuket, and in that time Iwill be teaching my workshop,
one of my workshops.
Now let me tell you somethingthis workshop that they're
getting basically for free thewomen who are blessed enough to
(13:50):
get a hold of me for eight wholedays and have me teaching them
and they get one-on-one.
First of all, my one-on-one isnot available anymore.
I don't do one-on-one coachinganymore, at least not right now,
at least until the Lord sayotherwise.
But you're getting meone-on-one coaching and you're
(14:10):
also getting a workshop.
Those two things alone youcan't get for a few hundred
dollars.
You cannot get them for a fewhundred dollars.
The workshop itself let me backup my one-on-one coaching
itself you have to commit to sixmonths.
Six months worth of coaching.
(14:31):
At the time when I used to doit on the retainer, six-month
retainer was $5,000.
But these ladies are gettingfive-star luxury flights,
coaching, all of these things.
(14:52):
So that alone is a deal withinitself.
But we're going to go back intothis itinerary in just a little
bit.
But let me continue to tell youabout Grace to Grounded Journeys
.
So if you are wanting a placeto get intentional rest, healing
and transformation, look outfor the next retreat, depending
(15:12):
on when you're listening to thispodcast.
So, because I love to travel somuch, I was like you know what
T?
It might be time for you to getback into the travel space.
Because one thing about being atravel consultant, travel agent
, whatever you want to call it,I call myself a travel
consultant because I consultwith you about what you want to
(15:34):
do.
Well, when I did it for people,individual people the one thing
about being a travel agent weget some good perks, y'all.
You get perks with hotels, youget perks with cruises.
You get perks with the.
You get perks with cruises.
You get perks with the well,maybe not the railway, you used
to get perks with the railways.
You get perks for river cruises.
(15:56):
You get perks for these thingscalled fam trips familiarization
trips where you actually go toa resort and you pretty much
stay there for pennies on thedollar.
But with fam trips you'reworking because you have to tour
(16:19):
wherever you are.
So say, you go to a resort inJamaica I'm just going to use
Jamaica because that's anotherone of my favorite places.
You go to a resort in JamaicaI'm not going to name a resort
because you know we're notgiving away free ad space but
you're on this resort, you flyin, you meet with, say, the head
of sales or marketing orwhomever they have you touring
(16:41):
with.
You have to experienceeverything about that resort
from top to bottom all of theservice, all of the food, all of
the amenities.
And you are actually workingthe time that you're there.
And what you do is you write areview or you do things like
(17:01):
what I'm doing right now you putit on your podcast and you
advertise what that resortoffers and you provide that
resort to your clients to sell.
So fam trips can be fun, butthey are a lot of work.
You get things like inspectionson cruise ships.
(17:23):
You can go on a particularcruise and do an inspection
where you are going from the topto the bottom of the ship and,
again, experiencing everythingthat the cruise ship has to
offer, from the entertainment tothe food to the cabins.
All of those things, theactivities you experience, all
(17:45):
of those things.
You may not be cruising withthem, but you're inspecting the
ship and so you can go back andprovide.
You can be knowledgeable aboutthe product that you're selling
to your clients.
So a lot of perks.
The only perks we don't get iswith the airlines, because y'all
know the airlines chair.
They used to give travel agentstravel consultings good rates,
(18:08):
but not anymore.
Gone are those days.
But you can get a lot of perkswith being a travel consultant
and you can do like I'm doingCreate your own groups, create
your own trips, things like that.
You can go on the trips withyour group.
So, like the group that we havegoing to Thailand, the group
(18:28):
doesn't happen if I don't go.
So I have to go and at the sametime I'm working because I'm
providing a service for thepeople that are coming, but I'm
also looking at the hotels thatwe're staying in.
I'm looking at the actualattractions, the tours that
we're going to take.
So I'm taking in all of thatinformation so I can present
(18:50):
that to people who may beinterested in traveling to
Thailand.
So I love traveling and for me,2025 has been the busiest
travel year.
Actually, 2025 feels like Tracyof old, where I used to stay
gone.
It was nothing for me to get inthe car and be in the mountains
(19:13):
for a weekend, or I would godown to Atlanta for the weekend.
I was going somewhere, I was ona flight.
It was nothing for me to dothat, and I'm loving the fact
that 2025 has rebirthed thatwithin me and 2026 is about to
take it up a whole nother level,because when I tell you I'm
going to be outside, I'm goingto be outside.
(19:35):
The only thing that's holdingme back is this PTO.
So I got to figure out my paidtime off, because I do have a
nine to five y'all.
I got to think about the nineto five.
The nine to five put the foodon the table.
It pays the bills.
It allows me to keep doing thispodcasting thing.
So I got to figure out the PTO,but I will be outside, okay.
(19:55):
But I realized in 2025, you know, I spent a lot of money on
hotel rooms and rental cars andthings like that and I was like
girl, if I had my travel agentcertification back, I can do
this for a fraction of the costand also still get points in my
(20:21):
travel rewards.
So I was like, huh, let me dosome research.
And so I was able to find ahost agency.
And there may be people onlinewho say you don't need a host
agency.
That may be true For me.
I needed a host agency becauseI knew what I wanted to do.
I wanted to have mentors, Iwanted to have access to
(20:43):
education, things like that.
So I found a host agency.
That has been fabulous.
Fabulous, the education thatthey give us.
We have contacts in differentarenas of the industry.
It's just been.
I don't have anything negativeto say about them.
So I've been doing a lot oflearning.
(21:06):
It has been fun and 2025 hasbeen my.
I thought 2025 was going to bemy travel year.
No, I think 2026 and beyond isabout to be my travel year.
But I'm happy that I'm able topair two of my loves into one
thing, because it was driving menuts trying to figure out how
can I put all of my loves intoone thing.
(21:26):
Because it was driving me nutstrying to figure out how can I
put all of my passions into onepackage and then not look crazy,
because you listen to theinternet gurus and things like
that, the coaches and everything, and some of them do have great
skill and knowledge about a lotof things.
But at the end of the day, Ihad to choose what was right for
(21:49):
me and now that I've done that,I feel free.
I don't feel bound into thislittle box of being the grief
coach, because I'm going to behonest with y'all Coaching
people through grief is hardbecause you run into two things.
You run into people who want aquick fix and get upset when
it's not fixed quickly, or youhave people who don't do the
(22:13):
work, and that's two of mybiggest pet peeves, even though
you see me thriving throughgrief y'all.
I've been doing this for years,decades, decades 20 years since
my daughter passed away.
We can go 30 years since mymother passed away.
(22:33):
So I've been doing this for along time and also I continue to
do the work.
It's not like I wake up one dayand like, oh yeah, my grief is
gone.
No, let April 16th roll around,I'm gonna be in the whole wave
of it, but now I have the toolsto adjust and maneuver and
(22:54):
thrive through it.
So when people see the finishedproduct, they don't understand
the work it took to get there.
It's like working out In orderto get to and keep the physique
that you want.
You got to work out every day.
You have to move your body somekind of way every day, and
(23:16):
grief is the same way.
In order for you to combatgrief and kick it in as high
parts, as I say, you have to dosome kind of work every single
day.
So now that I'm able to stepoutside of just grief coaching
which is important, don't get mewrong, I still do it, but I do
(23:38):
it in a way that I want to do it.
I do it in a way that fuels meinstead of drains me.
Ha, there we go.
I grief coach in a way thatfuels me instead of draining me,
and so now I get to pair mylove for travel with helping
people get the breakthrough thatthey deserve, that they desire
(24:00):
and that they deserve.
So a couple of things that I'mworking on with Graced and
Grounded Journeys, of course,the Soulful Escape to Thailand
2026.
That's my big priority rightnow.
But I'm also working on a blog.
I got this really cute, nicelittle fancy camera that takes
(24:22):
really great video and reallygreat pictures.
That takes really great videoand really great pictures.
And so, with my travels, I'mgoing to be doing blogs about my
travels and I'm going to comefrom a perspective of this is
what I do, how I combat my griefwhile I'm traveling or showing
you different cultures, thingslike that.
(24:43):
So anything that y'all know.
If you've been following me fora minute, you know that I share
a lot of things, so I'm goingto be sharing with you my actual
journey in this next phase ofmy life.
I'm also going to be creatinggroup retreats.
I think our first well, ourfirst retreat, I know, is going
to be international, but I'malso wanting to do some local
(25:07):
retreats, and when I say local,again, that's within the United
States.
I'm probably going to start inmy native North Carolina, south
Carolina, georgia areas, becauseI do realize that some people
are not going to get on a planebut they want to break through
(25:33):
through.
So I'm trying to think of waysto make it easier for people to
get to wherever we are.
So I'm excited about it, I amlooking forward to it, I'm
looking forward to getting backto Thailand to experience that
peace that I felt, and also I'mhoping and praying that the
women that come along on thistrip get the breakthrough that
they're looking for.
I'm hoping that they gettransformed, find peace, joy,
(25:54):
all of that good stuff, becausethat is my goal, that is my
intention, and I'm just really,really, really, really excited.
So if you have any questionsabout Grace and Grounded
Journeys, I put the link in theshow notes to sign up for the
email list.
I'm going to be honest by thetime you guys hear this podcast,
(26:18):
it just may be sold out.
So don't get mad, please don'tget mad at me, don't get mad,
don't, please don't get mad atme.
But I will.
Will you signing up?
We'll put you on my email listfor Grace and Grounded Journey
so you will get informationfirst Anytime you're on my email
list.
You get the info first before Irelease it out to the public,
(26:40):
because I understand our emailsare like gold right now.
So I treat my email list likey'all, y'all the VIP, you the
vips, you the very importantpeople, so you always get the
information first.
Those who are on my email listright now with Grace, the
Grounded Journeys they got theitinerary first.
Oh, let me tell you about thisitinerary.
(27:02):
Girl, hold on, hold on, hold on, because I want to get it right
, I want to get it right, I wantto get it right.
So, first, we are going to flyout from the US of A and we're
flying into Bangkok.
So, like I said, we'll be therefor four days in Bangkok.
(27:22):
While there, of course, we'regoing to be doing some touring.
And hold on, just a second, I'mtrying to pull up the itinerary
.
Itinerary is such a funny word,especially when you Southern.
Y'all hear how my Southern cameout when I said itinerary.
Okay, here we go.
So this itinerary, y'all.
(27:45):
I put my heart and soul intothis and I hope that it shows.
I hope that it shows.
So we're going to fly from theUS to Bangkok.
Of course, when we land inBangkok, we'll be greeted by our
guide.
So we have an English-speakingguide who, of course, is a Thai
native, and we will be escortedin our private transport from
(28:10):
the airport to our hotel.
I'm not going to tell you wherethe hotel is.
Okay, you got to get on thewait list for that.
You got to get that info.
So once we get to the hotel, wewill have time, you know, to
get settled, get dressed for theevening, because there I will
be hosting a welcome dinnerwelcoming everyone to Thailand
(28:31):
and kind of going over theitinerary, what to expect on the
trip, things like that.
Just reiterating, because I'mplanning on doing a virtual
meetup for everyone who's goingto go on the trip, because I
want people to feel comfortablewhen they book this.
So we'll have a welcome dinner.
(28:54):
I will say our hotel is fivestar.
It's in the heart of downtownBangkok.
We got a view of the river, themain river that runs through
the city, and our restaurant,where we're having our welcome
dinner, is on the rooftop.
So it's going to be real cuteand sexy.
It's going to be a vibe.
It's going to be such a good,good, good vibe.
(29:16):
So throughout the tours,throughout our stay there, we
will have an English speakinglocal guide and all of our
interest fees will be includedin this tour.
So on our first day in Bangkokwell, actually, let me back up
(29:37):
after I welcome dinner, we willhave the opportunity to do a
tour.
Nope, nope, I changed that,nevermind, nevermind, nevermind,
I changed that, nevermind.
So after our welcome dinner,you know you go back to your
room if you want to.
(29:58):
You're probably gonna be jetlagged.
So you just get some rest orwhatever, or you can explore the
city a little bit.
But on the second day we getbreakfast at our hotel.
So we get all breakfast mealsand then we will move into the
workshop.
So I'm doing a two-hourworkshop and this first day is
(30:22):
just laying the foundation forwhat we're going to work on
workshop, and this first day isjust laying the foundation for
what we're going to work on.
And then that evening is whenwe're going to do a tour of the
city.
So we're actually going to do afood tour of Bangkok, where
we'll be chauffeured around inthe traditional tuk-tuk.
So I'm excited about that.
If you've never been in atuk-tuk, it's an adventure.
Tuk-tuk, tuk-tuk everywhere.
(30:43):
Okay, it's an adventure.
So it's an adventure.
We're going to do a food tourinto Bangkok and visit one of
the night markets, things likethat.
Day three, we're going to go tothe railway market.
This is the place.
I don't know if you've seen itonline?
If you haven't, you can look itup.
This is the place where thetrain actually goes through the
(31:07):
market, where you're going to beshopping, y'all.
I'm telling you, thailand hassome primo shopping.
So the train goes through theactual marketplace and the
vendors at the marketplace pullall of their products out of the
way so the train can comethrough.
It's pretty amazing to see.
(31:27):
So we'll be doing that thatmorning and then, once we do the
market, we'll go to thefloating market.
So I don't know if you've seenthis online, but the floating
market is where you actually areon a boat and you're shopping
on the river and you're visitingvendors and things like that.
So that's going to be prettycool.
(31:47):
So after that, we go back tothe hotel and then you have time
to yourself for that evening.
The next day we're doing parttwo of the workshop, and this is
the final day of the workshopand this is where they can.
This is where implementation isgoing to happen.
Implementation is going tohappen, and so day two is where
(32:11):
they're going to take what theydid on day one and then use day
two to actually make a plan, andthen the rest of the trip you
have time for the reflection ofthat.
So I told you it's going to bereal quick and I'm just going to
give y'all a little taste.
That's just what we're going todo in Bangkok.
But then I'm not going to tellyou everything we're going to do
in Phuket.
But I will say this, I will saythis when we fly from Bangkok
to Phuket, we're going to belanding at another five-star
(32:32):
resort.
It's absolutely stunning wherewe're going to be.
But I will say one of the tourswe have, we're going to be on a
speedboat, a private speedboat.
I'm excited about that and Ialso have something special
(32:55):
planned at the end of theretreat just to culminate and
close out everything that we'vedone, transformations we've had
and it's just a good way torelease whatever we brought with
us, whatever came up during theworkshop.
So I'm super duper excited.
When I tell you I put my heartinto this retreat, I must say,
(33:16):
if I do say so myself, I'm proudof myself.
I'm proud of myself for this.
Baby, if you can't sellyourself that you're proud of
yourself, I don't know whatyou're doing.
You're doing life wrong, baby,if you can't tell yourself that
you're proud of yourself, Idon't know what you're doing.
You're doing life wrong.
But yeah, I am looking forwardto having this experience with
10 beautiful women.
I don't know who they are atthe moment, but I'm pretty sure
I will by the time y'all getthis podcast episode.
(33:37):
I'm just saying, I'm justsaying, but again, I'm putting
the link in the show notes aboutthe retreat you can check out
Grace and Grounded Journeys.
Grace and Grounded Journeysdoes have its own Facebook and
Instagram page.
It's Grace and GroundedJourneys on both, or you can
just follow me on Live In myEmpowered Life, because I do
cross post on both.
(34:00):
But I just wanted to share thatupdate because some of y'all got
on me because I didn't go intodetail.
I didn't go into detail on thelast episode, but it wasn't that
wasn't the time it was.
Last episode was the focus onmy sister, so I just wanted to
share Grace and GroundedJourneys with you.
I will be sharing more likeeven on socials.
(34:20):
My plan is to show a few of thebehind the scenes things Y'all
going to get whatever face Igive you, because who putting on
makeup every day?
Okay, who's doing that?
Not me, not me.
Unless I'm going into theoffice, you're not going to get
a face full of makeup every day.
Matter of fact, if you couldsee me right now, my lashes are
a little lacking because in acouple of weeks I'm going to be
(34:44):
in a wedding and I'm just tryingto keep all of my beauty
services held off until it'stime closer to the wedding,
because I don't want to belooking crazy at my friend's
wedding.
Right, I'm a bridesmaid, I gotto be cute, but anyway, y'all, I
just wanted to touch base rightquick.
Let you in on what's happeningon this end and thank you again
(35:07):
for coming along with me on thisjourney.
I hope this encourages you topivot.
I know pivot is the popularword now, but yeah, pivot and
step out on faith.
Like, do what if you had, ifyou can remember that one thing
(35:28):
that you wanted to do and didn'tdo it because of whatever
circumstance?
If you could do that thingright now, even if it's just a
taste of it, do it, do it.
Life is too short to not trynew things, do it.
And if you want information onhow to become a travel
consultant, hit me up.
(35:49):
I will give you the name of thehost agency that I'm with.
Again, I say that it's amazing.
There is a monthly fee, or youcan pay it quarterly, but it's
worth it.
It's worth it.
And the commission ain't badeither, y'all, I'm telling you,
the commission is not bad.
The training is awesome and youget to see the inside scoop in
(36:13):
this travel industry.
But yeah, anyway, I'm not goingto hold you up.
This has been long enough as itis.
I feel like I've rambledthrough the whole thing.
But if you have questions, youknow how to hit me up.
Hit me up, y'all.
I hope that this has inspiredyou in some kind of way.
Per usual, I hope it hasinspired you and I hope that
you'll come back next week forthe next episode.
(36:34):
And if you think of somethingthat you want us to talk about,
let me know.
Oh, oh, oh.
And before I go, before I letyou go, this is the last thing
for real.
For real, if you are a womanand you have a business, hit me
up.
I am going to start listingadvertisers for the Charging
Station podcast and I want tosupport women.
(36:56):
I want to support blackwomen-owned businesses, and it
won't be an astronomical fee,because I want to support your
business.
So hit me up, let me know ifyou're interested and we can get
something on the books for you,but in the meantime, please
know that I love you.
God loves you.
(37:16):
It ain't nothing you can doabout it.
Boo, until next time.
Bye.
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