Lessons we can learn from festival season
Festivals are something of a tradition during the summer in the UK. Whether you’ve been to Glastonbury or Latitude or you danced in the rain and the sun at Winchestival, going to a festival can be a wonderful experience and a lot of fun. However, I believe that it’s not just a good time that festivals offer – there are some other lessons that we can learn from festival season that will translate into valuable ideas for the rest of the year too.
Being with your tribe
When you find the right festival for you there is an inescapable sense that you’ve found your tribe. These might be people with similar tastes in music, ecological outlook or who also love a vegan feast. A tribe is not necessarily your circle of friends – it is a much broader concept than that and you don’t need to have a life history with these people. Your tribe is made up of individuals who add something to your life and when you find them – maybe at the Stone Circle at sunrise or chatting over a festival beer – your life will be enriched as a result.
Community matters
Festivals spring up for just a few days, maybe a week, but when they do they create an instant community. Everything you need is there within that space and you really feel part of something. There is a great lesson here as to the importance of belonging and making the most of your local resources. Support in your immediate area could come from a variety of different places, such as community groups or a local coach like me.
Laughing it off
Anyone who has been to a UK festival will no doubt have had an experience at some point that involved a lot of rain – and mud. Maybe your tent was completely washed away or you spent an entire weekend covered in cowpats. I think this shows how important it is to have a sense of humour in life. Things don’t always go to plan but the most resilient people are able to smile, have some fun and let it go even when the rain is pouring down and your socks are wet.
Learning and knowledge
Festivals can also be a hotbed of new experiences, from music you haven’t heard before to comedy or discussion that raises topics that are new to you. In fact, a festival can feel like a complete immersion in new ideas and trigger all sorts of innovation and creativity as a result. This is something that can be translated into life outside of festivals – focusing on ongoing learning and knowledge is key to a satisfying life.
Leaving the screen behind
You might take some photos and upload a few social media posts but most of us don’t spend entire festivals on our phones or behind a laptop. That could be because festival tickets are expensive and we want to get value from them – or maybe it’s because devices just run out of juice. And what then? Well, you get to experience that wonderful liberation of what it’s like to be without devices for hours, or even days, and how this could benefit your life outside the festival too.
Getting outside your comfort zone
Festivals can be challenging, from being in a space with thousands of other people, to trying to remember to pack everything and coping with toilet queues. But this is a great lesson in the benefits of getting outside your comfort zone and how much more confident and open this can make you feel as a result. From getting a taste of it at a festival you can carry it forward as a regular habit in real life.
Festivals are fabulous, fun and a great way to make memories – and they also have plenty to teach us about how to live better too.