Three weeks ago, I went on a crazy adventure together with 72 strangers.
In less than 48 hours we did an ice bath, sang our hearts out at karaoke, explored the entire city of Amsterdam in 30 degrees, laughed, cried, pushed through discomfort, and made genuine friendships.
The event was called Yes Hostel and it was organized by Tommy Dajer, Staffan Taylor, and the team at Yes Theory.
What is Yes Theory you ask?
For the people who’ve been living under a rock, allow me to explain (I’m kidding, there is an overload of information and content for you to consume, pls don’t hate me <3).
Yes Theory is a popular YouTube channel and social movement that encourages people to seek discomfort, embrace spontaneity, and say "yes" to new experiences.
And that is exactly what we did at the Yes Hostel.
It’s been difficult to put the experience into words, but here’s my best effort. To structure my own thoughts, I’m borrowing the question Staffan asked us on Sunday morning whilst we were rounding off and reflecting on everything together:
What are your pearls of the weekend?
A beautiful question to pick out a few highlights and key moments that felt extra special to me.
So here we go. Here are my top 3 pearls of the Yes Hostel weekend.
A creepy place for a beautiful experience
After arriving Friday afternoon, dropping off our stuff, and meeting our hostel roomies for the weekend (shoutout to room 416 ❤️🔥), it was time to put on our swimwear and head downstairs to the parking garage.
Yes, you read that right. The parking garage.
Picture this: White cloths are hanging from the ceiling. Blue lights are emanating from the cracks between the fabric. Three guys are sitting on bar stools in front of 72 laid-out yoga mats. Plus, one of them is wearing a bandana…
Not creepy at all, right? 🥲
It would’ve been the perfect scene for a collective murder. But luckily, we were just there for a breath-work session and an ice bath.
We were expertly guided through the breath work by Chris Wenker (the guy wearing the bandana).
It was my first time participating in a breath work session and I found it a very emotional experience. After breathing a very specific way for what I think was around 15-20 minutes, he asked us to picture our loved ones standing behind us and to feel their support and unconditional love fill up our bodies.
And the love and gratitude I felt from - and towards - the people in my life was overwhelming. 3 hours in and your girl is already crying.
And luckily, in my books, that means it’s going great.
After completing the breath work, we were invited to go through another set of white sheets towards a makeshift ice bath in a big blow-up kiddy pool. Let me show you:
Here we gathered in groups of 8-10 people and stood around the ice bath holding hands. We stepped into the ice bath at the same time and on the count of three sat down until we were shoulder-deep in the close-to-freezing water.
It was a very interesting sensation to be freezing cold yet able to stay in control of myself through slow and conscious breathing. Toward the end of the 2 minutes, I was able to completely let go of any tension and surrender to the cold water.
And, honestly, that was an empowering feeling. I came out feeling super energized and ready for more.
Lucky for me, that was just the beginning. We still had the rest of the weekend ahead of us.
But as far as icebreakers go… hats off to Yes Theory.
If you’re interested in a breath-work session and/or ice bath experience, check out Chris’ company, Adem Academy, here!
In general, the location possibilities seem to be a lot less parking garage-related 😉.
When you meet your tribe
One of my favorite Yes Theory quotes is “A stranger is a friend you haven’t met yet”.
And this weekend reaffirmed this for me.
These 72 strangers were friends I hadn’t met yet.
And now I can feel you rolling your eyes through my screen. Because, sure, did I speak to every single person? No.
But did we experience an incredible sense of belonging within 48 hours because we share the same mindset toward many things in life and have a strong desire to make new and genuine friendships? Yes.
It’s very powerful when a group of people is dedicated to being vulnerable and connecting on a deeper level than “What do you do for work?”. And this is often the extent of a conversation when meeting new people.
And, personally, I thrive on deeper conversations that go from “Where do you live?” to “How are you pushing yourself in life?” within several minutes.
Even though I said I’d share three of my pearls, I’m going to bend my own rules a bit and take a moment to thank several people with whom I shared beautiful moments and conversations, big or small, long or short.
Thank you Bram, Mo, and Amber for our conversation in the park about life and friendships.
Thank you Karolina for being an inspiration as an entrepreneur and for creating the life you want for yourself.
Thank you to the girls of room 416 (Jessica, Zoë, Gesa, Noëlle, Karolina, and Ella) for being the most fun and for collectively deciding to choreograph our Kelly Clarkson karaoke performance after having met only a few hours before.
Thank you Amy for being our special bonus roomie and for being so incredibly sweet and caring.
Thank you Ella for sharing several vulnerable and heartfelt conversations and for reminding me that life is short and we need to live it to the fullest now, not tomorrow, now.
Thank you Aaron for making me laugh the entire day during the scavenger hunt.
Thank you Luigi for giving great tips and getting me even more excited for our trip to Canada next year.
Thank you Yannick for blessing us with the best Barbie Girl rendition I have ever witnessed.
And thank you to every Yes Fam member who joined the Yes Hostel weekend. It was an unforgettable weekend because of every single one of you.
Seeking discomfort until the end
Now don’t think I’ve forgotten about the people who made Yes Hostel happen in the first place. But before I thank them, I want to dedicate my third pearl to two of them, Tommy and Staffan.
They were the reason I sought some more discomfort on Sunday morning.
When I first signed up for the Yes Hostel weekend, I was expecting to interact with them a bit and hopefully pick their brains about life as a Yes Theory member. The ups, downs, and struggles behind creating such an impactful global movement.
However, I soon realized that they remained in the background of group activities and group conversations for a very deliberate reason. They’d organized the weekend for us.
For us to meet each other, for us to get close, and for us to build connections and friendships.
And I admire them a lot for this. The intent behind the event was very pure.
But…
I was also curious about them.
So on Sunday morning when I was sitting at a table after breakfast, not really engaged in a conversation at that point, I noticed them sipping their morning coffee and having a chat with Dries (fellow YesFam) at the bar.
Should I walk up and join them? But maybe they’re having a private conversation and don’t want to be bothered. But how will I feel tomorrow if I don’t take this opportunity? Sure, I’ll regret it, but I also don’t want to be a creep or create an awkward vibe. Ughhhhhhh.
Whilst these thoughts were going around in my head, I got up from my seat, went to the water stand, took a sip of water, snapped out of it, and got into the real world.
“Hi, is it okay if I join you?” 🙂
And in true Yes Theory style, they said yes!
We had a lovely chat about the weekend, what they’d expected, what our highlights were (or as Dries called them, our pearls). I asked them whether it ever stops getting scary or awkward to step up to strangers even though they do it all the time. And I loved Staffan’s answer:
“Our bodies can’t distinguish between feeling scared or being excited, so I always need to remind myself that I’m just excited. And that we’re all just people, people who crave connection”.
Did I find it awkward to step up to them? Yes. Could my mind determine whether I was feeling anxious or excited? Nope. Am I happy that I did it anyway? Absolutely.
It’s okay to sometimes feel uncomfortable. And it’s definitely good to recognize those feelings. But it’s almost always even better to push through them anyway. To meet those people, to go on adventures, and to live life to the fullest.
Closing thoughts
Now I haven’t even mentioned the pure joy of taking a refreshing plunge into the water after an entire day scavenger hunting through Amsterdam in the heat. Or join in on at least 5 high school musical songs during karaoke. And did you know we started our day with a wholesome group meditation on Saturday?
Many more moments were super special and I’ll do my best not to forget them soon. In the meantime, I want to give one final thank you to the team at Yes Theory for organizing this amazing event.
Tommy, Staffan, Maryam, Harrison, Aiden, Joey, Mélida, and the people who I’m most likely forgetting or who were working tirelessly behind the scenes. Yes Hostel was fun, inspiring, and empowering all at once and that’s thanks to all the love and hours of preparation you guys put into it.
Another thank you goes to VIA Hostel for their top-notch hospitality and enthusiasm. I recommend anyone to check them out if they need a place to stay in Amsterdam.
What are your thoughts on Yes Hostel? Would you have joined if you knew about it? And when did you last actively step outside your comfort zone? I would love to hear your experiences in the comments!
Thank you for reading and see you next week for another Mapping Memories ⚡
wise words and practices that we should all embrace, no matter our age - thanks for that awareness!