Breaking the Hold of Fear Workshop

Fear is the body and mind’s most essential protective response – we can draw its origins back to the days of our ancestors who were not only hunters but often the hunted. Even now, fear asks us to fight or run, and while staring down a hungry lion is less likely the source of our fears, fear can still be a central force driving our decisions and life strategies. As our environments have shifted from the prairie to the home and workplace, so too has the nature of our fear.  

In this workshop, we will deeply explore the concept of fear and how it’s operating, both in productive and non-productive ways, in our individual lives. We will specifically identify and target non-productive fears that are blocking us from achieving – and sometimes even identifying – our greatest dreams and goals.  

Here’s what to expect:  

• A guided meditation to facilitate grounded reflection of our own fears and their physical manifestation 
• Deep discussion and exploration of your own productive and non-productive fears, pulling perspectives from experts and thought leaders
•  A safe space to question and feel connected to others in your community who also experience fear as an obstacle 
• A learning opportunity around the topic of fear as well as piñatas and their history 
• A valuable creative exercise that will make space for you to envision your fear and your desired outcome 
• An opportunity to enact the “breaking” of the hold your fears may have on you  

Using an explorational creative approach, we will build a visual representation of our fears AND our desires and goals in the shape of a piñata. We will examine and name the fears that are not serving us and imagine what a life beyond those fears would look like, identifying small steps that will lead to overcoming our fear and manifesting the best-case outcome on the other side. 

The workshop experience includes a custom-made personal piñata valued at $85, practical exercises and take-home resources. Lunch will also be served. 

Minimum age requirement for workshop: 18 years 

Facilitators: 

Mackenzie Carignan, Ph.D. is the owner and founder of Creative Vision Labs. In addition to being an award-winning poet, she's also spent the last several decades of her life developing and facilitating workshops and curriculum about authentic leadership, growth mindset, getting unstuck, and much more. Like other recovering perfectionists, she's experienced the paralyzing effects of fear in both rational and irrational ways.  

Leah Haney is a piñata artist and owner of Break Free Piñatas in Nederland, Colorado. Incorporating the rituals of ancient cultures, she brings the ceremony of transformation and intentional creation through paper piñatas and community celebrations. Breakfreepinatas.com, @breakfreepinatas