3 business and life lessons we can take from the Royal Wedding.
I love weddings – and the recent wedding between Prince Harry and Megan Markle lit up the romantic side of me again. I watched the live coverage with my family – and while it brought back much nostalgia of living in the UK, I know not everyone is into the whole monarch thing (living in London for 4 years gave me a whole new appreciation for the Royal family, but that’s a story for another time).
Back to the bride and groom.
Two people from two completely different backgrounds – one Royal raised, sheltered with a very clear path of duty laid out for them, another an American actress, born bi-racial, career woman, divorcee.
No matchmaking service would have put these two together, yet as we saw during the wedding, love knows no boundaries. It breaks boundaries, brings people together and it heals.
What I loved the most about this event was how the bride and groom honoured tradition, and yet created an experience which was completely authentic. Megan proudly showed her background, complete with an African American Episcopalian reverend and a gospel choir. Her heritage was celebrated and the Royal tradition was honoured.
While you could see the different responses from the guests from the Minister’s riveting remarks, and the change in atmosphere that a young celloist and African American choir brought to the event, all I could see was someone who had taken an event, which had all the expectations of another ‘Royal wedding’ and made it authentically and unapologetically, her own.
While we may not all have a princess moment live streamed across the globe, there are many business lessons we can take from this event.
1. Your can honor tradition and progression
There are many times in life and business that I think ‘ I have to do it this way because that’s how it’s done’ – but there is ALWAYS an opportunity to bring more of YOU into everything you do. Your newsletter copy, your branding, the way you do facebook lives – or even hosting a family event. Living in different countries has showed me how to simplify my life and also keep what’s important to me - I can do a southern thanksgiving but not have a traditional turkey, I can have a successful business without launching a huge group program like everyone else. I can bring ALL of me into what I do, my gifts, my desires, my background into my business and the work I do (I work with clients in my own business on a variety of pieces on messaging, copywriting, PR to the spiritual life purpose stuff) - you don’t have to pick and choose between tradition and progression in order to stay ahead.
2. Choose how much you share
The wedding of the year was watched by roughly around 2 billion people (numbers are still coming in on that figure). It was always going to be a global scale event – and the couple welcomed the community spirit (William and Harry met the crowds a few hours before the event), you heard the screams outside the chapel when the vows were being exchanged, and they did the traditional kiss on the steps and the ride around Windsor to wave to the visitors.
They were generous with their time for the public, from the engagement interviews to the wedding event. But after the public event, they held two private ceremonies, with close family and friends – so they could have their intimate moments. Balance is difficult, but you do get to choose how much of you and your moments you share, in life and business. They showed this beautifully. From how much media they engaged with, to when to close the doors for private moments. This comes down to how comfortable you are sharing your own pearls. This idea ebbs and flows for me, but having a private facebook group gives me the freedom to be more open then I normally would be otherwise – either way, I’m authoring my story – and the more I share, the more I connect with the people who I want to serve. Choose what you want to share and who you want to share it with – you get to be the master of your own message.
3. Love challenges and breaks boundaries: As the good reverend said ‘ love is like a fire’. It burns, protects, lights up, creates…. true love will bond two people, heal wounds, bridge cultural divides and make a way where there seems to be no other ways. In what other room would you get Oprah, the ‘Suits’ cast, Fergie, The Mumford and Sons guy and the Queen in one place? Only love, a celebration of it, a hope for it can open up discussions and experiences that otherwise would not take place.
Whatever you are doing right now – if you feel inspired to write a blog post (like I did), reach out to clients, or try something new in your own life and business – if it’s coming from love, it will always speak to the right people. Don’t overthink it – just do what Megan did - own who you are, unapologetically, and the rest will fall into place.
If you want to see more stuff like this, join my private FB group for ambitious female entrepreneur’s (or aspiring ones!) from all over the globe where I share free trainings and inspiration about all things lifestyle and business related. Authenticity guaranteed.
Rachel Reva is a media strategist, copy writer and success coach.
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