Trainstorming and Other Things We Discovered When We Left the Office

By Tricia Scott. 

Let me paint you a picture.

It’s 36 degrees in London. I am in Mayfair, in a heatwave that the city is spectacularly unprepared for, standing next to Elaine Parker — founder of Exaltis, my ride-or-die for the trip, and the woman who will later introduce me to Grace & Frankie — wondering if I am, in fact, melting.

My hair is making me resemble one of those angry minions (you know, the purple ones) and my sunglasses are making a fun game of sliding down my face as we navigate the streets of London but I wouldn’t have missed a single second of it.

Here’s why I’m telling you this.

The Rest Test, my six-month experiment in taking restoration as seriously as I take my business, once again, reminded me that one of the most powerful things you can do for your business has nothing to do with your laptop.

It’s getting in the room.

We stayed at SLO at Claridge House — an apartment hotel in Mayfair where every detail is intentional. The water is filtered, the artwork is by British Female Artists, the rituals are built in, and the lovely Alena took so much time explaining exactly what makes this place different. It’s not just beautiful, it’s considered. (The air conditioning alone deserves a standing ovation. Discreet, powerful, and doing God’s actual work in 36-degree heat.) It was the kind of environment that does something for you - which is precisely the point.

On the train, Elaine and I were mostly laptop-free thanks to East Coast Wi-Fi being spottier than an actual real-life leopard. So with no emails and nothing competing for our attention, somewhere between Newcastle and wherever-we-were, we invented trainstorming - brainstorming that happens in motion, without screens, between two people who trust each other’s thinking. Some of the best ideas I’ve had in months arrived on that train. No desk required. 

Then on the evening, we got properly in a room.

Grass & Co. hosted a ‘Change Your Mind’ event at the ICA — the Institute of Contemporary Arts. The room brought together artist Zoe Grace, the brilliant HVH Arts Charity, and an evening built around the idea that mental health and creativity are the same conversation. There were student artworks, a short film on mental health, nootropic drinks, and a Q&A between founder Ben Grass and Zoe about why supporting young people through artistic expression matters. Oh, and Damian Lewis was there, which is not a sentence I expected to type on a Monday.

The invite came through another brilliant connection made when I got out of my own way and went to the Moxie retreat in Ibiza (thank you Chelia) and Anastasia at Kaplan Communications - and this is the part I want you to take with you: that amazing evening only happened because someone extended an invitation, and we said yes. 

We could have stayed in and ‘caught up’. We could have looked at the diary and decided we were too tired. We could have done a lot of sensible, low-energy things. Instead, we got in the room — and walked out with new connections, and a very genuine respect for functional mushrooms.

Later we chased fairy lights at midnight in Soho. (The Rest Test has layers.) You can catch some of the pictures over on Insta. 

As I move through 2026, I am constantly reminded of what actually moves the needle, and it’s not the hours logged or the emails answered. It’s the people you surround yourself with. The rooms you walk into. The invitations you say yes to even when your hair looks, ahem, unkempt.

Get away from the desk. Get in the room. Do the thing.

You will never regret it.

Two other things happened while we were away.

My Lead Human podcast episode dropped — a deeply honest conversation recorded at Acast studios in London, where I walked in with no idea what Tim Spengler and Jack Myers were going to ask. If you haven’t watched it yet, I’d love you to.

And

Elaine’s business, Exaltis won North East Web Designer of the Year! (There seems to be a pattern of winning when we’re away… just saying).

So, this week, I want to ask you: what room have you been putting off getting into? What invitation are you sitting on? What conversation keeps getting bumped because the desk feels safer?

Say yes. Go.

I believe in you (always),

P.S. Two things: the Claridge’s bakery cakes were a 10/10 and I would go back to London just for those. And Grass & Co. — excellent nootropic drinks and an incredible community being built around mental wellness. Follow them.

👉🏼If you want to receive a Biz Love Letter directly to your inbox every week in 2026, I email our Hello CEO mailing list every Monday. To join, head to The Homepage and sign up! 

 Tricia Scott is the Founder and Editor-in-Chief of The Female CEO — a global platform, magazine, and community dedicated to helping women build confident, aligned, powerful businesses.

A startup mentor and multi-company director, she’s spent the past decade helping women move from overwhelmed and isolated to empowered and intentional.

Most days, she’s juggling her MacBook, her next big idea, and a very necessary caffeine supply. Connect with her at thefemaleceo.com.