Podcast: Woman of Influence
Host: Julie Solomon
Episode: Becoming Unmistakable: The Experience That Shifts It All
Date: February 18, 2026

Episode Overview

This episode centers around Julie Solomon's powerful reflections on hosting her latest “Unscripted” retreat for high-level women in leadership and entrepreneurship. Julie unpacks why this intimate experience was profoundly different from any retreat she's run before, what intentional choices made it transformative, and what key takeaways listeners—whether aspiring to attend or host such spaces—can apply in their own journey. The core theme revolves around identity recalibration, the irreplaceable value of in-person fellowship, and the courage needed to step into a new level of leadership and authenticity.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Personal Transitions and Setting the Scene

• Julie frames the episode by sharing her ongoing home renovation, her family's move back in, and the feeling of renewal and readiness to dive deeper into her work.
  • [00:44] "I feel like there’s been so much that I’ve been really wanting to dive more into in terms of just projects… but I haven’t been able to because I’ve had this move looming on me."
• Julie introduces the Unscripted retreat: a two-day event designed for women to gain clarity around their identity, message, story, and visibility.
  • [01:41] "Not only was it the best retreat that I have ever had the privilege of hosting, but it truly was a career highlight for me."

2. The Need for Evolution in Retreats

• Julie candidly discusses her two-year break from hosting retreats, catalyzed by new motherhood and recognizing that her previous retreat models no longer aligned with the caliber of women and conversations she wanted to facilitate.
  • [03:26] "Some of the last in-person retreats that I had done, it wasn’t feeling in alignment anymore... I didn’t know if I could actually create the space in the room that I wanted."
• Vulnerability around not knowing if her community would respond or if she herself could “hold the room.”
  • [04:17] "There was a part of me that did not feel confident in that... would the woman that I want to be in this room actually want to do this room with me?"

3. Divine Assignment and Retreat Conception

• Julie describes an impactful personal retreat (at On Site, Tennessee) that prompted a journaling and prayer session, resulting in the call to “gather a group of women and help them use their voice.”
  • [08:42] "God said to me, gather a group of women and help them use their voice. That was it. That simple, that clear."
• Out of this moment, the Unscripted retreat was born—intentionally curated for transformative identity work, not just tactical business training.

4. What Made “Unscripted” Unique

• The retreat was shaped by the needs voiced in applications: confidence, visibility, leadership, messaging refinement, identity recalibration, and deep connection.
• The intentional decision not to center the experience on giving knowledge, but on co-creation and mutual transformation.
  • [12:00] "This one was not just about what I was giving or sharing, but what I was receiving from it."
• Structure breakdown:
  • Day 1: Identity, story, and voice; a sacred opening circle, exclusive leadership voice framework, signature story work, and a closing ritual.
  • Day 2: Message, momentum, visibility; a fireside chat, messaging refinement workshop, visibility blueprint, and final presentations.

5. The Power of Fellowship and Environment

• Julie stresses that fellowship—the deep, supportive relationships among attendees—was the most transformative aspect.
  • [15:30] "Fellowship is always what our heart is longing for... what was so unique about this experience is how seen and held these women got to be."
• Contrasting “knowledge” with “embodied knowing”—the difference between learning principles versus living and owning them.
  • [17:10] "This retreat was now I actually know and I have claimed who the f I am and how I am going to lead, and there is no stopping me now."
• The importance of being real in the right environment; authenticity isn’t just honesty, but bringing your truth to spaces that can hold and mirror it back.

6. Catalyst for Personal and Collective Growth

• Julie invites listeners to self-inquiry:
  • Are you holding yourself back from in-person proximity due to timing, barriers, or limitations?
  • Are you longing for spaces where you’re deeply seen and supported—but resisting them?
• The retreat’s energy was not about learning a new trick or tactic but about dropping performance, posturing, and the need to prove.
  • [26:30] "No one came to the unscripted retreat to learn how to say something better. They came because something in them was tired of performing that clarity."
• Notable moment: witnessing women shift from over-explaining and self-doubt to claiming their authority and truth.
  • [27:45] "It’s the identity recalibration. It’s a woman literally realizing and she said this, I don’t need to become someone else. I just need to stop abandoning myself."

7. The Three Biggest Transformations

1. Identity Recalibration – Moving from performing leadership to truly embodying it.
2. Voice Embodiment – Not about being louder but about trusting the sound of your own voice.
   • [29:30] "Because when a woman trusts her voice, sales and rooms and influence, all of it follows."
3. Standard Elevation – Not about building a new business, but raising the standards for all areas of life and work.
   • [29:40] "When that standard rises, everything in your business and life reorganizes."

8. Moving Forward & Call to Action

• Julie affirms her commitment to making Unscripted an annual retreat, given its life-altering impact.
  • [31:05] "It is why that I will a million percent continue to do an unscripted retreat every year."
• Encourages listeners to stop waiting for “the right time” and to step into the next version of themselves, despite fear or perceived unreadiness.
  • [31:45] "I don't want my excuses anymore. I'm ready to lead at a new level. And if you feel that too, you are ready too."
• Concludes by expressing deep gratitude for the 14 women who attended and an invitation for others to consider joining in the future.

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On the true meaning of transformation:
  • "It’s not enough to be real. It’s important to be real in the right environment, because the right environment is going to be able to see you, meet you and hold you at that caliber and at that level." — Julie Solomon, [17:45]
• On embodiment over knowledge:
  • “There is such a difference between having knowledge versus knowledge that is embodied and applied and rooted in to you as you walk out that door.” — Julie Solomon, [15:55]
• On women supporting women:
  • “What was so powerful about this room, it just wasn’t one person. It was 13 other women that were uniquely and divinely in that room for that reason, to support the other women.” — Julie Solomon, [23:00]
• On raising standards:
  • “They raised their standards for the other rooms they’re going to enter, the clients that they attract, the way that they show up, the way that they rest, the way that they lead. And when that standard rises, everything in your business and life reorganizes.” — Julie Solomon, [29:45]
• On dropping performance and claiming authority:
  • "Women didn’t walk away more confident. They walked away more themselves. And to me, that is the true crown positioning for this retreat for years to come." — Julie Solomon, [30:20]

Timestamps for Key Segments

• 00:44 – Julie shares personal context and return to deep work post-renovation
• 01:41 – Introduction of Unscripted retreat and its core intention
• 03:26 – Reflections on what was “off” with previous retreats and the recalibration needed
• 08:42 – Julie’s divine moment and the conception of Unscripted
• 12:00 – The retreat as a co-created experience, not just a workshop
• 13:50 – Day 1 and Day 2 structure and themes
• 15:30 – The essence of fellowship and embodied knowledge
• 17:45 – The critical role of environment in true authenticity
• 23:00 – On closeness and support among participants
• 26:30 – The death of performative clarity and the birth of truthful presence
• 29:15 – Summing up the three big transformations
• 31:05 – Julie’s decision to continue the Unscripted retreat annually
• 31:45 – Final call to action and encouragement for listeners

Final Thoughts

Julie Solomon’s experience with the Unscripted retreat illustrates a profound shift in how community, leadership, and transformation happen for women at the top of their fields. Rather than an exercise in acquiring more knowledge, this episode models the power of stepping into rooms that recalibrate identity and standards, fostering not just confident leaders, but women who are “unmistakable”—boldly themselves, ready for their next era.

This episode is a must-listen for any woman sensing she’s outgrown her current level, looking for deeper fellowship, or seeking permission to claim her most authentic power in business and life.