A Salon is an intimate gathering of at least 7 women who meet regularly for thought-provoking conversations. Too often, we float along in the mindlessness of our day-to-day grind. The goal of a Salon is to carve out a time and space in our busy lives to stop, reflect, and recalibrate. It becomes a forum to talk about things that you don’t otherwise talk about. And that’s it.

Members of each Salon decide the rest - what to talk about, whom to invite, where to meet, etc. Some have been low-key Sunday brunches at someone’s home and others have opted for more formal affairs. Topics also vary; previous discussions vary in  range (e.g. self respect, failure, vulnerability, etc.).

The only foundational rules are that Salons meet regularly and always in person. This allows members to share personal stories and foster deeper friendships over time. Embarking into the foreign is always much easier to do with familiar faces; a successful Salon creates a safe, tight-knit community to explore intimidating questions and radical ideas.

Salons are now live in NYC, SF, LA, DC, and Boston.

If you get the inside right, the outside will fall into place.

- Eckhart Tolle

In the blink of an eye we can pass an entire lifetime without genuinely asking ourselves, or each other, the questions of what to care about and why. We don't take our deeper opinions and even deeper questions seriously, because we rarely get a chance to reflect on them to be able to recalibrate our lives accordingly.

Fourth Wave is a community and a means to strengthen and expand the conversations we need to be having. Conversations on our experiences, on our society; conversations that ask "why?"; conversations that explore new possibilities; conversations of consensus and of difference; and conversations of support.

Put simply, Fourth Wave is women talking to women to explore - directly and indirectly - life’s two most important questions (What is a life worth living? How do I actually live that life?) and, in the process, befriend wonderful people.

WHY WOMEN?

In searching and leading a life worth living, women today face a unique set of external and internal obstacles. Salons provide a community for women to jointly explore how to identify and navigate these realities in their individual lives. Salons aims to raise consciousness and awareness of the forces acting upon us - both on a larger, blanket social scale and on an individual level - because only then can we free ourselves from those forces and pursue a life without those limitations. We hope that Salon participants will then be better equipped to become thoughtful leaders in their respective fields, thereby pushing back on some of these obstacles on the larger scale.

Change always begins with yourself as an individual, and, as an individual, you might help building a community of change. That's what we try to do. And when the community of a few hundred people knows the practice of change and sisterhood, and then you can become the refuge for many others who come to you and profit from the practice of change and sisterhood. And then they will join you, and the community get larger and larger all the time. And the practice of change and sisterhood will be offered to many other people. That is what is going on.

- adapted from Thich Nhat Hanh

join a salon

Salons are now live in NYC, DC, Boston, LA, and SF.

Contact Tiffany Aike Ho at tiffanyaikeho@gmail.com to be introduced to a city organizer.

BUILD A SALON

Founders

A new Salon starts with two organizers who manage the invite list and set up the first few meetings. For that first few meetings, they will organize and prepare any materials necessary, and manage the conversation. They will also be the point of contact with other Salons and the Fourth Wave network.

Meetings and their Hosts

At the end of each meeting, two Salon participants will volunteer to host the next. They will choose the next venue, organize the topic and materials, and lead the discussion.

The Hosts will be responsible for providing feedback to other Salons on any important conclusions they came to, as well as to recommend topics for the future. This can all be done through the Fourth Wave website.

Membership 

Salons are organized by proximity, both for convenience and for local relationship building. In the past, many Salons have implemented a one-to-one invitation process: each member invites one other member, who then invites the next member, and so on and so forth. But this is just a preference – Salons can be formed and organized in whatever way best suits the group.

Some salons have been organize around a commonality (say, age), but it's important to keep in mind that the more varied and diverse a Salon's membership, perhaps the more interesting the conversation will be, the more there will be to discuss, and the more there is to learn. Diversity in age, in background, in profession, in nationality – these are all important factors to consider.

Salon size may vary, but we have found that an invite list of 40 to 50 women tend to work best. This is because, once the invites are sent out for a meeting,  generally 8 to 13 women will attend.  This size has worked for most of our Salons since it is large enough for a variety of perspectives yet small enough that everyone has a chance to be heard.

Confidentiality

During the discussions, things may get personal. In fact, we hope that you share your personal experiences. To encourage sharing and trust, we honor a policy of confidentiality. What’s said in the Salons stays in the Salons! If you’d like to share someone else’s anecdote through writing or other means, please be sure to get the individual’s approval first.

SALON RETREATS

Some of you may know that we have started hosting a monthly retreat for Salon ladies up in Brewster, upstate New York. Think of it as your regular Salons in extended form. 8 gals get to hang out, eat, talk about life, and get to know each other while enjoying the haven that is Bluestone Farm. Soul nourishing! 

Each participant can volunteer to plan a workshop, activity, or discussion. Ex: Kundalini yoga session, preparing a meal for the group, a discussion on quantum physics, a hike to the reservoir, etc. 

Participation is inter-Salon; so this will be a wonderful way to get to know the other women who are a part of the larger Salon community.

You can spend as much or as little time with the group as you want. All activities are optional. You can roam around the farm alone if you want! This is YOUR weekend - do what will feel best for you.

BLUESTONE FARM

Just an hour away from Grand Central Station by Metro North, St. Bluestone Farm is a magical place - a farm run by episcopagan nuns (you read that right) . 

We will stay in a large house next to the farm - called St. Aidan's Inn -  that is owned by two of the loveliest human beings, Home Nguyen and Leng Lim, founders of the MindKind Institute.

There, you'll be able to enjoy fresh picked kale, fresh milk, other produce straight from the earth, soak in an outdoors Japanese cedar hot tub while gazing at the stars above, hike in the woods, and lots more. 

Retreat is free. The only costs are food ($15/day). We do suggest a donation to St. Aidan's Inn (for maintenance like cleaning, electricity, water, etc.)

It's an unbelievable getaway from the mad dash of city life. Guaranteed to leave you feeling refreshed and ready for the world.