Program '24 — Die Before You Die

Die Before You Die

Life Design & Leadership Program

Peloponnese, Greece & Vestland, Norway

7-10 March | 21-28 April | 26-27 October — 2024

“Eudaimonist”

He/she who leads a flourishing life.

Key term in Greek philosophy describing the practically wise who understand what is truly worthwhile, truly important, and thereby truly advantageous in life, who know, in short, how to live well.

— Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy

Get ready to engage in a powerful 12-day journey of self discovery.

It will shape you into a leader who people are proud to follow, an innovator who thrives under uncertainty & a flourishing human who leads a life well lived.

Dear aspiring learner:

This unique program is inspired by the ancient Greek philosophy of “eudaimonia” — the virtuous pursuit of a life well lived.

It is the culmination of 12 years of work experience — our labor of love — in the executive-education space in Norway. During this time, we’ve concluded that there is an unaddressed need for a leadership and innovation training program that tackles the requirements of busy professionals who live and work in increasingly fast-paced and ambiguous environments, under growing uncertainty, and with incremental demands on their time and energy.

At work, we are asked to lead and innovate effectively all while remaining emotionally grounded, present, and focused. Simultaneously, at home we’re faced with greater responsibility as parents, family members, and friends.

It’s no wonder that many of us manage to ignore our mental, physical, and spiritual health while tackling this multitude of competing demands.

This state of affairs cannot be addressed from one narrow, siloed perspective, which is too often the approach taken by most training programs. Instead, it requires a deeply humanistic approach, which takes into consideration a whole slew of learning components that address the entire human experience.

This exciting new program, which has taken us years to crystallize, is our answer to this challenging yet all too common context. Our purpose is to enable you to not only lead and innovate effectively but also to reflect on what this actually means to you as an aspiring eudaimonist: someone who strives for a balanced, joyful, and flourishing life.

Together we’ll learn that the only way one can become a human who truly inspires change while simultaneously achieving the good life is to embody timeless virtues—awareness, gratitude, selflessness, and love. We hope you’ll join us in this very special journey.

Sincerely yours,

🦋 Your Learning Butterfly

We’ve chosen the butterfly not simply because it’s a beautiful animal but especially because it serves as a powerful analogy for human transformation. Native, religious, and philosophical traditions across cultures have embraced the butterfly for its symbolism of arduous journeys of discovery, death, rebirth, and renewal.

At Die Before You Die, we’ve also adopted it to depict how human transformation occurs through the application of multiple ways of learning. We are staunch believers that lasting growth happens when our body and four learning wings — our intellect, spirit, intuition, and relations — function in unison, lifting us confidently into the unknown.

Through this multifaceted learning journey of brain, heart, gut, body, and connection, we will help you discover what you truly value, how you want to lead your life and be remembered, and thus fly iterative and creative paths towards that ultimate purpose.

Relevant note: The human heart has 40.000 neurons and the gut has 100 million neurons.

🦋 Life-Long Learners: Wanted, Dead or Alive

“Think of yourself as dead. You have lived your life. Now take what’s left and live it properly.”

— Marcus Aurelius, Stoic Philosopher & Emperor

The Life Design & Leadership Program is targeted towards busy professionals who are committed to three main goals: leadership through service to others, impactful innovation and change, and continuous personal growth.

The program is particularly designed to enable people with multiple family and career responsibilities to lead more congruous lives. Lives in which career success goes hand in hand with a profound joy of living and the pursuit of something vastly greater than ourselves.

Having said this, there will be no woo-woo fluff or Kumbaya singing here. Program participants should be prepared to dive into hard-nosed science and critical thinking, while retaining an open heart and curious mind.

To sum up, it is the program’s objective to attract participants who are interested in adopting a holistic view to life and work where they can flourish as partners, parents, and friends as well as colleagues, team members, innovators, and leaders.

Why Die Before You Die? Read More on Our Homepage

🦋 Lead. Innovate. Grow.

The Life Design & Leadership Program will be held in sunny Peloponnese, Greece and (not so sunny) Vestland, Norway.

This one-of-a-kind program merges the broad subjects of leadership, design thinking, and personal development — all under one cohesive learning experience. Our blended, holistic, and cross-disciplinary approach can lead to new outlooks in your life, and will help you design a future that is aligned with your core values and balanced life priorities. This in turn will offer you a more solid appreciation for your life and work — and especially for those around you.

In short, this is a golden opportunity for you to take a step back from your busy schedule, contemplate key aspects of your life, and reboot how you innovate, work, lead, love, and play.

Sign Up and Reboot!

🦋 The Learning Journey

I. Exploring

3-Day Vestland Cabin Retreat

7-10. March

We’ll first gather in a mountain cabin in Vestland where we’ll begin our Exploring phase. We’ll look inwards, get comfortable sharing, and explore why creativity and connection are key human virtues. Psychological safety will be our main goal.

II. Experimenting

7-Day Greece Retreat

21-28. April

Our second gathering will take place in Greece. Here we will enter our Experimenting phase. You’ll reflect on what it means to live and lead true to your values and how to prototype yourself into a life of leadership, creative impact, and meaning.

III. Experiencing

2-Day Bergen Reunion

26-27. October

Six months after Greece, we’ll reunite as a group in Bergen for the Experiencing phase. This will be our opportunity to reconnect, share the progress of our life-design prototypes, and meet with participants of previous Die Before You Die retreats, and celebrate.

Leadership Quads

6-Hour Coaching

Flexible Between Time

You’ll join three program members and a coach between modules to implement your learnings. Your goal will be to inspire your colleagues at work to tackle a purposeful project. It’ll be up to you to decide how much additional time you’ll spend on these projects.

Start the Journey!

© Håvard Legreid

🦋 Inner & Outer Growth

We’ve carefully crafted every moment of the learning experience to nurture you from the inside out.

We will guide you through four key pillars of learning — Contemplation, Behavior, Culture, and Leadership. These pillars encompass the way you reflect upon yourself (internally) and the way you impact the world (externally). They will also cover both individual and career perspectives.

Through a supportive, creative, and rigorous learning environment, along with peers from other organizations, you will learn to:

Contemplate your values, identify your strengths and blindspots, develop gratitude, and prototype a meaningful life’s purpose greater than yourself
Adopt behaviors, routines, and habits that help execute on your purpose and increase well-being
Nurture a culture of psychological safety at home and at work to have candid conversations, show up authentically, and thrive through change
Lead effective agile teams that thrive in ambiguity through design thinking, self-management practices, and a unifying evolutionary purpose

Register Here!

© Håvard Legreid

🦋 From Those Who Died Before They Died

Sofija Ivanova, Bouvet

"Applying design thinking to my personal life turned out to be a brilliant idea. We practiced expressing emotions and feelings in a gentle and non-harmful way. It became a great practice for improving communication skills and gave me tools to build deeper relationships with other people in my life. This meant that I was able to establish closer ties with colleagues and management, but has also helped me to find out what I want in my career and private life, as well as what is needed for me to maintain my motivation and joy over time. I will remember this experience as an important turning point in my career."
Kjetil Endresen, Vår Energi

"I joined with an open mind and without any other expectations but to deeply explore a different experience. During the retreat I gained a lot of new learnings and started deeply reflecting on what really matters in my life and who I want to be as a father, friend, partner and colleague. It was a lovely mix of feelings: scary, sentimental, joyful and fun! The retreat was beautifully organized from start to end. Fede and his team truly made it a safe environment for me and the others to open up and fully engage in sharing and learning. I have already used this in my personal and professional development. Thank you!"
Monica Hannestad, These Ways

"I participated in Die Before You Die in autumn 2022. It was simply magical. Not just the program itself and all the lovely people who were there with me. But going away, being completely in my own bubble, diving deep into my inner self, really listening to my own voice, exploring parts of my inherited reactions, automated emotions and defenses. It was an experience of a lifetime."
Anne Lise Bergem

"I am so happy I attended and I can wholeheartedly recommend Die Before You Die. Fede and his fabulous team gave us a wonderfully curated retreat. The place was a beautiful setting for our internal journey and emotional work together. The program we went through was thoughtfully designed. The team created a safe environment for us to work with deep emotions and communication. I got to connect with all these beautiful people and learn more about myself. I have taken with me new learnings about authenticity, joy, meaning of life, and human connections. I would just love to do it all over again. In the meantime I am incorporating the insights in my personal and work life as best I can."
Elin Ljones, Askøy Kommune

"I still get a big smile on my face when I think about this experience. I’d love to do it all over again. It was an amazing week — a real celebration of life. Time and the world outside became totally irrelevant, and I had no need for my watch or phone. Fede and his team facilitated our emotional journey and created a safe environment for us to explore and practice communication of emotions. It was a week full of deep reflections and useful tools to become more aware of what is truly important and what I want to focus on in the future – personally and professionally. Even though I thought I knew roughly what was the right path before I joined, there were big ‘aha’ moments. Things definitely became more clear to me. And the journey still continues!"
Håvar Brattli, University of Tromsø

“Although I came in a bit skeptical, I ended up having a couple of truly eye-opening experiences. One of these was to realize that my inability to have open and deep conversations with those that are close to me (especially at work) led to a stressful and less-efficient environment than necessary. This experience helped me develop the interpersonal skills to attack small issues head on, rather than waiting and letting them develop into real problems. I am deeply grateful to the Die Before You Die team.”

🦋 Flexing Our Emotional Awareness Muscles

If we were asked to select one leadership skill to rule them all it would be our uniquely human capacity to notice our moment-to-moment awareness — what neuroscientists call metacognition.

This enables us to decipher our changing emotions and non-judgmentally observe our own behavior all while remaining solidly in the present moment.

In this program you will practice this powerful skill with other likeminded learners through the T-Group process.

This practice was developed sixty years ago and has been a valued leadership tool at places like Stanford Graduate School of Business.

The “T” in T-Groups stands for training and reflects the intention of the group to act as a kind of dojo for improving our emotional competencies. Groups have the freedom to navigate whatever topics they find meaningful and in the process help each member learn more about themselves and the relational aspects of leadership.

As you participate in the groups, you’ll find yourself experimenting with new ways of being present, communicating, learning from experience, and supporting others. Most program participants report afterwards that they end up feeling a greater sense of connection with others and freedom to be a fuller, more authentic version of themselves.

We can’t promise this process will be easy. What we can commit to is that T-Groups will enable you to develop by leaps and bounds as an individual and as a leader.

Come Learn With Us. Apply Here.

🦋 Honoring Design Thinking’s Roots

The Die Before You Die team helped to introduce design thinking, the now-well-known innovation methodology, in Norway in 2011. Since then, we’ve trained thousands of students and executives who have gone on to spread this powerful approach far and wide. Design thinking’s roots, however, go way back.

John Arnold

Bob McKim

Rolf Faste

In the late 1950s, John Arnold, a business and engineering professor at Stanford — and later Bob McKim and Rolf Faste — advocated for deep personal exploration and awareness as the key to innovation.

These trailblazing educators introduced their students to processes of self-reflection, awareness, meditation, visualization, and metacognition, which were way ahead of their time. Beyond innovating for the bottom line, they promoted the much more important idea of radical self discovery.

Their methods, which were eventually branded as “design thinking,” are now recognized the world over as the go-to innovation methodology for tackling so-called wicked problems: complex human and organizational challenges with vast unknown unknowns.

The focus of this program is to transfer the powers of design thinking as it was originally intended by applying it to the area that arguably matters the most: our own lives.

In so doing, we’ll be circling back to the original aspirations of design thinking’s founders. That is, to shape well-rounded eduaimonists who:

are self-aware and in touch with their emotions,
understand the power of presence and the intentional use of attention,
care for and empathize with others,
can make sense of and find meaning in an ambigious world,
experience failures as opportunities for continuous growth, and
see life as a purposeful opportunity to help others lead better lives.

🦋 Cross-Disciplinary Learning

This program merges a highly practical approach with substantial philosophical reflection and stimulating scientific discussion.

You’ll tap into your emotions, spark your intellect, and inspire your senses. You’ll enjoy the ebbs and flows of the learning journey through energetic and collaborative workshops, peaceful time to reflect on your own, and supportive group discussions that build community.

Following are the five principal disciplines that we’ll interweave during the program:

Contemplative Neuroscience: Uses the tools of neuroscience — fMRI — to understand the effects of meditation on the brain

Existential Philosophy: Examines the human experience through fundamental concepts such as death, freedom, and meaning

Positive Psychology: Focuses on fundamental character strengths that enable individuals, groups, and societies to thrive

Stoicism: Offers a practical approach to flourishing and the good life through virtue, rationality, judgement, and character

Transcendent Leadership: Enables one to lead through selflessness and the pursuit of a noble purpose greater than oneself

Register Here!

🦋 Active Learning Methods

This learning experience will expose you to a very strong bias towards action. You’ll be encouraged to participate in highly active, hands-on exercises that will enable you to embody the change you want to see in your life. Below are the six active learning methods that we employ to create visceral and lasting growth experiences:

Design Thinking: A human-centered, prototype-driven methodology for innovation based on radical collaboration

Journaling: An individual, deeply reflective process of transferring thoughts and feelings onto words through pen and paper

Mindfulness: The simple practice of paying attention, on purpose, in the present moment, and non-judgementally

Nonviolent Communication: A holistic method aimed at increasing empathy in order to satisfy fundamental human needs

T-Groups: Groups seeking personal and interpersonal growth through psychological safety and present-moment awareness

Art: The pursuit of beauty and creative expression as a powerful conduit for self discovery and the communication of our life’s mission

🦋 Pondering That Which Truly Matters

Extensive personal reflection is a critical component of this program. We recognize that looking inwards and asking the right questions is just as important as going outwards and landing on the correct answers. Below are some questions we’ll be pondering together:

Dying Before You Die

How would I like to be remembered once I pass away and what do I have to change in my life to achieve that?
What is it that most people regret before they die, and how can I minimize these common regrets while I’m still healthy?

Exploring Emotional Intelligence

How can I stop being controlled by my emotions, recognize them freely, express them genuinely, and manage them effectively?
What are my values, strengths, and blindspots, and how can understanding them help me as an innovator and leader?

Designing Your Life

What is my life’s purpose and how can striving for something greater than myself make me a happier person and better leader?
How might I achieve greater life balance—the proverbial “middle way”—amongst family, health, work, faith, and friends?

Achieving Optimal States & Virtuous Behaviors

What exactly is flow, under what psychological characteristics does it arise, and why is it important to my flourishing?
How might I make it a habit to be more present and grateful in order to savor more moments more often?

Nurturing Human Connection

Why are listening skills so critical for social connection and how can I enable more people in my life to feel truly understood?
How can I receive and offer feedback more constructively in order to become a more effective team member and leader?

Ready? Set. Go!

🦋 The Pursuit of Balance

“We would be better off if, instead of working hard to become wealthy, we trained ourselves to be satisfied with what we have; if, instead of seeking fame, we overcame our craving for the admiration of others; and if, instead of knocking ourselves out trying to become popular, we worked to maintain and improve our relationships with those we knew to be true friends.”

— Gaius Musonius Rufus, Stoic Philosopher, 1st Century AD

A Guide to the Good Life: The Ancient Art of Stoic Joy by William B. Irvine

🦋 Greece: The Birthplace of Eudaimonia

Socrates was famous (some would say infamous) for walking the streets and hillsides of Athens while imparting his teaching on eudaimonia: the good life.

Similarly, Greek Stoic philosophers like Zeno of Citium taught amongst the “stoas,” outdoor corridors open to the public.

Honoring this tradition, we’ll impart most of the learning outdoors. We’ll embrace Greece’s beauty, visit the Acropolis, and walk amongst the remains of Athens’ stoas.

We’ll integrate the findings of this study by incorporating into the curriculum plenty of physical activities like morning walks through dormant volcanoes and afternoon swims in crystal clear waters. We’ll also eat fresh, locally sourced food that is not only healthy but also outrageously tasty. And our emphasis on tranquility and socialization will help us understand why elderly Greeks are some of the healthiest and happiest people on the planet.

The Peloponnese Region, which is known for its archaeological significance, will serve as our base. We’ll divide our time between Palaia Epidavros and Vathi in Methana, two ancient fishing villages where life moves slowly. (Fede, one of our facilitators, spends two months a year here.)

These secluded, unostentatious villages resemble Ikaria, the Greek island studied in the well-known Blue Zone research project on human longevity.

🦋 The Team

We’re a cross-disciplinary team of educators, designers, and entrepreneurs. We train executives from a vast array of organizations such as Telenor, Wilhelmsen, NRK, and Skatteetaten, and teach in Norway’s leading universities.

We’re also work-in-progress parents, comic-book illustrators, plant lovers, spicy food addicts, and wearers of lycra in public (okay, maybe only one of us is). We feel blessed to do what we do — and put our head, heart, and soul into our training programs.

Fede Lozano

Designer of Learning Experiences.

Asst. Prof., NTNU, UiB (Medical & Tech), NHH (visiting)

Founder, Pracademy

Best Professor of the Year, NTNU, Dept. of Mechanical Engineering

MBA, Stanford University

Matthew Lynch

Educator. Entrepreneur. Researcher.

Assoc. Prof., NMBU

Head of Training & Innovation, Pracademy

Entrepreneurship Teacher of the Year, Ungt Entreprenørskap

PhD, NTNU

Håvard Legreid

Artist. Strategic Designer. Creative Director.

Coach, NHH

Creative Director, Digital Tvilling

Former Senior Designer, Frog Design

Executive Degree in Design Thinking, NHH

🦋 Your Investment

42.000 NOK

100% Money-Back Guarantee:

If after attending the first module you feel dissatisfied with the quality of the program and would like to abandon it, we will refund your full payment (minus any room and board expenses incurred by Die Before You Die).

Not once has this happened in our 12 years of training experience. This policy, however, is our commitment to you that the program will be a worthwhile investment in yourself and for your organization.

All Inclusive:

The program investment is all-inclusive. In other words, the only thing you’ll have to purchase seperately are the flights. You won’t have to take out your wallet once during any of the three modules.

The Investment Includes:

12 days of face-to-face design-thinking, leadership, and life-design curriculum
learning kit, which includes handbook, personal journal, and design-thinking material
6 hours of leadership and design-thinking coaching dispersed across multiple days of team-based, real-life projects
3 nights of basic shared accommodations in Vestland Cabin
7 nights of basic individual single-room hotel accommodations in Greece
all breakfasts, lunches & dinners
free-flowing coffee, fruits & snacks
all ground transportation
access to museums and cultural sites
official certificate of completion
life-time membership to the Die Before You Die Alumni Association

The Investment Does NOT Include:

air travel

Organizational Discounts:

We’d be happy to explore special organizational discounts if your company would like to send two or more participant to the program. Please contact us to discuss.

Partial Scholarships:

We have a limited number of partial scholarships for those who, for various reasons, might find it impossible to fully finance the program. Reach out with a brief explanation if you’d like to be considered for one. We will do our best to enable your participation yet cannot commit to any support in advance and will assess applications on a case-by-case basis.

Special note for those who do not live in Bergen:

Hotel accommodations for the Bergen Reunion are not included. We will be happy, however, to find you an extra room at the home of a program organizer or participant.

Cancellation Policy: