"But there are also statistics on social failure in Northland. There are not enough people in education and as a result, not enough people in employment."
Business is challenging for Whangarei small businesses, she said.
"There is anxiety being felt around business survival by good people running good companies. Business failure is frequent and that fear creates stress, which can eventually lead to family breakdown and business failure."
She said the retreat, which she has yet to confirm a venue for, would deal with the issue of burnout.
The retreat would aim to empower business owners and team members by helping them explore their own "beliefs, attitude and mind-power", through a holistic approach.
It would also look at power and the "misuse of power", work/life balance and the philosophy of leader-styles.
Ms Needham believed that "burnout is a disease of real achievers, not couch potatoes".
"We need our business leaders to stay healthy, happy, strong and resilient ..."
After a career in nursing, Ms Needham became one of the first women ordained into the Anglican Church.
She worked as chaplain to Northland Police for 10 years and also as a counsellor and life celebrant. She has also written Lasting Relationships - In Life, Love, and Marriage.
-For more information, email Gwendolyn Needham on be.free@xtra.co.nz.
