This year I’m going to be BRAVE.
Sometimes BRAVE means doing something brand new, sometimes it means doing that thing you’ve been putting off for months.
Every Sunday (or so) I want to post about something BRAVE-ish I’ve done recently – to keep myself accountable to actually DO something AND to remind you being brave is not always lion taming and hang-gliding.
Last week:
I finished that ONE FINAL THING on my escape-the-cubicle-to-do-list !!!
There are other things I *want* to do before I leave the day job, but having accomplished the final MUST DO item is so relieving!
I have now counted out exactly how many work days I have left (although it is still unofficial).
A year and a half ago I *almost* quit on the spot because of a change at the day job …. and now I can confidently say that I can do that any day without worrying.
SO close.
What BRAVE thing did you do this week?
This year I’m going to be BRAVE.
Sometimes BRAVE means doing something brand new, sometimes it means doing that thing you’ve been putting off for months.
Every Sunday (or so) I want to post about something BRAVE-ish I’ve done recently – to keep myself accountable to actually DO something AND to remind you being brave is not always lion taming and hang-gliding.
Last week:
NOTE: This is NOT something brave that I did … but something BRAVE-related that happened.
The other night ….
I dreamt that Danielle LaPorte was chatting with me about L&R and my goals and all and asked me who my idol was in this space. Whose career do I want, who am I striving to live up to….. And when I told her she gave me this look like I wasn’t shooting high enough.
And I realized, I don’t want just ONE person’s career. I love the way __________ writes. I love the way __________ has incorporated so much creating into her career. I love the way __________ runs her business so fearlessly. I love the way ____________ has built a community around her site.
I want to pull from all of these people that I admire for different reasons….. but still make it my own.
(this sounds ridiculous), but I want to build a business and live my life so that if I ever meet Danielle LaPorte she’ll be proud of me and not disappointed that I aimed too low.
This year I’m going to be BRAVE.
Sometimes BRAVE means doing something brand new, sometimes it means doing that thing you’ve been putting off for months.
Every Sunday (or so) I want to post about something BRAVE-ish I’ve done recently – to keep myself accountable to actually DO something AND to remind you being brave is not always lion taming and hang-gliding.
Last week:
I said my last day out loud.
I’ve been dreaming and planning and nervously looking at the calendar for, oh … a year.
Andrew and I have been privately discussing the plans. I need him to constantly reassure me that it’s OK that I won’t be bringing in as much of an income. I need him to tell me again and again that it’s OK that I’ll be home (doing housework, probably) and he’ll be working 50+ hours/week. I feel guilty about that (I’ve worked at least 30 hours/week for the last 14 years). I feel seriously nervous that we’re going to end up eating ramen for every meal. Taking this giant leap of quitting my day job without another one lined up is frightening, so I’ve been hemming and hawing about deciding the actual date.
Plus, I’m still working through my before-I-quit to do list…
But this past week I actually made a decision of when my absolute last day is (although I may move it sooner)…. and I told someone.
That makes it real, right?
It’s still not *technically* official, but it’s so much closer to being true.
Plus now I have that accountability of someone else knowing and potentially asking about it if the date comes and goes.
Super scary! But I’m being brave 
If you don’t follow me on Instagram, periodically I Instagram photos of whatever book I happen to be reading on my #lunchbreak at the day job
In doing so, I regularly get requests for book reviews, and since this is the YEAR OF BRAVE, I thought Daring Greatly by Brene Brown was a perfect book to start with.
Daring Greatly: How the Courage to Be Vulnerable Transforms the Way We Live, Love, Parent, and Lead by Brene Brown
I really liked it – but I am not sure I LOVED it.
You should still read it, but I don’t think it’s the kind of book I will want to re-read necessarily.
All of that said …. I did still REALLY like it. I took notes, and texted Kam a photo of a quote and I definitely think you should read the book.
At first, I thought it would be more self-helpy, but in fact it’s far more academic than I expected. No charts or piles of numbers or anything like that, but the whole book is built on a solid foundation of RESEARCH.
Not surprising, considering it was written by a PhD, but not necessarily what you would expect from a book about something as elusive and not-totally-measurable as vulnerability.
But, because the book is so grounded in years (and years) of careful research, you can’t help but trust what she says ….
….. and what she says is living a brave life, living wholehearedly and embracing vulnerability, is a key to happiness.
The book includes chapters on parenting and work-leadership (a la CEOs, etc), and begins with a quote from Theodore Roosevelt:
“It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; but who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly… “
Some big takeaways from the book ….
What is worth doing even if I fail?
The journey and the learning and the doing involved, even if the end result doesn’t work out. Even the tiny things I’m trying to do every week to be brave are worth doing … just to get in the habit of getting out of my comfort zone regularly. As Brown writes, “The willingness to show up changes us. It makes us a little braver each time” (42).
This is a reminder to do and try anyway.
Our inner critic is a gremlin.
That little voice that tells me I’m not smart enough, or talented enough or good enough will just multiply in your head …. unless you shine bright lights on it and stay aware of it. Brown offers examples and ideas for silencing that inner voice.
Often we are more critical of ourselves than anyone else is.
For example, I don’t personally think I’m a great singer …. but enough people have told me I am that I have to believe it. Or at least accept it. But if I kept my voice just to myself I would always think it was just OK instead of sharing it with others. (I hope that makes sense)
Growing is uncomfortable.
Lean into. This is something I need to remember for this fall’s Onward and Upward workshop.
“The big challenge for leaders [or bloggers or teachers, etc] is getting our heads and hearts around the fact that we need to cultivate the courage to be uncomfortable and to teach the people around us how to accept discomfort as a part of growth” (199).
My favorite quote from the book ….
“I explained that I had spent many years never trying anything that I wasn’t already good at doing, and how those choices almost made me forget what it feels like to be brave. I said, ‘Sometimes the bravest and most important thing you can do is just show up’”(243) – which is why if you tell me that signing up for an art journaling class is brave I BELIEVE YOU. If you tell me that initiating a conversation with another mom while waiting to pick up your kids is brave, I WILL CHEER YOU ON.
Sometimes the bravest and most important thing you can do is just show up.
Or start.
Or finish.
Bravery is different for everyone ….
In the end …. reading this book helped me remember WHY I want to dare greatly. I knew I wanted to be brave this year, but this refocused on why that is important.
I think Brene Brown is super smart and incredibly fascinating, and I’ve already added all her other books to my to-read list.
PLUS: She’ll be on 2 episodes of Oprah’s Super Soul Sundays which should be fantastic. Make sure you check those out.
More reviews from around the web:
P.S. Don’t forget to check out her downloads and badges associated with the book
Have you read Daring Greatly? What did you think?
This year I’m going to be BRAVE.
Sometimes BRAVE means doing something brand new, sometimes it means doing that thing you’ve been putting off for months.
Every Sunday (or so) I want to post about something BRAVE-ish I’ve done recently – to keep myself accountable to actually DO something AND to remind you being brave is not always lion taming and hang-gliding.
Last week:
I bit the bullet and reached out to potential contributors for a new (huge) blogging ecourse I’m working on.
Asking for help is always scary – no matter what it’s for.
I’ve worked on my ‘pitch’ email – but personalized it for each person.
I’ve brainstormed how to make this as easy as possible for each contributor.
I’ve specified what is in it for each of them.
I feel like I’ve done everything I can … . but it’s still a scary thing to say, “Please help me” and be shot down.
I’ve emailed 4 different contributors and have not been shot down yet …. but still.
Maybe set my sights higher this week?
What brave thing have you done in the last few weeks?
This year I’m going to be BRAVE.
Sometimes BRAVE means doing something brand new, sometimes it means doing that thing you’ve been putting off for months.
Every Sunday (or so) I want to post about something BRAVE-ish I’ve done recently – to keep myself accountable to actually DO something AND to remind you being brave is not always lion taming and hang-gliding.
Last week:
I finally got around to filing my paperwork to open up an IRA (retirement savings account).
I have a 401k from my last job that needs to be rolled over so I can keep all my retirement savings in the same place. Simplify simplify.
Again, this is not a SUPER big deal. It’s not super brave at all to simply open up a new account. It’s something that I should have done any time in the last 10 years.
BUT …. it’s on my before-I-escape-the-day-job to do list!
SO excited to be getting closer to the end of that list
And now when I have a place to roll over my current 401k as well.
The fewer obstacles between me and leaving my day job the scarier it gets.
What small things are on your to do list that need to get done for your next brave act?
This year I’m going to be BRAVE.
Sometimes BRAVE means doing something brand new, sometimes it means doing that thing you’ve been putting off for months.
Every Sunday (or so) I want to post about something BRAVE-ish I’ve done recently – to keep myself accountable to actually DO something AND to remind you being brave is not always lion taming and hang-gliding.
Last week:
I got glasses.
I know, I know. I’m such a daredevil
But the point is NOT that I finally got off my butt to do a little bit of (Yelp!) research, finally called to make an appointment and went in.
The point is that getting my glasses-situation squared away is one of my ‘escape-my-current-job’ steps!
My current day job reimburses optical expenses, so getting my eyes checked and getting glasses if necessary is something that I want to take advantage of before I no longer work there.
SO excited to have this 1 (little) thing crossed off my before-I-quit to do list! A couple more to come this month, too.
P.S. My eyes are really not that bad, except driving at night. So don’t expect to see a ton of photos of my with glasses on
This year I’m going to be BRAVE.
Sometimes BRAVE means doing something brand new, sometimes it means doing that thing you’ve been putting off for months.
Every Sunday (or so) I want to post about something BRAVE-ish I’ve done recently – to keep myself accountable to actually DO something AND to remind you being brave is not always lion taming and hang-gliding.
Last week:
I actually USED a scrapbooking kit.
Not super impressive, I know.
But kits are not really my thing.
At all.
In the many many (many) years I’ve been scrapbooking, I’ve found my style – simple, classic, photos+words. Little to no embellishments. Favoring solid colors over anything else.
And that’s really it. I don’t even like to go scrapbook-supply-shopping any more. Because as cute and clever as I find the supplies, I know I won’t use them. I’m not inclined to that kind of coordinated-embellishment-memory-keeping.
But this round of 30 Days of Lists – when we decided to partner with Simple Scrapper to create a coordinated kit for the listing – I thought this is the perfect opportunity to get out of my comfort zone and make myself use some product I wouldn’t otherwise think of using. Product I wouldn’t otherwise even buy.
But this year is about being BRAVE and trying new things, even if it is just a brand of arrow stickers.
I’ll be posting a closer look at my list book later this week – and I hope you can join us for 30 Days of Lists!
This year I’m going to be BRAVE.
Sometimes BRAVE means doing something brand new, sometimes it means doing that thing you’ve been putting off for months.
Every Sunday (or so) I want to post about something BRAVE-ish I’ve done recently – to keep myself accountable to actually DO something AND to remind you being brave is not always lion taming and hang-gliding.
Last few weeks:
I’ve been applying for jobs I don’t *technically* qualify for. Which is SUPER scary.
Applying for jobs is asking for judgment anyway, but applying for jobs for which I’ve not done ANY of the job duties in a work environment before? Requires some courage. And the right choice of words.
My current job history is an interesting combination of customer service, and glorified data entry. Both of my recent ‘grown-up’ jobs involve just sitting around waiting for work to come in. Not sure how I ended up with that, but I realize now it’s kind of weird.
Which means that any job I apply for that involves long-term projects, I don’t *technically* qualify for. Any job I apply for that requires creating something or analyzing data or developing a strategy is completely different than I’ve done at any of my previous jobs.
But I believe that I have the basic skills for doing these jobs (through what I’ve learned running Lemon and Raspberry). I believe that I’m plenty smart enough to learn the skills. And I believe once I have the basic job duties down I can ROCK it.
But how to get that through on a one-page resume?
I have an interview this week – a kind friend has been talking me up to the manager of that department which is helpful. But I’m told I’m not great at interviews, which is not super helpful. So we’ll see how it goes
I’ve been spending the weekend watching this course from Ramit Sethi and peppering my friend with questions.
If you have any interview tips for me, I’m happy to hear them.
I’m off to be judged.
