Bravery – A New Core Value

Stories are the recipe, life is the medicine.

I’ve been working with a new client. The label ‘client’ doesn’t quite fit but that’s beside the point/another post.

I am helping her face some challenging or difficult stuff in her biz. And I sometimes also help people do that in their lives.

Anyway. We were talking. We had just navigated through a pretty considerable bump called misunderstanding.

And there are all kinds of misunderstandings. Some can make you laugh or smile. But, depending on how big it is, a misunderstanding can be quite painful and hugely destructive. And that was the kind we had just faced together. The kind that completely derails a project, sometimes to leave only a smoldering tree stump.

She (my client) was telling me about how long she had wanted a web presence. For nearly 10 years she’s been dreaming about it.

And in the process of working together, there had been an unfolding of some deeper layers of information. A very personal experience (for both of us). And surprise, vulnerable now had a starring role in this particular web creation process.

Also vulnerable because she doesn’t know or understand the technology so she was trusting me to help her there.

And vulnerable because she was beginning to see just how possible it is to have it (a web presence she loves), and contemplating the process of going live, revealing herself in a grandiose, internet-viral-y way.

And guess what? Your stuff shows up. And you realize you didn’t expect it (building your web presence) to be deep and emotionally stirring.

New recipe, new medicine: Add four to five heaping tablespoons of bravery

I learned a lot from this experience too. Because the truth is, to the degree my client’s stuff shows up, mine does too! And now I’m adjusting my recipe.

I get lost in the excitement of lending you my skill set to help you bridge your technology gap, and get way too far ahead in the game, sometimes completely leaving my tender, vulnerable client behind. So I intend to be more aware of this and support myself to “just stay” with my client. My presence is really all the moment needs. I honor my clients by remembering their tenderness.

Later (and back to the story), she said something I hadn’t really seen until she said it. She mentioned the word bravery. She called me brave. And I thought, “Oh, yeah. I guess so.” And then I started to see it. Every where. So much bravery. From both of us.

Bravery. For turning to face a radical, scary misunderstanding.

Bravery. For coming to the table, to have the difficult conversation. To want clarity above anything else. To want to see. Clearly.

Bravery. For showing up. To keep coming. For her to keep wanting to create it… her small sanctuary on the web she can call her own and create beauty, art and help heal our world. (Note to self: add to Note To Self post, ‘Remember, just keep showing up.’)

Bravery. For trusting. Me and a process she has no clue about. Not any. Code, Web Design, Hosting. Blak! Email has got her covered and she’s just fine with that. And herein I step. A tech whiz. To help her make sense of it. One bite at a time.

Bravery. For stepping out of comfort zones. Both of us. I haven’t really worked with clients in the way I’ve been working with her. My webification package and stuff are all pretty new. I’m following the flow of what feels good and easy because I am an artist too.

Bravery. For discussing how it would end, if/when it does. May sound counter intuitive, but, hey, I’ve learned there is so much good stuff in the counter intuitive. I care about endings as much as I do beginnings and sometimes middles too. I care about it all.

Bravery. For loving ourselves, each of us individually, so much… we wanted clean and clear.

And so here I am. Sharing with you. How I crystallized one of my latest core values in business and I guess life too. And that’s bravery.

I am willing to know this new value because it leads me to the best (working) relationships. Each core value I identify becomes the red velvet rope that Michael Port talks about in Book Yourself Solid.

Bravery is kinda a new one for me, although when I look back at all the clients I’ve worked with in any capacity, I can see the value there. Singing steadily. They wanted something they felt I could help them get and together, we both bravely found a way there.

Considering getting some help from me? That would be awesome if you did. Here’s how to get started.