25 Pillars of Conscious Bravery

1) Mindfully living with awareness.

2) Practicing conscious breathing.

3) Being present now as often as possible. As we become braver, we rely upon these three all of the time.

Additionally, in a yin/yang fashion, we:

4) Merge combinations of opposites within us: making choices with gentle fierceness; moving forward with assertive surrender and tenacious poise; employing both our feminine and our masculine qualities;  allowing both pleasurable and challenging feelings, experiencing them and expressing them. When brave, we:

5) Accept change and the unknown with a level of grace. Aware and awake,

6) We become better able to rebalance and reset.

7) We discover and continue to know who we truly are as beings, golden and shining from within, and live from our inner Essence as much as possible. We will all change, so we stay open to our unfolding.

8) We develop skills in managing loss, grief and devastation with bravery tools.

9) We learn how to appropriately ask for help, and to give and receive support through wholehearted, authentic connections.

10) Taking risks at times, we become more daring!

11) Braver, we become master compartmentalizers and we live from multiple zones of experience.

12) Relying upon some structure, we take breaks from the sometimes intense work in bravery training for . . .

13) Lightheartedness, activating our play-brain.

14) Tapping into our creativity, we inspire and express ourselves.

15) We choose to cultivate contentment and even happiness.

16) Utilizing embodying practices such as meditation, yoga and mindful movement we solidify bravery over time. While conscious bravery is strong and persevering, it also includes:

17) Tenderly accepting our vulnerabilities and scars earned along the way, as well, analogous to mending our broken places with gold, as in the art of Kintsugi pottery.

18) We learn to empty ourselves of unrealistic and unhelpful attachments, hopes and expectations, and are receptive to what wants or needs to happen.

19) When brave, we become friends with our shadow sides, our unpolished parts which were formerly stored-away.

20) We face trauma and move through it, allowing all of our emotions, even deep pain and shame, as we become stronger, more adaptable and resilient.

This may sound like a daunting list. But most of us are already brave in more areas than we know, and simply need to tap into those inner resources and develop them. I wish you well as you start on the path of bravery with:

21) Fear as one of your many advisors. Fear is more helpful than you think; you just need to learn how to manage it with concern and care. You already carry many of the other qualities you’ll need for your journey, such as love, bravery, and patience. The rest can be developed as you practice conscious bravery and acquire a broad range of skills.

Braver, we learn we can . . .

22) String nice moments together like little lights to brighten our paths, shining our way through turmoil, saturating ourselves with many memories of joy and even bliss, overriding the brain’s “negative bias” tendency. 

23) Committing to and following through with a regular gratitude practice,

24) Maintaining a sense of some lightness and humor, with frequent and daily:

25) Self-compassion, an unfolding of goodness occurs as you develop your own personal version of conscious bravery: you create and live a life you love. 

Don’t wait for a more perfect time, my friend, there isn’t one.

Just begin. 

What’s one small step you’ll take today?

*Many of these tools, practices and concepts are explained in more depth on this website in my blogs, graphics and the testimonials, so take a look! They are also presented in my biweekly Bravery Bites via emails, and in my first book: Conscious Bravery.