How do you say “thank you” to an online community of hundreds of incredible women? I don’t know, honestly. But what I do know is that since I started this blog in 2010, it has become a place not only for me to inform, inspire, empower, encourage and tell my stories, but a place for me to BE informed, inspired, empowered and encouraged by YOUR stories. What I’ve learned is that we are all beautiful and hopeful and vulnerable. We all have dreams and goals to live a fulfilling life on our own terms.
And we are all afraid.
It’s been almost three years since I started this blog. In that time, I’ve been able to share my experiences in transitioning from relaxed to natural hair, becoming a minimalist, learning to be more compassionate, quitting my job to work for myself, living as a nomad, seeking healthy relationships and striving to take better care of my body.
I’ve also been able to meet many of you fabulous ladies in real life through our HBW Happy Hours. Ultimately, this blog has provided me with the opportunity to connect with amazing women (and the men who lurk!) all over the world. Our conversations highlight the relationship between gaining clarity about how you want to live your life and the challenges we all face in actually making that life happen.
These online conversations have also helped me see the possibility of expanding my own training and facilitation work to help women overcome all the different issues involved in pursuing their ideal lives. To realize this vision, I’ve decided to start coming out from behind the computer and beyond the happy hours to begin offering in-person workshops based on the concepts outlined in my popular personal development program, 31 Days to Reset Your Life.
And I’m afraid.
I’m afraid it’s not going to work. I’m afraid that the women I want to help aren’t going to show up. I’m afraid that the dream I have to support people in the pursuit of their goals just isn’t going to take off. But even in the midst of my fear, it is now that I am reminded of how important it is for me to press forward anyway.
“When I dare to be powerful – to use my strength in the service of my vision, then it becomes less and less important whether I am afraid. ” – Audre Lorde
Even though I don’t yet know whether these workshops will be a huge success, what I do know is that the content I’ve developed over the past few years can and will help women get from where they are to where they want to be. I also know that my fear is simply a sign that I’m getting closer and closer to the real work that I yearn to do in the world, with you and for you. And really, there’s no way to be certain about what will happen during this process, the good or the bad. Therefore, the best thing for me to do now to assume the good and operate accordingly.
What Happens When I Choose Love Over Fear
If you could record what’s inside my head right now, you’d be watching a mental replay of the following scene I experienced in San Antonio a few months ago after giving my signature personal development workshop at a national conference: How to Develop a Personal Mission Statement.
Most of the time, the audiences I speak to are majority female. But this time around, I was speaking at an arts convention and there were plenty of men in the room. At the end of my personal mission statement workshops, I always invite participants to read their statements out loud for the group to hear, and hopefully inspire each other to live the words they’ve put down on paper. Several people shared and then I ended the session, taking time afterwards to speak privately with a few attendees.
The last person I talked to after the workshop was a man we’ll just call John. John came up to me to share how much the workshop had helped him sort out some things in his life and work. I smiled and nodded, as is my weird custom when I can’t think of words that are good enough to acknowledge people’s emotions. Suddenly, John asked if he could hug me. “I just want to hug you and thank you,” he said. I almost cried as John wrapped his arms around me. Just an hour before, we had been complete strangers. Now, we were divinely connected through a conversation about what it means to live the life we really want.
Today, I want to hug you and thank you.
For everything you’ve given me through this blog and the conversations I know we will continue to have. I am feeling grateful that you’ve allowed me to be a part of your journey. And I hope you will join me as I begin to provide more opportunities for us to work together, learn from each other, and support one another.
Rosetta Thurman is a nationally-recognized author, speaker, mentor and coach dedicated to helping women create their ideal lives.
thank you,
Keep up the great work Rosetta! I can tell you now that you overcoming your fears have been a huge boost to jump start a movement. I bet you don’t even realize how many lives you’ve already affected. I believe that we all have that piece of courage hiding away inside and sometimes we need an extra push or one more reminder that says we can do it. Sometimes looking at someone else who has come alive is just that extra boost we need to believe we too can make our dreams come true :-)
Such a good message. I’ve been journaling lately to really hold myself accountable for the things I want to do, and encourage myself to do them. Good luck with the workshop, I’m no where near the area to come, but it definitely looks beneficial.
I feel the same way every time I have a new event. But you have built a strong following. I believe you will do well. I truly enjoyed the 31 days to Reset Your Life challenge. It helped me focus on start my own blog. I would love to co-host one of your events in Houston.
I am having this exact same issue with my business! I want to offer workshops but I am so afraid that no one is going to show up. Thank you for your post! I believe you may have just given me the courage to take the next step! Can’t wait to see you in Atlanta in a couple of weeks!!
Thank you back, Lady :) Your Reset Challenge gave me the boost I needed last year and I gained a lot of clarity from it – I haven’t looked back. Keep up the good work!
Morning Rosetta,
I just received this post in my inbox this morning and wanted to say thank you for the inspiration, as always.
I joined the HBW community last month and have since downloaded the Life Mapping Workbook and the Complete Beginner’s Guide to Starting a Blog, and also registered for the Blogging School. All have been very helpful in building my confidence to try something new in my life, but I am still a work in progress when it comes to releasing the fear and just doing it – whatever IT may be I haven’t yet decided. Right now I’m in between jobs and searching for my next step in life and work, which is actually one of the topics in your workshop.
I think it’s wonderful that you are expanding your vision to reach a wider audience of women (and men) and connect with them on a more personal level. After all, it’s what I believe is the real secret to using social media to your advantage – offering a real human connection.
That being said, I was wondering if you would ever consider coming anywhere near Oklahoma to conduct one of your workshops? I say it that way because Oklahoma is just one of those states where anything even remotely this fabulous never happens. I moved here a year ago from Dallas and the difference in cultural and social activities between the two states is unbelievable, so I would understand it if Oklahoma is not even on your radar right now. However, if you do decide in the future that the Sooner state is one that could benefit from your expertise, we would love to have you come.
Thank you for the hug and the healthy dose of encouragement you give me each and every week through this blog. Your words mean more than you will ever know.
All the best,
J
Thank you for reading and being a part of my community, Joyce! So glad you’ve been able to utilize the resources I offer here. I’d love to come to Oklahoma, but right now I don’t have any plans to do so. Part of the challenge in offering live, in-person workshops is choosing a city where may be large numbers of readers who would be interested in attending. We have a lot of HBW in Atlanta, DC, Chicago, NYC and a few other major cities, so that’s likely where I’d be offering them. If you come across any opportunities where I could partner with an existing organization in OK, do let me know. I’m always open to ideas :)
Hi Rosetta, tried to register, but not sure if it went through. Please let me know who to contact to confirm so I don’t duplicate payment. Thanks
Hi Chelle – if you tried to register today, it did not go through. Please try again – the system will automatically send you a confirmation email once your payment is completed. Thanks and see you soon :)
Your posts make me want to hug and thank you all of the time Rosetta! Any time I find myself swimming in my own doubts, your posts seem to appear right on time with the burst of inspiration I need to keep moving forward. I can completely relate to feeling afraid but you show us that you have to channel that fear into something powerful. Everything that you’ve accomplished is a testament to that. This workshop and the many more that will follow will be successful because you tap into the feelings that unite us all – wanting to live a life of purpose and be Happy doing it! Hoping that we can cross paths in person one day soon!