I choose a word each year to focus on and try to create some intension around to help me reach my goals – for my personal and professional life. This year (2023), I chose BRAVE.

The definition of Brave is: ready to face and endure danger or pain; showing courage.

I didn’t know what that meant to me yet, but it has been a year of bravery for sure. This year is about facing hard things. Being uncomfortable. Trying new things that take grit, and perserverance and courage. 

Some examples are letting go of things that don’t serve me. Creating boundaries around some relationships. Working on making some improvements on things that require time, testing and patience. And most recently, pushing past my comfort zone on a hike to summit Mount St. Helens. On 6/16/23, along with 5 other friends were were able to make it to the top and stand in awe of the volcano crater than blew in 1980. There were so many unknowns on this hike, inlcuding a lot of traversing across and up steep snow and ice, as well as glisading down massive hills of ice. The hike took us 10 hours (moving time), 6000 ft elevation gain and 12 miles total. I am proud of all of these goals and to get through them, I just keep telling myself “I can do hard things.”