Welcome to the Celebrate BRAVE podcast. 

I’m Nicole Trick Steinbach, your host, and the international bravery coach. On a mission to redefine brave. How we identify it, live it, and most importantly, celebrate it. Because when you build your brave, you change your world and that changes the world. Talk about something to celebrate. Let’s go.

Hello brave people. Guess what? This is the last episode of season one of the Celebrate brave, podcast. And we are talking about investing in ourselves before things suck. More specifically, we’re talking about taking breaks. 

So it was called to my attention recently, fairly and factually that as I come into my second year of business, which is so fricking exciting. I have coached many, many amazing human beings on slowing down and doing less and taking breaks. And yet, yes, I have slowed down. Yes, I do a lot less, but I have not taken a full and complete break.

Talk to my coach about it. Talk to my therapist about it. Talked with my husband about it, my friends, and this is what I came down to. I feel great. It’s a freaking honor to coach the amazing people that I’ve coached. Before I had my own business and now as my own business. The people I coach are making tech better, so much better. And since tech is the spine of the world. As tech gets better, so does the world. And being a part of helping incredible women and a few men, make this industry better, it’s the best. 

And on top of that, making this podcast. Wow. I had the whisper, I think I’ve shared this before, but I had the whisper for a podcast to serve more people because not everybody can work with me and I get that. I wanted to serve more people. I wanted to share stories of inspiration. So often we women in tech, we feel like we’re alone or we’re the first one to do it. Or we don’t know who to look towards for our role models, right?. And I wanted to offer these incredible humans who can be all of those things and more. And I also wanted to share tips and suggestions and frameworks and experiences. So that women in tech, you know, cause so many, I think it’s one in three right now are thinking of leaving the industry and that’s heartbreaking. I wanted to share something, a podcast as a service to the world. And, you know, I say we, we consistently overestimate what brave will demand of us. 

Committing to and putting a podcast into the world is scary. It’s scary. Will people listen, will they care? Will anyone let me know if I’m helping them? Will it suck? What about the technology? How do I market it? Do people actually want to hear these stories and what I have to say? It takes bravery, but here’s the thing. Well, we consistently overestimate what brave will demand of us. We consistently underestimate what brave will create for us. And I underestimated what this podcast is creating for me and for other people. I’ve heard from someone who got onto a stage for the first time in their life because of Cora’s story. I know a woman who was inspired to, to call herself a woman in tech for the first time, because of Janet’s story. Kathy’s commitment to the world, helped a family identify what was happening in their health. Oh my gosh. So much more, Brenda, when Brenda shared her mental health journey. Well, let’s just say it changed. Maybe saved a life. I completely underestimated the joy and the service and the growth in the self-belief that this podcast, this brave has created for me. And it is addictive. As addictive and wonderful and glorious. And as my coaching, as you know, sometimes I reach out to my clients because it’s just so wonderful to hear from them and hear. You know, what’s serving them. What’s not serving them. How did they try something new in between our sessions? I love it. And it’s the same with this podcast. I have lists and lists and lists of people. I just can’t wait to share their stories and ideas and questions and concepts. Oh my gosh.

So why is this the last episode? Of season one. And why are we taking a couple of months break? Because we need to invest in ourselves when things are good. Let me say that again. We deserve to invest in ourselves when things are good. There’s a reason the earth requires fallow periods. Not just because it’s exhausted. If you’re a really good farmer, you give the earth a break before it’s exhausted. There’s a reason why squirrels, right? There’s a reason why all squirrels are running up and down the tree, collecting this and goofing off and being friendly and annoying the dog. And other times when there are slower movers where they even go in. It’s because nothing, not even the tide can go, go, go, go, go, go, go, go, go, go, go. But we pretend we can. We pretend that we, we can only take breaks when things are bad. If then most of us are like, oh my gosh, things are bad. So I definitely, can’t take a break now. Now you have to work even harder. And I have to do even more than I do.

And when things are good, well, I don’t need a break right now. I don’t need a break. I’m fine. Things are good. I am taking this break. I’m taking a couple of months break from this podcast because it’s good. And I am taking my first full and complete break from my business this summer as well. How committed am I to this podcast? As I’m recording this I am in my parents-in-law like crumple room. It’s small, it’s like 30 degrees Celsius outside. It’s very hot. The humidity is so high, the doors closed, and I have carried my podcasting equipment across the ocean. That’s how committed I am. And you know what I’m even more committed to. Me. I’m even more committed to me.

I’m taking a break because I am enjoying this. Because I love your feedback. Because I love sharing the stories that inspire. Because I love my success and I love myself because I’m committed. And because this is a high point, this is a high point, and that’s why I’m taking a break. 

And I hope you will too. I hope you will believe in yourself. I hope you will believe in your value in your worth. I hope you will believe that like the earth you too, not only need, not only want,  you deserve, you were made for, it is your birthright to take breaks and to invest in yourself while things are good, while things are not good while things are horrible and everything in between. I’m taking a break because I want to, and I want you to as well because you want to. 

So I will think of this podcast while eating in Italy, I will love reading your feedback while running about Southern Germany with my family. And most of all, I look forward to the beginning of season two and the amazing interviews already lined up to share and inspire. Because we together are making tech better for us all. And we celebrate brave. Till then,  brave it up.

Thank you for listening to this episode of the celebrate brave podcast.

If you’re ready to build your brave, to live a life you love, and create a career that matters to you. Reach out! Together we can spend time one-on-one to explore how I can help you. And until then share this episode with people in your life. People who can join our movement. To redefine brave how we identify it, experience it, and celebrate it.