Collaboration: What it means to show up

A concept that’s not often talked about, but was one of the biggest turning points in my blogging journey is the idea of deciding to show up; showing up for myself, my truth and for something that I would love to be doing. Showing up can often involve some fear, but it is one of the most exciting, stretching things you can do for yourself and those around you (and can actually be fun).

My friend Nickie Linaire recently reached out to pass along a collaborative initiative to shine a light on what it means to show up. This collaboration is here to serve as an open dialogue around how it’s possible to acknowledge the fear, and show up for yourself and doing what you love anyway. I had the chance to answer her heart-felt questions below that took me right back to California, when Don’t Tell Summer first began- it was fun, free, and I was holding back.

Ready, set? Let’s show up…

What does Showing Up mean to you?

Showing up is a mixture between embracing, choosing and arriving. Sometimes you can feel fear when showing up is involved, but by agreeing to show up you are allowing yourself to move past it and have your own back.

Showing up means to embrace who you are and not only embrace it, but be inspired and stoked by it; to be ready to share it with the world around you.

Showing up means choosing your bliss; It takes courage to do what you would actually love to do.

Showing up means going for it. To get real on what you want or what your truth is. Whether that’s going for your dreams or putting yourself out there, showing up has a little rebellious element where you feel the fear and choose love instead.

How do you Show Up to your readers and in your daily life?

When I decide to show up I instantly feel supported, like I know that no matter what I have my own back. I love to tell my truth. My stories and experiences are what makes me feel connected to not only myself but to others.

I also like to make things fun. I think it’s easy to take things too seriously or to feel like you need to be grinding all the time at work or in your daily life. I show up by just being me. Whether that’s with co-workers, friends or the DTS community, all I can do is just be me. The more you show up for yourself and give yourself permission to literally just be YOU, the more life seems to flow in all different areas.

What was the initiator in your journey to Show Up online?

I’ve always been a connector and a permission giver. In my personal relationships I would love to share experiences, encourage friends to speak their truth and do what they love. Don’t Tell Summer has evolved a lot from when it started a couple years ago. The essence had always been the same, but I didn’t feel comfortable sharing that rawness online. My friends and I in California would have house parties that embodied the fun, fearless energy of Don’t Tell Summer and I would post music, surf videos and photos of friends who were following their bliss all year round. That worked for what I was comfortable sharing at the time, but one night I was sitting on my computer and just felt the pull to show up. To really show up.

I had been playing it safe by not fully sharing my truth with my community, and so I decided to share a story about a starfish bracelet. I found that sharing stories was a way to show up not only for myself, but was the chance to connect and relate to my community on a deeper level.

How did you overcome the fears and doubts that so often arise when we make the BIG choice to put ourselves out there?

I got comfortable with myself and my truth. When you first start to post, you’re terrified but it’s beautiful. In order to not only write about things that are close to your heart, but share them with the world around you, you get the chance to embrace your truth. You get to explore where you’ve been, what you’ve learned, what you believe in and who you want to inspire. You become a support system for yourself. Immediately after your first couple of posts, you are looking for others opinions, “Did they like it?” and “Am I accepted?,” but the more comfortable you get with sharing your truth, the more that need for reassurance diminishes.

I started writing posts and saving them on my desktop. They would be raw and real because I would give myself permission to just write freely, knowing that no one would have to see it. When I felt comfortable, I would post it and be so happy that I had just gone for the writing part of it and showing up for myself in that way.

What would be three tips you would offer to beginning blogging babes who are conflicted with the idea of Showing Up?

1. Get real with yourself and loosely define what showing up means to you. Does it mean showing up for yourself? Does it mean inspiring others? Does it mean having fun? Does it mean going for your dreams? Figure out what that means to you because all definitions of showing up can be different.

Encourage yourself to be comfortable posting. Know that what you are putting out there is your truth and it’s YOU. Allow yourself to embrace being you, and it will allow you to post things that are near and dear to your heart. The more you write and the more times you push post, the less vulnerable you will feel posting. At the end of the day, you just need to go for it.

Once you can agree that you will have your own back, you are unstoppable.

2. I find that the easiest way to start is to just begin to write, telling yourself that it’s ok if you don’t even push publish right now. Sometimes I would get stuck because I wouldn’t even know what to write about, but deep down I knew exactly what I wanted to say. Your head can sometimes get in the way of your truth coming out because you begin to think about who will be reading it.

When you get an idea, or something feels like it needs to come out, just start writing. Put your ideas down, write your heart out and save it. If you’re writing about an experience that you’re passionate about or feel very connected to in that moment, sometimes you may not be ready to post. I’ve found that even after a few days or a week, I don’t feel as intense of uncertainty about sharing what I’m writing about as I did in the moment of writing it. I then feel more confident sharing it, even though it is my truth.

3. Remember that what we want from others is their truth.

I was completely nervous to publish a post for the first, second and twelfth time because I had never publicly shared my stories and experiences about the world around me. I had no idea how anyone would react, or if anyone would react at all. What I found was something AMAZING. People LOVE to hear your truth. When you’re speaking from an authentic place about your life or about what you believe in, people love it because it gives them the permission to the do the same. They not only reacted in a positive way, but connected with me on a deeper level; By posting my truth, it broke down the barriers and allowed others to share their truth with me.

I passed this collaboration on to some rad, inspiring women. Be sure to keep an eye out for their responses on showing up!

Meet…

Felicia Fox: Embrace the soul

Felicia is an adventurous Australian who expresses her creative soul through photos + words, connecting with nature and being an enthusiast about life.

Elena Fullerton: Sweet Raw Things

Elena is a fellow American living in Sydney and the ultimate partner in crime. She recently started her own raw treat blog and business and her treats are as raw and real as she is. Her goal to provide the tastiest, healthiest treats imaginable. All of her desserts are made with organic ingredients & organic, activated nuts.

Cami Werner-Longo: A Butterfly by Day

Cami is a free-spirit, Californian and one half of A Butterfly by Day – a lifestyle and fashion blog created by the mother/daughter duo Valerie and Camilla Werner-Longo as a way to express themselves creatively and give a voice to their own vision and vibe.