Being A Brave Baddass Women

I recently took a trip overseas with my sister.

This was the first time that I’ve ever left the country by myself. I’m now 45, and have always wanted to go on an adventure like this one, but fear has held me back.

I’m happy to say I did it! And I returned home more confident in myself and my ability to navigate the world.

Job well done, Tina!

If you want the definition of a Badass Brave Woman, look back at history. It’s full of them.

Here’s just a few name drops:

Catherine de’ Medici, Lavinia Fontana (her story and artwork I saw in Dublin,Ireland inspired this journal), Queen Elizabeth I, Maya Angelou, Madame C.J. Walker, Harriet Tubman, Amelia Earhart, Marie Curie, Mother Theresa, Shirley Chisholm, Margret Thatcher, Jane Austin, Cleopatra VII, Wangari Maathia, Virginia Woolf, Grace Hopper, Artemisia Gentileschi, Clara Barton, Junko Tabei, Gertrude Ederle…

These are just a few of the many thousands of female pioneers, who, by breaking the rules and pushing back against society’s boundaries, began to pave the path of liberation for the rest of us.

Personally, I found this entry’s title easy to write, say aloud, as well as (semi-) believe. The real struggle, I’ve found, is taking action.

And this, my friends, is what I have committed myself to start doing. I’ve been brave so many times in my life, but not always given myself the credit for it when it was due. Like the time, for example, when I moved to NYC at 18 years old…even though I had never even stepped foot into the big city before. Or the time that I quit my job to start a website and blog. Or the time when I travelled to Europe by myself… These are brave acts to me, because they weren’t easy, but I knew the end choice was going to be worth it once I pushed myself out of my comfort zone. Once I got into the unknown, it didn’t really matter if I sank or swam, because that was where my heart was at. The hard part for me, really, was just getting there.

Somehow and somewhere along my path I lost my bravery. I lost my drive to try new things—I got to be too comfortable. I stopped pushing myself to do things.

After some time, I realized that I was being my best self for everyone but me. I became so comfortable in that routine that when I tried to break it, or try something new, I had all this anxiety creeping in… and so I just did the easy thing: I avoided it—and for way too long.

If you have been reading my story, you know that over the past four years, I have been peeling back all the layers of myself and begun the journey of embracing myself for simply being me. I’ve been constantly telling myself that I want to be the brave young girl who moved to New York again, but after a while, I had an epiphany. I am still the girl who packed up her bags at 18 years old and embarked on the journey of a lifetime. She’s still a part of me, I just have to bring her back up to the surface. (ASAP, because I’m not getting any younger!)

I also realized that I have endless support around me, even if it doesn’t always feel like it. When I arrived in New York, I was met by my sister, who had been on a different flight since she lives in another state, and our next stop was England. Having her company as we took in all the sights was more than comforting, because it reminded me that even though we’re often states apart, she’s still always there for me—cheering me on(especially on the flights back home - bc I had a different flight at a different airport - all by myself.)

So, both the present people we surround ourselves with—and the sights and memories we have remaining from the strong women that came before us—should act as reminders that we are never completely alone. Whether it’s a role model, friendship, advice, or even just a quick phone call, there are always people ready to help you through your journey. Sometimes, even just a small smile or a quick hug can be the extra needed boost to get through the hard times.

It took me a while, but I have now finally stopped comparing myself to who I was in my past, or the people that I think I should be.

Instead, I’ve flipped the switch, and started to ask myself the questions:

• What do you need to focus on, to get to the point where you want to be?

• Have you set time aside for yourself to be creative?

• Are you taking time to enjoy yourself?

So much of who I am becoming now is because I’ve taken this shift. I’ve began directing my thoughts forward and focusing in on the moment. I’m breaking the comfort cycle, and I’m choosing to be brave and put my creativity out into the world instead.

I encourage you to read about some of the women above, and be inspired by how hard they worked. We can look to their journeys, endurance, creativity, strength of mind, and their hearts to see where they began and how they came to be the person who left such an impact.

As women, we are all on the same team. We should strive to constantly encourage and cheer each other on, because we’re all in this together!

So today, I challenge you to encourage someone in your life to be badass and brave, in whatever they are struggling with. Cheer them on, share some of your hope, and support them in the journey to their final destination, so that in no time at all, they’ll be knocking one out of the park for all of us!

Portrait of Costanza Alidoso By Lavinia Fontana

Lavinia Fontana was the first professional women painter in Italy. She successfully commissioned large figure paintings in the late 16th century in a male dominated field.

P.S. My daughter will be doing a series of Badass Women in History - stay tuned!