28. How To Bring More Courage, Fearlessness, and Bravery Into Your Everyday Life with Dr. Neeta Bhushan and Chris Van Loan

Welcome back, Brave Table fam, this time for a different kind of episode! I’m switching seats and pulling up a chair to The Brave Table with the man behind the magic, podcast producer extraordinaire, Chris Van Loan. 

Together, we reflect on what we’ve learned from our guests and the conversations we’ve had, what the next evolution of being brave looks like, and how to bring more courage, fearlessness, and bravery into your everyday life. 

What you’ll get out of this episode…  

- Being brave enough to open yourself up to criticism and being misunderstood

- Tips on creating a personal brand that is true to you, even when that means being vulnerable

- How to have compassion for your friends and family who don’t support your growth and evolution and expect you to stay the same 

- Dealing with being afraid of what other people will think and working through the backlash

- My experience as a Brown woman in the personal growth community and opening the door for more diversity in this space

- Who you are versus who you are in relation to satisfying other people’s happiness, knowing what you like and don’t like, and what your non-negotiables are

- Finding your zone of genius and being the expert of your life 

- The future of spirituality and the importance of creating communities

- Feeling grief over the things you’ve let go of, and how to integrate any fears and shadows that have been coming up for you 

It feels like just yesterday Chris and I had a pipe dream of starting a podcast, and now here we are, 28 episodes in and only just getting started! Chris has such a wise and sweet nature about him, and as the one who has been behind the lens and held a vision for this show for so long, it felt right to put him in front of the camera to shed his light and wisdom on the journey so far, plus hold ME accountable for the very thing I’m bringing others here to do: to be brave. 

Yup. I’m here to be present with this show’s namesake, walk my talk, and stretch and expand alongside all of you, realizing that I am still very much on my own journey with bravery and what it really means to meet my edge. Having hard conversations, when I don’t always agree with the ideas or things being shared, but finding within myself ways to honor and respect them and give people a soapbox to stand on to speak their truth, has definitely been my bravest journey to date. 

In this episode, I get into what got me to this point. My childhood days of wanting to be like Oprah and interview people, and longing for more representation of Brown women in this space. Being a recovering perfectionist and how to let go of the image you once had of yourself (which, more often than not, is an image that others project upon you). 

And—a big shout out to those of you who also grew up in an immigrant home; you especially know how scary it can be to stray off the path your parents laid out for you. For all the Black & Brown sheep of their family, know that I'm here, walking hand-in-hand with you on this journey.

Some things to ponder as you listen to this episode—where have you been pushed to your edge lately and had to be braver? If you can’t come up with an answer, are you ready to find something—a conversation, an experience, an idea—that could take you there? 

If you liked this episode, here are others for you to check out.. 

- What it means to be brave https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/what-it-means-to-be-brave/id1608226580?i=1000551021321 

- If you’re struggling with your family on your journey of being brave, check out Healing Generational Trauma & Breaking Free From Asian Immigrant Parents
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/healing-generational-trauma-breaking-free-from-asian/id1608226580?i=1000553426419 

- Learning how to have tough conversations with people https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/ghosting-setting-boundaries-what-does-it-really-say/id1608226580?i=1000558858100