Your PBD: When Shit Gets Real

In my last three posts, I’ve written about what a Personal Board of Directors (PBD) is; it’s purpose; the benefits and how to create one of your own. In this final post I want to share with you the “why”.  Why will your PBD matter so much on your life’s journey?

Our “why” is…Relationship! This journey is about creating a sacred space to be who we are and the only way to experience that is in relationship. The world needs to focus on how to build, keep and go deeper with relationships. Your PBD can offer you the opportunity to stretch, leap, fall and be picked up, dusted off and lovingly put back on your path.

Your PBD will be incredibly unique.  Once you’ve thoughtfully chosen your board members you can agree to stand for each other’s success in a very unattached and objective way. Your PBD offers the support, advice, questions and guidance that come from an unconditional and generative place for your highest good.

For me, having a PBD is like being in the embrace of pure acceptance and love. These people have seen me at my highest highs and my lowest lows.  We focus on who each of us is beyond the titles we have, the roles we play, the businesses we’re in, who we know, what we have, and what we “don’t”. We relate to each other with the utmost respect. We see the brilliance of who each one of us is, beyond our current circumstances in the world.

I believe that everyone should have a circle of love and trust like this, which is why I created this series. You can create a PBD where you feel safe and seen when you are up and when you are down. You can create a place to be known and supported for who you are personally and professionally.  My PBD is a rich source of decades of insight, networking connections, business intelligence, innovative ideas, practical processes, tactical tips, resources and encouragement for accomplishment and yours will be too.

I’ve witnessed it time and again, the championing, the questioning, the push back and the relentless stand each one of us takes for the sake of the other to make sure he/she is being true to him/herself.  On a recent call I heard my fellow board members exchange “I love you’s” five times. Five times! This is from people who have only met in person once over six years ago.

So, why will your PBD matter?  What can your PBD offer to your journey and the world?  Here’s where the shit gets real.  When life seems to crowd in on you and you’re uncertain about your path.  When you’re not sure who’s got your back or which strategy or move is right for you.  This is when your PBD can offer you both personal and professional support and encouragement to take the next steps and know you’ve got partners on the journey.

Recently, one of our board members lost her mother and then had her own health issue which has changed the way she’s looking at her life.  She was at a crossroad on her path, not certain about how or if she wanted to continue with what she’s been doing. She wasn’t sure what her next steps were and was looking to her tribe as the journey into the unknown continues. We helped her by offering her our unbiased listening.  Then, asking questions to get her clearer on where she is in the process of grieving for her mom and the unbounded state of how to identify oneself when you no longer recognize life, as you knew it.

We stood for the greatness, the glory and the gifts that are her legacy to life, love and leadership.  We offered her unconditional acceptance.  Our willingness to deeply listen for understanding where she needed our support and guidance gave her the space to honor what she’s working through.  She was able to see herself clearly and know that no matter what, when life seems like it’s at its worst, she is heard and held.

Maybe your PBD will be a place where “I love you” sounds more like “Go out there and kick some ass!” Your PBD will take on its own character through each of its members.  But, here’s the thing that matters most – RELATIONSHIP – is what it’s all about.

This entire life is about how you experience yourself in relationship with yourself, with others and with all of life. When it matters most, BEing together in right relationship for the little stuff and the big stuff, the starts, the stops, the deaths, the diagnosis and the deliberation helps us on the journey to get an aerial view of what’s happening.  That view put things in to perspective on the ground. There you’ll know what feels like the right next step.

A Wonder-Full Life isn’t about acquiring things, proving your worthiness, building businesses or accumulating material wealth. Those things are awesome, but they aren’t what this journey is truly about.  The bottom line is that in right relationship we create a sacred place for each and all of us to experience the truth of who we are.  Espavo!