Reach for Your Stars

WELCOME back to my newsletter!?It's been a while since the last edition...?

I hope you had an amazing Summer Solstice last week and are now ready to embrace a wonderful summer!

This edition is dedicated to the recent #book I launched on May 19th. I believe it to be a perfect gift for you, dear readers, as we approach the end of the first part of this year.?

Without further ado, here is the prologue from my book – Audrey Hepburn: Reach for Your Stars.

*** I much enjoy empowering people around me through stories about love and life. I am a firm believer in the power that #storytelling has on our souls, no matter our age. Some call me an idealist.?

I call myself a grounded visionary.

Each one of us carries stories of all kinds to share with the world. I like to say we are living in a library of hearts, and these hearts need to be nurtured with love, kindness, enchantment.

That’s one of the major reasons I chose to write this book. Another comes from my first book, VUCA2: Tap The Power Within You, where I introduced a breakthrough model for personal growth with purpose:

VUCA2 = Vulnerability + Uniqueness + Courage + Authenticity

Before we step into this book, allow me to share a little more about the VUCA2 concept.

What is the Aim of VUCA2?

I’m guessing you are a human being who wants to contribute to the DNA of the world through your uniqueness. In my view, being Unique equals embracing Vulnerability, Authenticity and Courage.

These VUCA2 qualities intertwine to help you face and navigate the challenges of a world experiencing the original VUCA factors of Volatility, Uncertainty, Complexity, Ambiguity with more assertiveness and poise.

VUCA2 is a potent remedy you can use to better survive and prosper in our era of globalization. For sure, there are many positive dimensions a more globalized business arena offers all. Yet leaders on the 21st-century stage are also faced with greater dilemmas, dangers, and decisions than ever. These call for the increased resilience and flexible mindset VUCA2 offers to choose well amid great Volatility, Uncertainty, Complexity and Ambiguity.

I don’t think there’s one general recipe for increasing your level of personal courage. I do believe the path towards your greatest level of courage reveals itself at the moment when you know WHO YOU ARE. In my case, it was the moment I understood that vulnerability is both my anchor and my North Star. This became clear after I experienced a premature near encounter with death which led to the VUCA2 model.

#Vulnerability gives me great strength, inspiration, and power. There was a time when I considered it a weakness—yet it became the vital and welcome key that activates my #courage .?

A few years ago a business leader I collaborated with shared this insight:

“Gabriela, for me, Vulnerability is the normal state many of us have, yet unfortunately lost in order to adapt to the digital world.”

Pretty powerful, right?

Since early 2020, we have been especially shaken by the increasing volatility, uncertainty, complexity, and ambiguity of our world. This period has raised big fears; some new and some all-too familiar. Fear is an inevitable emotion in our lives. It often appears whenever a change happens, whether internal or external. At the same time, these periods of struggle act as an engine that pushes us outside our comfort zones and feeds our innovation powers. So, we best not run from our fears.

My #life experiences have taught me to dialogue with my fears; to listen to and better understand them. In the process, I gained a transformative gift that keeps on giving, and in greater measure: COURAGE. Courage is the special Vitamin C which allows me to step more often out of my comfort zone.

For me, writing this book is another measure of Courage. Now, let me tell you a secret disclosed in my first book, VUCA2: Tap The Power Within You.

There is one exquisite individual who inspired me to create VUCA2. A woman who caused happiness wherever she went (adapted quote from Oscar Wilde).

This person beautifully contributed to the DNA of the world through her own Uniqueness, Vulnerability, Authenticity and Courage / VUCA2.

For me, Audrey Hepburn is the epitome of a person who moved through the world with these qualities in abundance.?

Yes, this is a book about Audrey Hepburn––though it’s neither a biography or a style and beauty primer. It is instead a playbook, a journal, a diary of sorts over 45 days or 45 weeks, depending on the timeframe you choose for this journey of introspection (I suggest the 45-day option). In any event, the key is to keep this empowerment journal IN SIGHT––close by––as you journey through it, vs. out of mind.

Through Audrey’s gently profound insights and my provocative follow-up questions and reflective exercises, you’ll step onto the path of a unique self-discovery process. This journey will also support you to grow your own Uniqueness, Vulnerability, Authenticity and Courage. You’ll have the opportunity to contemplate and integrate each quote through the lens of the four VUCA2 qualities at the bottom of each page.

??Vulnerability????????Uniqueness????????Courage??????????Authenticity

Carry your selected?VUCA2?quality above to add further insight and guidance into your day. ***

Thanks for reading,

Gabri(Ella) Blaga

Want to learn more about this empowerment journal? Invest some moments in visiting these links:

International Orders

Romania Orders

And, please do not forget:

Stay Kind,?Courageous, Authentic!

Until we will interact again, I wish you a serene summer!?If you feel I can help you and / or your company with my body of knowledge, send me a note to: [email protected] and we will take it from there.