Conflict Bravery builds healthy, thriving communities.

Dear Community,

Let's be real: What comes up when you hear the word conflict?

For many of us, it's tension, raised voices, and the urge to run or shut down. A quick image search backs that up—fists clenched, brows furrowed, people in battle mode. We've been conditioned to see conflict as a crisis—something to win, or worse, something to avoid.

But what if we've misunderstood what conflict really is?

What if we reimagined conflict as something that can nourish us and our relationships?

What if conflict isn't a threat to care, but one of its most honest expressions?

That's where Conflict Bravery™ comes in.

Conflict is natural. It shows up in every relationship worth having—even our relationship with ourselves. Showing up fully and truthfully can create tension. We are complex, as are the people and systems around us.

But when we choose comfort over authenticity, we lose something essential. We avoid naming truths that need to be said, tiptoe around misalignment, and silence the deeper connection that could have grown in the space where honesty lived. We rob ourselves of the chance to succeed.

I've seen it happen in all kinds of spaces—homes, friend circles, workplaces, group chats, even movements rooted in justice and liberation—places where people want transformation but still struggle when conflict shows up. It gets shut down, avoided, and people ghost, retreat, or punish those who speak up.

The result? We end up recreating the very harm we're trying to heal from—shutting people out, silencing hard truths, prioritizing harmony over honesty. In avoiding the discomfort of conflict, we compromise the depth and integrity of our relationships. We reinforce the patterns we want to dismantle—mistrust, disconnection, silence, avoidance.

Conflict Bravery™ invites us to embrace conflict for positive change. It is the practice of meeting tension with care, clarity, and courage. Conflict Bravery isn't about being aggressive. It's about being present, grounded in conflict, and staying connected.

Conflict Bravery looks like:

When discussing conflict, we often imagine it with people on the "other side"—those who don't share our beliefs or values. But in truth, Conflict Bravery begins much closer to home.

It starts with how we navigate tension within ourselves and in our most intimate communities: our partners, our children, our parents, our siblings, our closest friends—the people we build with, organize with, and dream with.

Too often, we want to create systemic change, but we avoid the everyday conversations that build our capacity for it. If we can't be honest with our roommate about the dishes, how can we challenge the systems that shape our lives? If we can't tell a friend we feel hurt because they've gone quiet, how can we expect to show up fully in movement spaces?

Conflict Bravery in personal relationships means embracing conflict as a practice of care, honesty, and connection. It means choosing truth over comfort and remembering that how we show up in small moments shapes the bigger change we seek.

To build healthy, thriving communities, we must make Conflict Bravery part of who we are—a way of being, a mindset, a commitment.

So ask yourself: What might become possible if you practiced Conflict Bravery?

Conflict Bravery has changed my life.

It's made me more confident and grounded in who I am. It's deepened my relationships with loved ones, collaborators, and myself. It's transformed how I organize, allowing me to move with greater courage and clarity.

My commitment to being conflict-brave accelerated my personal and career growth.

For example, I used these tools to enter annual review meetings, look stakeholders in their eyes, and advocate for what I knew I deserved and was worth.

As a result, I received raises (20-60%) and promotions every year after graduating from undergrad.

I'm grateful and always excited to see how Conflict Bravery changed the lives of others.

Bringing Conflict Bravery to organizations has been the most effective approach for shifting organizational culture. Teams become more trusting, communication becomes more honest, workflows become more efficient, and creativity and innovation flow more freely. Everything changes when people feel safe enough to be real with one another.

This work attracts the following kinds of people:

Conflict Bravery doesn't make conflict disappear. It makes us brave enough to face it—and wise enough to grow through it.

Now I'm sure you're wondering: What does it take to become Conflict Brave?

Conflict Bravery is not a skill you master in a day. It's a practice, a muscle, a mindset. And like any good practice, it deepens when we do it together.

That's why I created the Conflict Bravery™ Masterclass.

This experience moves beyond theory into embodiment, exploring the rituals, tools, and care practices that make Conflict Bravery possible and building the muscle of Conflict Bravery in real time.

This will be my second year offering this experience outside of an institution.

More details will land in your inbox soon. But for now, mark the first three Thursdays of August, 7–8:15 p.m. EST, in your calendars.