The Daring Way™ online group
with Andrea Owen
- Have a hard time opening up without feeling like you’ll be judged, criticized, or feeling like you’re going to die.
- Struggle with things like people-pleasing, perfectionism, “being strong”, or wanting to always be in control of things.
- Tend to numb out with food, alcohol, spending money unnecessarily, or busyness.
- Feel like your behaviors are on auto-pilot, and no matter how aware you are of them, you can’t seem to change. Which sometimes makes you feel worse.
- Know that vulnerability is the key to more connection, and even more confidence and happiness, but still keep people at arm's length and put walls up.
the good news is you’re certainly not alone.
Listen, I get it. I personally spent my whole life finding ways to avoid vulnerability completely. And self-compassion? I felt like self-compassion was for hippies. Connection was something I wanted, but I wanted other people to go first and I wanted a different way to get it rather than having to be vulnerable.
After years of living that way and it not working (like, at all), I decided to slowly walk into the work of learning vulnerability and unlearning disconnection and lo and behold, it completely transformed my life. And I’d love for you to have that too.
If you follow my work, you’re probably familiar with the work of Dr. Brené Brown. Her groundbreaking research on shame, vulnerability, and connection has changed the lives of countless individuals.
I’m a certified life coach and have held a certification as a Daring Way™ Facilitator since 2014. With over a decade of experience leading groups of women through transformation, I invite you to join us for a 6-week online group program.
This program and work is for women who:
- Struggle with vulnerability, but are ready to start using it in their lives because they know it’s the key to connection, intimacy, and better relationships.
- Feel compelled to do the work. This retreat requires getting honest with yourself, journaling, and creative projects.
- Are ready to learn science-based tools around shame resilience.
- Love being around other women who have like-minded thinking and like-minded spirits.
- Are at least somewhat familiar with the work of Brené Brown and who are familiar with Andrea Owen.
If this is you, I invite you to sign up for one of 14 spots for The Daring Way™ Group.
Enrollment ends on April 10th or when the spots are filled, whichever comes first.
By signing up for the group, you agree to the Terms and Conditions here.
Once we receive your registration payment, we’ll be in touch with the next steps.
(Below is the process of what to expect after you sign up, please read that carefully.)
I loved spending time with Andrea in person. She is real, no BS, and open. She challenged me when I needed a push and supported me when I needed validation. She helped me commit to concrete goals.
I now have a new understanding about the importance of vulnerability in relationships and compassion for my perfectly imperfect self. I have actionable steps I can take now that I am back home.”
What you'll walk away with:
- A clear definition of your top values, what they look like in your life, when you're not in alignment with them, and how to honor them more.
- A better understanding of how trust operates in your life in conjunction with your relationships and how to develop more of it.
- A newfound sense of the myths and paradoxes of vulnerability, and how those specifically shaped your beliefs growing up.
- Certainty about what empathy is and looks like (one of the antidotes to shame), how to practice it, as well as a checklist of how YOU like to receive empathy. As well as how we and others often get it wrong, and how to “clean it up” when that happens.
- A straightforward definition and examples of what self-compassion looks like (another antidote to shame) and how and when it's most critical to practice it.
- A breakdown of how, why, and when your “inner-critic” gets noisy and how to shift it.
- A crystal clear understanding of what shame is, and how it operates in your life (because whether you know it or not, it's at the driver's seat of your life much of the time).
- Massive self-awareness around the behaviors or “armor” you use to avoid things like shame, judgment, criticism, and failure (I wrote about 14 of those behaviors in How to Stop Feeling Like Shit), and how it impacts you and the people around you.
- The ability to recognize when you're using what we call “shame shields” when you're at risk for or you're in shame. These shields are never in alignment with our values, yet we all do them. When you know them and can recognize them, you can stop it before it happens, or clean up any “messes” you've made.
ALL of these takeaways are so that you can go from a place to doing things to avoid shame, criticism, and judgment (i.e. perfectionism, people-pleasing, isolating, numbing out, blaming, etc.) to a place where you recognize those behaviors and can consciously and lovingly choose self-compassion and self-kindness. This will lead to more happiness, contentment, fulfillment, and better relationships.
This is for serious women who are tired of feeling like shit, and who are ready to not just learn the work, but implement it in their real lives, in order to transform their lives. This is not for people who are brand new to personal development, or just want to “try something new”. That’s not to judge if that’s where you are, but in fairness, I want to be clear about what this program is.
If you want to learn these takeaways, I invite you to sign up for one of 14 spots for The Daring Way™ Group.
Enrollment ends on April 10th or when the spots are filled, whichever comes first.
By signing up for the group, you agree to the Terms and Conditions here.
Once we receive your registration payment, we’ll be in touch with the next steps.
(Below is the process of what to expect after you sign up, please read that carefully.)
I knew I liked Andrea and the work of Brené Brown, so I knew this would be meaningful. Also, I decided to choose me.
The most useful thing I learned through this process was that shame is real but empathy, self-compassion, and sharing with special friends is a game changer!”
Step 1: Pay in full or make your first payment by using the buttons on this page.
Step 2: After your purchase has been successful, you will receive a welcome email from me with all the details you'll need to know about the program.
Step 3: Take a few minutes to complete the intake form that will come to you in the welcome email and add the group calls to your calendar so you don't miss them.
FAQs
Can I book a call with Andrea to help make my decision?
If you are on the fence, please feel free to email us your questions. If they are logistical in nature, Emily or Rebecca will answer them. If they are more in-depth (i.e. not sure if the curriculum is right for what you're looking for, etc.) then Andrea will reply.
What is the cancellation policy?
If you sign up and before we start find out you cannot commit to the class, please email us to work something out. You will not be held to the entire cost without participating in the program, but we still want to try to work out other arrangements.
If you attend the first two classes, do the work and feel that me as a facilitator, the group, or the curriculum is not for you, we will refund you minus the first weeks' cost.
Is there a payment plan, or do I have to pay all up front?
Yes, there is a payment plan. $897 upfront or two payments of $457, billed 30 days apart. The first payment is due upon registration.
I’m a coach and would like to join so I can experience this work and use some of the tools with my clients. Can I do that?
If you are a coach or other helping professional, please only register if you’d like to come to experience this work for your own personal development. If you’re in the mindset of wanting to take the tools to use in your practice, you’ll be distracted.
What do the twelve modules look like?
- Very first is our introduction module where we create the group dynamics, do some opening exercises, and you pick an area in your life. This area might be your work, friendships, intimate relationships, etc. We don't focus solely on this area for the whole program, but for a few of the exercises it's best to narrow down an area. What I typically do is if we work on the lesson in just that area, I’ll assign you to do the same exercise in different areas of your life, that way it will help you see things from all areas.
- Then we talk about trust and your support system, and what this looks like. Friends, intimate partners, and how well you open up to people FULLY and what needs to be done to fill in any gaps.
- Then, we work on vulnerability. This is where the area you picked comes up. We also look at how vulnerability was modeled for you growing up and how it has shaped you.
- Next comes “the arena”. Metaphors are big in this work and I love how The Arena captures how you look at vulnerability. We look at “the critics section”, “the cheap seats”, etc., plus two areas you need to practice looking at first: self-compassion + empathy.
- Then we look more at empathy, what it is, what it ACTUALLY looks like in real life. We also work on self-compassion and look at where exactly YOU could work on this.
- We follow that up with shame work (insert looming music). It's really not that scary.
It's where we pull the covers off of some shaming stories and experiences you've had. We spend a couple weeks here and also get to practice empathy on each other. - Then we look at the “armor” you wear (if you read my book, How to Stop Feeling Like Shit, it's all those behaviors!). For most of my people, it's control, perfectionism, foreboding joy, numbing, and isolation. We'll see what yours are.
- Next is “shame shields“. Everyone picks up one of three shields when they're in shame, and it might be different depending on the situation. This is a HUGE eye-opener.
- We talk about values and of course, there is another metaphor. What I love about this values work is that we break it down to 2 or 3 top values that you want to rule your life, what gets you in “trouble” and the behaviors you're in when you're not in line with them.
- Then, my personal favorite is identities and triggers. Because all this work is futile if you don't know the things that get you in it.
- Our last module is our closing one, where we'll express graditude and other closing exercsies to help you lock in the work you've spent six weeks in!
In a nutshell, you’ll walk away with the coping skills to be able to create fulfilling relationships with others, learn science-based tools to help you with fear, and gain tools to help with any negative self-talk (aka shame resilience). In addition to massive self-awareness, self-compassion, self-acceptance, and self-love.
This program is like a guide on how to know yourself better, trust yourself more, and know what habits and behaviors are in complete service of yourself.
What are the dates?
We meet via Zoom every Tuesday and Thursday at 3pm Pacific/6pm Eastern time. We start April 11th and ending May 18th.
What if I have to miss some of the calls?
Because of the nature of this work, as well as the importace of keeping the group dynamic going, I ask that you do everythign possible to make every call.
What if I’m not familiar with Brené Brown’s work?
If you’re not at all familiar with Brené’s work, you can still join and I think you'll still get tons of value, but I do recommend reading at least one (or all!) of her books before the program begins.
watch videos from past participants:
(please note these were in-person retreat attendees, but the curricum is exactly the same as the online group)
My biggest takeaway is that I am a lot stronger and braver than I give myself credit for. That I do not have to be perfect. That I do not have to apologize to the world for who I am and what I want, and other peoples' opinions of me do not define me.
I realized I was worthy of the time and effort to do this work, and it has changed my life. Being clear on my values made it not so scary to try online dating, which I'd not done in the two years since my divorce out of fear. When I became confident in who I am and what I deserve out of life, I had no hesitancy to request it and expect it. Breaking down shame shields is helping me to massively declutter my home in a way I never have before – releasing things that I've carried around for decades and was hesitant to let go. I am also quicker to catch myself when I start going down the rabbit hole of shame and say “hell no” and reverse that thinking.
I am so very grateful to Andrea for offering this work. I've done Gremlin and other coaching work with her for years, but The Daring Way took all of that to the next level and gave me back so much more than I could ever have expected. I would not hesitate to highly recommend this course, and working with Andrea specifically.”
During the process facilitators explore topics such as vulnerability, courage, shame, and worthiness. Participants are invited to examine the thoughts, emotions, and behaviors that are holding them back and identify the new choices and practices that will move them toward more authentic and wholehearted living. The primary focus is on developing shame resilience skills and developing daily practices that transform the way we live, love, parent, and lead.
What made me gravitate towards Andrea was her ability to be real, vulnerable and compassionate. I loved her podcasts, emails and her spirit. I also resonated with her coaching style. I decided I wanted to be Andrea when I grow up.
Once Andrea and I started working on The Daring Way I saw instant results in my life. My relationships with my family and friends were changing and I was able to align more to who I am and what I wanted to be. I love Andrea and the work we did together.
Love you lady! You have no idea how much you have changed my life!”
Laura R.
ARKANSAS
I gained more clarity around my values and found out why I felt so disconnected from my core group of people. I absolutely require connection and since I wasn’t showing up real, I wasn’t getting real connection. I’ll use the tools provided to help me work through areas that I find myself setting expectations, to dig into why and how to let go of them.”