it’s a blog tour!

When I was invited by my friend Michelle to join in a blog tour, I immediately said yes.  No matter that I had only been back to blogging a few months.  Or that I had no idea how I would answer the questions below.  Michelle is quite simply a light in this world; you can see her responses to these questions here.

So here we go.

What am I working on?

For 15 years, the heart of my work has been to bear witness and be a voice.  Whether I worked for the state domestic violence coalition, a national violence prevention program, the University of Kentucky or my own coaching company, my desire has always been to be a conduit for change.  I just finished my first online course, Brave Hearts, this winter.  And the project that has my heart on fire these days is my 1966 Airstream travel trailer.  I hope to have it on tour this year to collect even more brave and true stories.

How does my work differ from others of its genre?

Hmmm.  There are so many amazing coaches in the world and so many world-changing advocates {both professional and not}…and I am blessed to place my work in their camps.  If anything, people tell me that I am very mindful.  I guess that’s what happens when a Virgo, first-born, introverted philosophy major grows up!  And so this means that I am incredibly intentional with my work—and all of my life.  I read once about the Buddhist notion of Right Livelihood as being the aim to live all of life ethically.  I take that to mean I must show up in every area of my work—my coaching, my teaching, my writing, my mothering, my partnering—with my soul.  And so I don’t become a different person when I am in a coaching session.  I’m just Tisha.  And I don’t take off the coach hat and put on the Mama hat each afternoon.  I just continue showing up as me.  Intentional.  Mindful.  Soulful, I hope.

How does my writing/creating process work?

Audre Lorde said, I am my best work—a series of road maps, reports, recipes, doodles, and prayers from the front lines.  Yes, this!  I think my best work is born from listening to those I serve as well as myself.  Listening for what wants to be written.  Listening for what is not always seen or honored in this world.

And so my process is organic and alive.  I am learning to listen for the words and projects that are ripe and ready to fall.  I keep a notebook in which I capture loose pieces–a random phrase that pops into my head, a clipping from a magazine, a quote on Pinterest, a line from the weekly Anthropologie e-newsletter.  I let the bits gestate and trust that the stories or projects that want to be born will come at just the right time.  I write morning pages just to spill ideas out of my head each day and I also create vision pages in a vision book, a process I learned in Hannah Marcotti‘s Magic Making Circle.

Why do I write/create what I do?

Such a delicious question.  Whether I am writing on the blog or coaching with a client, I work to be of service.  I work to hold space for people to be in their process.  For example, I woke one morning during Brave Hearts to a post in our private forum from an advocate. She wrote about her experience being called to the hospital in the middle of the night to sit with someone who had been assaulted.  Reading her words and feeling her experience reminded me that those acts of compassion are so powerful and gorgeous.  And I want all of us to have a space to be seen and honored and heard.  I work because I know we all have stories of courage and transformation to share.

And now to continue this stroll!

The dear souls below have been part of my my magic circle this last year.  These friends will take the next leg of the tour on May 5th.

Hayley Hunter Hines  is a culinary nutritionist, lifestyle design coach, motivational speaker, and soul sparking adventure seeker dedicated to helping you fall in love with your life.  She also leads workshops and retreats focused on helping others create an authentic expression of themselves and find passion and purpose in life and love.

Kerri Kettle is an audacious story-teller and a passionate pleasure-seeker. She guides women back to their center after difficult times, but really she’s a cheerleader for your spirit.

Melissa Mulligan is a singer, songwriter and vocal coach. She is the owner and head of vocal coaching and artist development of MMVS (Melissa Mulligan Vocal Studios) with coaches in Connecticut, New York, California and throughout the online world. She is a passionate believer in dreams, free spirits and creative self-expression.

Carrie Saba, Health and Lifestyle Coach, is an open-hearted listener of your truth, leading you to love and embracing ease and flow in your own life. She is not afraid of the edge and will take you hand as she guides you to yours.