How it all began...
About Rise Fearlessly
My name is Sheila Chasse. I am the creator of Rise Fearlessly. One of my many hopes for this site is that it helps you build an armory of tools to become fearless even in the midst of the unknown. I want to inspire you to shift your mindset and know it is a continuous process, but when done you can TRULY live your best life. Remember, being fearless does not mean we do not and will not experience fear, but it is that we do not let fear dictate our future or outcome.
I want to show you through my blog posts and with my own personal journeys that what lies on the other side of fear is far greater than anything you could ever dream of and that is freedom. Freedom to be, do, and achieve ANYTHING you wish to, while using fear as a weight to strengthen your faith. In return you grow into a stronger, braver, more confident version of yourself. You will not conform to the world around you, but better yet you will transform all that is in your path.
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I want to share a little background on how Fear was a major platform in my life at one point. Going back into my childhood and early teenage years, fear paralyzed me. I lived in extreme anxiety, I had low self-esteem, fear made me feel worthless, stuck, and I felt very hopeless. Fear ate at my deepest passions and dreams, keeping me bonded to its shackles. This was because of some of the things I grew up around. In short, my parents divorced when I was not even two years of age and I went to live with my mother while my younger brother (about 13 months younger) stayed with my father. I was able to visit my father and brother still, but little did I know I would travel a very rocky road with my mother as she was suffering from her own addictions and it would continue far into my young adulthood.
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So, fear was all I knew at one point. I never knew what to expect. What was going to happen. Where the next turn would take us. Times of feeling abandoned, neglected from her choice of using drugs over caring for me, and completely lost with no guidance. I was not even eight years old at this point. It was extremely traumatic at times and later in life I would be diagnosed with PTSD and Generalized Anxiety Disorder because of this state of fear I lived in for far too long. I was going to have to unlearn and learn a whole new way of living once I got older and I had no clue what that was going to entail, but I can say now that all that fear helped me RISE to be who I am today because despite how paralyzed I felt by it way back then, I always persevered, I beat the odds, I chose a path of faith that took a shit ton of grit and a whole lot of grace with myself. I had to work through a lot to undo what had been done to my internal self, but like a phoenix from the ashes, hope would arise and myself would rise anew.
I hope you find strength in my messages and a fearlessness to rise above it all.
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- Sheila
The Pheonix
"She had the choice to sulk in the disaster or find beauty in the Ashes."
The name Rise Fearlessly was created around the tattoo of a phoenix I carry on my right forearm. After I finished my last round of chemotherapy back in December of 2015 I told my husband, Jamie that I wanted to get a tattoo that represented all that I had been through and conquered. Not just with cancer, but in everything else leading up to where I was in my life at that point. I remember him telling me "It will come to you" that what I was meant get have would fall into place. So one day, several weeks after that conversation, he sends me a song by Cassadee Pope. His text message read "this was written for you hunny" so when I clicked the link and the song started to play, chills ran down my spine. It hit me when I heard the chorus for the first time which goes like this: "I'm Invincible, I'm Unbreakable, I'm a Diamond cut to last, I'm Unstoppable, I'm a Hero, like a Phoenix from the ash." A Phoenix. That's what I felt symbolized all that I had conquered thus far....
The phoenix symbolizes the resurrection of the mystical bird that rose from its own ashes. The phoenix was not afraid of burning to the ground because it believes in it's own power of rising from the ashes. It is from those ashes of who we were, what we experienced and overcome, that we rise up to become who we were meant to be. From our deepest pain and hardships you can be empowered to grow into your highest self. Believe in yourself and your ability to rise above with absolute conviction that you can rise from the ashes and soar even more beautiful than before.
- and just like that, her wings unfolded and she rose above it all.
A rising phoenix is a symbol of virtue and grace, a representation of resurrection and victory from it's own ashes it arises anew.
Rise Fearlessly
Core Values
What makes Rise Fearlessly. Core values are essential, not just in a blog or business aspect, but for life in general. Core values should be reflected in our everyday lives. They serve as a compass, taking us in the direction we need to go. We can have infinite numbers of distractions that can pull us in so many directions, so when you know your core values it can serve as a guide post to keep you grounded and moving in the right direction. Here are my four main Core Values of Rise Fearlessly and what I aim to bring to the world through these values.
Empowerment
The most important core value of this blog is to empower people. I want to make others better as a result of my presence, leaving behind an impact so great that it lives on in my absence.
Authenticity
Keeping it real, honest, and being truthful to my audience and most importantly to myself because that is how we grow and above all, that is how we connect to others. All the while knowing that I hold myself to a standard of GRACE, not perfection because perfection is an illusion and those who seek that will find themselves unfulfilled their entire lives. I want my real, imperfect, beautiful journey to help someone else. Our personal journeys can make an impact when we share them, and those stories shared can often have enough power to change someone else’s world. Standing true to self and those around you is the light that can shine on someone else who is searching for a light to bring them out of the dark. Making a connection.
Perseverance
This is a big one for me as I have had to persevere through a lot in my own life and through this I want people to see what happens when you keep doing what you need to do in spite of obstacles. Perseverance sometimes called “GRIT” is the great leveler so to say. You do not have to be the wealthiest, most popular, talented, or smartest person; if you persevere, you CAN reach your goals. And through that process, when you must recover from a setback, think through a challenge, and try again, this is where you develop GRIT. I want you to witness this throughout my journeys and find it in your own. I am hoping my indomitable spirit can inspire you to Persevere.
Fearlessness
This takes Center Stage. Let me start off by saying it is completely normal to feel fear, but to live fearlessly is to not give fear any power over you. Recognize the fear and use it as an opportunity to apply courage to step outside your comfort zone and grow into a stronger, braver, more confident version of yourself. When we live with this kind of courage, we can be proud of ourselves regardless of the outcomes or what others say of us. I hope you can witness through my blog how I take fear and use it as a sounding board to push past any limitations or detours that may come my way. Never giving my power away to fear itself.