What We Carry: An Invitation to the 2026 Diamond Dinner Series

Every woman arrives carrying something.

Sometimes it is responsibility. Sometimes it is pride. Sometimes it is grief, sometimes hope. It could be all of it at once. Much of what we carry is invisible to the outside world, yet it shapes how we lead, how we show up, and how we move through each season of our lives.

As we step into 2026, Brave Women Project’s Diamond Dinner series centers on an intentional theme: What We Carry.

This theme was chosen because it reflects the lived reality of women. We lead households, teams, organizations, and communities. We hold space for others. We carry emotional labor, professional responsibility, and unspoken expectations. We also carry wisdom, resilience, and earned strength that deserves to be honored.

As I shaped the 2026 Diamond Dinner series, I went back and forth between themes like leadership, alignment, and professional evolution. All of them mattered. All of them fit. But each felt like it was circling the truth rather than naming it. What we carry is the quiet weight behind leadership decisions, the internal work required for alignment, and the lived experience that drives professional evolution. Naming What We Carry felt more honest, more human, and more useful for the women we serve.

Diamond Dinners are designed to be more than a meal. They are experiences rooted in conversation, reflection, and connection. Each dinner offers a carefully curated environment where women can pause, speak honestly, listen deeply, and be witnessed without needing to perform or fix anything.

The purpose of this year’s series is simple and intentional: To create space for women to set down what no longer serves them as they move into 2026. And to choose, with clarity and confidence, what they will carry forward.

Throughout the year, our dinners will follow the natural rhythm of leadership and life. From naming the weight we enter the year with, to examining the cost of momentum, and choosing what stays. Each gathering builds on the last, while also standing fully on its own.

For members, Diamond Dinners are one of the most intimate ways to experience Brave Women Project’s community. The conversations are thoughtful and confidential. The tables are intentional. The connections often last long after the evening ends.

For women considering membership, this series offers a clear window into who we are and how we support women differently. We are not a “group you do networking with.” We are a community you do life with. Membership opens the door to these dinners and to a year of programming centered on courage, growth, and real connection.

If you are carrying expectations that are not yours to own. If you are holding responsibilities that have outgrown their purpose. If you are ready to release the pressure to do it all alone. This series is for you.

And if you are ready to pick up steadiness, clarity, and pride in how far you have come, a table is waiting.

We would be honored to welcome you to the table.

~ Kelli

The Power of a Clear Yes in 2026

Our first Take the Mic Tuesday reminded me how powerful it is when women are given space to pause, breathe, and be honest with themselves.

Twenty women gathered virtually for a guided meditation led by Pamela Biasca Losada. Refocus & Rise: A Mindful Start to 2026, centered on three simple but profound practices: Letting Go, Letting In, and Letting Be. 

As we moved through intentional breathing and reflection, I realized how often we hold onto obligations, expectations, and roles out of habit rather than alignment. That awareness stayed with me long after the session ended and became the push I needed to write this blog.

For years, women have been conditioned to be reliable, agreeable, and available. We say yes because we are capable. We say yes because we care. We say yes because we do not want to disappoint, miss an opportunity, or be perceived as difficult.

But somewhere along the way, yes stopped meaning alignment and started meaning depletion.

I see it constantly. Brilliant women stretched thin. Leaders are overcommitted. Impact diluted because energy is scattered across obligations that no longer serve who they are or where they are going.

For me, 2026 is not the year of doing more. It is the year of doing what matters.

There is deep freedom in saying no. There is even more power in saying not right now. And there is clarity in knowing exactly what deserves your yes.

If you are auditing your “yes” list this year, here are some non-negotiables worth protecting and prioritizing:

• Support that is mutual - Not transactional. Not one-sided. Real support that shows up when you need it most… or maybe when you don’t realize you even need it!

• Collaboration that is real - True collaboration that shares power, credit, and responsibility.

• Spaces that strengthen you instead of draining you - Environments where you do not have to explain yourself or prove your worth.

• Relationships rooted in integrity and trust - People who honor boundaries, respect capacity, and value your voice without conditions.

• Communities that normalize honesty - Where you can say “I am tired,” “I am unsure,” or “I am ready for more” without judgment.

Why Brave Women Project Belongs on Your Yes List

Brave Women Project is not about being busy. It is about being intentional. Here is why BWP earns a clear yes in 2026:

• We prioritize retention, not constant recruitment - Our work is designed to keep women supported, visible, and engaged over time.

• We value depth over noise - Meaningful connection and leadership growth means “We aren’t a group you do networking with – we are a community you do life with.”

• We honor real capacity - Participation at BWP adapts to professional demands and evolving priorities.

• We foster collaboration, not competition - Women are encouraged to amplify one another, always!

• We create spaces where honesty is allowed - You do not need to have it all figured out to belong here.

In 2026, let “no” be okay. Let “not right now” be respected. And let “yes” be reserved for the people, places, and purpose that truly deserve it. Brave Women Project is here to support women who are choosing alignment over obligation, clarity over chaos, and leadership that lasts.

In case you were wondering what I wrote in my journal after the meditation…

Letting Go: Fear Criticizing myself People, things, and activities that don’t benefit me Letting In: New ideas Saying “yes” to the RIGHT things Asking for help when I need it

Remember, your “yes” shapes your future.

Choose wisely.

xo ~ Kel

Be Brave. Press Send.

The other day, I sat at my desk staring at an email I had written - an email I knew could open a door, move me forward, and create an opportunity. My finger hovered over the mouse, right above the Send button… and I froze.

Right there in the corner of my desk is a little framed sign that reads,

“You Got This.”

I look at it every day, sometimes without even noticing it. But at that moment, it felt louder. Steadier. It was almost like speaking directly to me.

Even so, my hand trembled. My breath caught. My mind filled with questions:

What if she says no? 

What if I’m overstepping? 

What if I shouldn’t even be asking?

I eventually pressed send, after reading and RE-reading that email - and the reply came back warm, positive, and open.

But the moment that stayed with me wasn’t her response.

It was the fear I felt before I clicked.

And it made me think:

How many women sit in that exact same pause?

How many brilliant, capable, passionate women hold their breath over an email they absolutely deserve to send?

We all know that moment - the hesitation, the self-doubt, the internal tug-of-war between wanting more and fearing too much.

It’s not about the email itself.

It’s about everything tied to it:

Advocating for ourselves.

Asking for something.

Risking rejection.

Stepping into possibility.

Being seen.

Women carry a kind of emotional weight before hitting send that often goes unseen.

We worry about being misunderstood.

We don’t want to be perceived as pushy or demanding.

We don’t want to inconvenience anyone.

We don’t want to ask for too much.

But maybe the scariest part is this:

Sending the message means choosing ourselves - and that takes courage.

Every time a woman sends an email that scares her, she’s doing something brave:

claiming space, using her voice, and betting on her own worth.

My experience was just one moment.

But it opened my eyes to a much bigger truth:

**We are not alone in that hesitation.

We are not the only ones afraid of the Send button.

And we are not the only ones who do it anyway.**

So, if you’re reading this with an unsent message sitting in your drafts - something important, something hopeful, something that stretches you just a little - I hope you look at whatever your version of a “You Got This” sign is.

A reminder.

A nudge.

A whisper of courage.

And when your hand shakes?

Let it.

When your voice trembles?

Let it.

When your heart races?

That just means it matters.

But when you’re ready - press Send.

Not because you’re fearless, but because you’re brave.