I met Bria Lear inside a Facebook group community for entrepreneurs (when those were all the rage in 2016!) I remember liking/commenting on a post of hers that I found valuable and that’s when our online friendship began! The rest is history, really. We’ve had countless conversations over the years and have even spent a few days together at her home in Vancouver, BC, Canada. Today, I’d consider Bria one of my best friends. She is incredibly gifted at so many things, but what I love most about her is her rare ability to mirror someone’s strengths, reflecting back to them what they’re innately good at, often when they can’t see it for themselves. She is the ultimate hype-girl. Fittingly, this is what she does every day as a Human Design Expert and Business Alignment Coach. I’m so excited to share a bit of Bria’s story and wisdom with you—how she discovered the world of human design, the rituals she practices to stay in alignment with herself, and how you can use your design type to live a more intentional life.
What does “intentional living” mean to you? How has human design helped you embrace it for yourself?
Intentional living to me is all about alignment and awareness; consciously making choices about how I want to live, spend my time, and use my energy that are in line with who I really am, what I believe in, and what I value. Living more intentionally has really taken slowing down to actually consider whether what I allow to take up space in my life (people, goals, commitments, media, products, experiences) is truly energizing and fulfilling for me. In other words, does it reflect my highest self or allow for growth towards that? For me, this is really where Human Design has been pivotal – it gave me such a deep understanding of who I am at my core (apart from all the societal “shoulds” or borrowed beliefs) and showed me how to access my own very clear and tangible inner compass. I didn’t realize how much of my life (and business) I’d spent pushing in directions that weren’t for me, or trying to be somebody I’m not, so when I finally dug into my Human Design, so many lightbulbs started going off and I just felt this giant sense of validation and relief.
Tell us about what was happening in your life when you discovered human design. What about it initially pulled you in to learn more?
I’d love to say that my first encounter was magical, but to be completely honest, the first time I discovered Human Design I calculated my chart, did a few quick google searches, got totally confused (there really wasn’t any relatable or modern translations at the time), and then shut the tab and forgot about it for another few years! At the time, I was in a place where I really hadn’t accepted or embraced my spiritual side (though I’d been drawn to a totally woo-woo biz coach, ha!) and was SO focused on strategy strategy strategy. Looking back, I was operating my business (and life) from a place of not-enoughness, and I thought that if I could just find the *right* strategy, everything would fall into place.
Fast forward a few years and I found myself finally starting to emerge from a very dark place of burnout (again), stress-induced illness, depression, and anxiety – to the point that I’d shut down my business completely. As I started to rebuild and reinvent my business with more intention, Human Design kept popping up in my periphery and tapping me on the shoulder, this time in a much more digestible way. As I was learning more (through a friend and business mentor), the deeper I wanted to go, and the more energized I started to feel. As I experimented with my design, life just started to feel easier. Lighter. And for the first time in years I was able to let go of so much perfectionism and shame that had held me back. I couldn’t not follow that light.
As an in-depth and complex system, how would you describe human design simply?
I like to explain Human Design as the art & science of the aura (in other words, your personal energy field). Just like you have a physical body, you also have an energetic body that is constantly interacting with, and relaying conscious and subconscious information to and from the world around you. Like a fingerprint, we each have our own completely unique energy field, and the Human Design system (a synthesis of ancient modalities and modern sciences) essentially provides a map or blueprint of how your energy thrives in the world. It reveals things like the way you are designed to interact with others, the natural gifts and talents you’re here to express, how your body and inner guidance speaks to you, what you require to be healthy and vibrant, challenges or lessons you may face, how to get the best results most efficiently, how you are empathic, and so much more.
“Like a fingerprint, we each have our own completely unique energy field, and the Human Design system (a synthesis of ancient modalities and modern sciences) essentially provides a map or blueprint of how your energy thrives in the world.”
How can knowing your “type” help you live or work with greater intention?
Energy Types are the top layer of differentiation in Human Design. Each type has it’s own correct way of operating energetically, called “Strategy”, and it’s own emotional cues that let you know when you’re out of alignment (“Not-Self”) or in alignment (“Signature”). Knowing and experimenting with your type can seem a little less exciting than other parts of your Human Design, but is one of the biggest game-changers in living and working with greater intention. With your type’s Signature and Not-Self themes, you’re given immediate feedback on what is and isn’t for you, while your type’s Strategy facilitates aligned energetic exchanges, creations, environments, synchronicities, relationships, and opportunities that support your soul’s purpose and your highest expression.
Most of us are going through our personal and work lives disconnected from ourselves, trying to make things happen, or trying to be more like somebody else, and all of this really takes us out of our most powerful state: energetic flow. When we’re in flow, we’re using our energy efficiently, rather than trying to push and shove it into a shape that doesn’t fit. The beautiful thing about aligning with your type is that all that the friction and resistance of going against your energy starts to dissipate, and is replaced not only by a sense of ease and lightness, but also a sense of relief and permission to do things in a way that actually feels more natural to you. How can you be truly intentional in any aspect of life when who you’re being isn’t actually congruent with who you really are? I would even go so far as to say that aligning with your Energy Type IS, in itself, living intentionally.
What is something that surprised you about your own chart that perhaps conflicts with your own conditioning or upbringing?
One of the biggest surprises within my own chart was the revelation that I am naturally “non-emotional.” Meaning, I do not have emotional energy that consistently runs through my body at all times, and am – in my most natural state – cool, calm and collected. Emotionally neutral. After spending 30+ years of my life feeling like I was constantly riding an emotional roller-coaster and believing that I was “too emotional”, this came as a total shock, but also major validation! What I didn’t know growing up, and even starting my 30s, is that not only have I been emotionally empathic, feeling the emotions of everyone else around me, but that I have also been AMPLIFYING those emotions and thinking they were my own. Mind-blowing! Understanding these dynamics has dramatically shifted the way I feel on a day to day basis, and has brought so much more ease and peace to my relationships.
Best advice for using human design to influence or inform our decision making?
How can we use our human design to form better relationships —with ourselves or others?
How can someone use their human design to optimize their creativity or productivity? When are you most creative?
Who and what inspires you?
“Human Design provides language for all of these things you know to be true and beautiful about yourself but maybe haven’t recognized, accepted, or celebrated, and that soul-deep level of resonance can be a massive catalyst for self-love.”
What is your go-to self-care practice to keep you grounded and centered when life gets busy?
Describe the experience someone can expect during a human design reading or coaching session with you.
In a Human Design chart reading we really walk through the ins and outs of how to actually live as your Energy Type and make aligned decisions with your Authority (if that’s something you’re not yet doing) as well as explore the gifts you’re here to share with the world, and the challenges you face. I always tailor this to what’s shared with me in your intake form, and the flow of our conversation on the call. Together, we’re connecting the dots between your lived experiences and your chart, providing you with clarity, validation, and context. You’ll start to see how certain aspects of your chart have shown up or influenced the various areas of your life and business. It’s like the ultimate self-awareness and empowerment toolbox.
In my coaching sessions, the focus is more specific to aligning your business and how you’re showing up as an entrepreneur to your chart. Think of me like an acupuncturist for your biz – sans all the needles! We look at the blocks and challenges you’re experiencing in your business, and approach these through the lens of your design to uncover where they’re stemming from, and how to re-align you with your natural energy flow. Sometimes that looks like exploring belief, behaviour, or emotional patterns based on childhood conditioning and how they’re playing out in your business, and sometimes it looks like shifting how you’re showing up, creating, or making decisions, or tweaking your strategy or offers to support your most aligned and easeful self. Through this process I share bits and pieces of your design that are relevant to the situation and help you understand the aligned truth for you, according to your chart. You’ll leave with action steps, exercises and/or tips to carry you forward.
As someone who helps others leverage their energetic gifts, what are some of yours?
You’ve shared openly about your battles with burnout. What is the most common piece of advice you find yourself giving clients or your online community?
If you leave us with only one idea, perspective shift or concept to consider, what would it be?
Who should we interview next?
