Friend Friday – Meet Blaed Spence

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Oh joy! I can’t tell you how happy it makes me to introduce you to BLAED SPENCE. I’ve known Blaed exactly one year and every time we get together, I feel blessed that such a magical, strong and visionary woman is now in my life.

We first met for coffee based on a nudge from our mutual and dear friend Kristen Brown (http://ttp://fortywishes NULL.blogspot NULL.com/). (You will hear about this amazing woman soon). She said simply, “You two have to meet….now.” So we did. And we talked a mile a minute for a couple of hours. As we left, we both knew we’d be meeting again….and often.

Where to begin? I asked my daughter Kate to tell me about Blaed. (She is utterly in love with her). She said this:

“She’s an awesome and magical, wondrous, so cool friend to have. She is the star of all fairies and the awesome-est fairy fan.  When you meet her, she is like a light. And then I’m a light. And when the two lights come together, they make a fire of friendship.”

Blaed recently took Kate for an entire day steeped in the world of Celtic and Nordic magical traditions. Blaed is a true priestess and she taught Kate all about magic and fairies and the power of intention. They spent a good part of their day in Griffith Park dressed as fairies handing out fairy wishes to all passers by. Kate returned so full and joyous. It was a remarkable gift.

And I tell you this so you begin to taste Blaed’s ability to play and to teach and to honor the many kingdoms in nature. And I tell you this so you begin to feel her generosity of spirit. And I tell you this so you feel the energy of one who is eternally young in the very best sense-- one who is wise of heart willing to be surprised and delighted by all she encounters.

Blaed is so many things. She is crazily accomplished. She is a writer, editor, content consultant, and creative strategist. Her business is called 4word (http://www NULL.linkedin NULL.com/in/blaedspence). Love the name. She was one of the founding partners and senior editor of Wired Magazine (http://www NULL.wired NULL.com/). (Cool!) She is a storyteller and magic maker. She is fresh in her approach to whatever she touches.

I’ve watched Blaed this year closely. She is rare in her commitment and intention.  She is a change agent in her own life and the lives of others. And she is a connector. She is the queen of introducing the right people to one another at the right time. She is currently building a new work life as a screenwriter --or let’s just say building upon the immensely strong foundation she already has — but branching into new territory.  As she puts it, she is specifically interested in bringing transformational storytelling into the mainstream through network and cable television. She is being mentored by some of the best people in the field and is working as hard as I’ve seen anyone work to take the next right step.

Other wonderful Blaed facts: She is married to a wonderful man (a writer as well)-- Colin Berry (http://www NULL.colinberry NULL.com/). They live in a beautiful loft in silver lake.  She jogs almost every morning and has a second degree brown belt in Go -Ryu Kempo Karate!  And I have to say she writes some of the best emails I’ve ever received. It’s as if she’s created a whole new language with some of the keys we rarely use! For the tiniest of tastes, read this:

*hey* darlin!

::deep contented in-breath::

dear GODS it was fabulous hanging out with you today!  crazy fabulous!!!

***

In fact, you must hear more from her writer self. She describes herself in her work profile in such a captivating, gorgeous way, I have to share. I would hire her before I even finished reading the profile. Everything she writes is spot on. (I think we should all write a profile like this. It requires such keen self-reflection and awareness).  And on top of all of this, she has a beautiful humility and accessibility that is the icing on the already very rich cake. Here it is:

“I AM…..a talented writer, a gifted editor, a brilliant ideator. I adhere to the principles of quality, dedication, personal responsibility, and follow-through.

I AM….proactive, incredibly organized, ridiculously detail oriented. I have a keen sense of humor, and I don’t take myself too seriously.

I AM…compassionate, honest, polite. I believe Truth and Integrity will be the currency of the 21st century.

I AM….deeply conscientious, easily enthusiastic, and prone to hamming it up. I believe in the power of the collective and the gifts that come from open collaboration. i believe in diplomacy and compromise. I give freely. And I firmly believe in magic, quantum theory, and the truth at the core of every world religion.

I AM…an incredibly fast learner who thinks on her feet and processes new data a lightning speed. I’m an excellent communicator. I am highly intelligent, deeply creative and vastly hard working.

I AM….a heretic, an empath, a catalyst, a change-agent. i’ve dedicated my life to changing the world through story, and I am humbled by the power of storytelling. I’ve known since childhood that I’m here for the Paradigm Shift.

OTHERS DESCRIBE ME AS….a 100-watt bulb in a 60-watt lamp; a big brain in a small jar; an ambassador from the Island of Misfit Toys; the embodiment of Attention Surplus Disorder; refreshing as a glacial stream.

MY SUPERPOWERS ENCOMPASS….a white-hot intellect that excels at problem solving; the ability to easily discern patterns — and synthesize new ideas, approaches, and understandings — from seemingly disparate elements and categories; the ability to communicate any vision I believe in with passion, clarity, enthusiasm, and commitment; the ability to energize, support and inspire others; an incandescently positive attitude grounded in realism and idealism; a clever (sometimes incredibly useful) knack for stating the obvious; the ability to manifest (almost) anything I bend my focus and intention toward; and the desire to harness my super-conductive imagination for the powers of good.

***

I can’t believe it’s only been one year since I met Blaed and I am thrilled to know that we  get to grow together as friends and women with a mission (!) for many years to come.