At Blue Heron, we work from a set of guiding principles — truths we use to guide our way, inform our decision-making, and help us hold steady in messy middles. These principles are living, breathing code that shape how we show up, how we relate to our clients, and how we navigate uncertainty. 

We’ve shared one of those already: Give Generously — and what that means inside a real moment, with a pineapple cake and an unspoken question: Is there enough? (There was.)

Today, I want to share another: Think Boldly.

Thinking boldly doesn’t mean acting big or loud. It means asking better questions. It means staying open to what doesn’t look obvious yet. It means thinking differently. And sometimes, it means letting go of what you’ve been trying too hard to make work.

One mental model we return to often is something called the Law of Flotation. The idea comes from this quote:

“The law of flotation wasn’t discovered by contemplating the sinking of things.”
—Thomas Troward

It’s a lens we use to help people move through tough decisions or emotional tangles, especially when they’ve been trying to fix something that just keeps dragging them under.

A while back, we supported a founder who was in a complicated work dynamic. One of those “it used to work but now it doesn’t” situations. There was history, care, and all the reasons people keep working together even when the work feels heavy. 

And as you know, the more attention you give something the more it asks of you. Emotional contagion is real. It can trap you in a spiral of stuck energy. 

So after naming everything that wasn’t working, we paused. Took a beat. And helped them flip the perspective — what was working.

It’s important to remember: every situation has two sides. If something isn’t working, there is always something that is.

And that made the difference.

They stopped trying to adjust the thing that wasn’t working and started looking at what they actually wanted to work. Following the path of most excitement shifted the energy. 

New options came into view. And eventually, they made a clean, respectful exit from the old relationship — with clear eyes, and a decision that had been intentionally considered.

That’s founder power. 

Thinking boldly isn’t just about charging ahead and forging new paths. Sometimes, it’s the willingness to stop circling what’s sinking and start noticing what rises.

We are not in the business of fixing what’s broken. Blue Heron is here to find what lifts — and follow your rise.

#FlyAboveSoarBeyond