222. Resilience & Justice: Brigette Panetta’s Journey Through Adversity

[00:00:06] Welcome to episode 222 of Girl, Take the Lead, where each week we explore womanhood and leadership, and I'm your host, Yolanda Canny. Brigette Panetta, millennial, advocate and ambassador for media.com, joins us to talk about her real-world experience and insights into social justice leadership. Brigette is a passionate advocate for those facing social injustice and adversity.

[00:00:36] After experiencing firsthand the devastating impact of false allegations by Australia's corporate regulator, she has dedicated herself to supporting others in similar battles. Brigette Panetta, millennial, and the other, her journey began under extraordinary circumstances. Recovering from a traumatic birth while navigating legal turmoil that cost her family their home and livelihood.

[00:01:02] Brigette Panetta, millennial, and the other, instead of breaking her, these challenges ignited her mission to create a foundation providing litigation funding and a platform for people to share their stories. Brigette Panetta, millennial, and the other, her story of resilience, and the other, her story of resilience, healing, and justice makes her a very compelling voice for change, and we can all learn from her. Here's what you'll learn about in this episode. Resilience.

[00:01:30] The role of resilience in leadership. Self-doubt and leadership. Limiting beliefs. Tools that help connect us. Health deficiencies and clarity. Forgiveness. Forgiveness practices. And intuition and trust. Enjoy the episode. Here you go. So, Brigette, welcome to Girl Take the Lead.

[00:01:57] We're so excited to have you here and to have a great conversation about resilience and some other insights you have for us. Thanks for being here. Thank you so much for having me. I'm so honored and really looking forward to having a further discussion with you about resilience and, and all things, you know, facing adversity and overcoming traumas and things like that. It's very, very, very needed topic in this world. Very. Worldwide. Definitely. Absolutely.

[00:02:25] So, you want to start by just introducing yourself to our viewers and listeners. That would be great. Of course. So, my name is Brigette Panetta. I am a mother to a four-year-old daughter who's just absolutely incredible. I am a extremely supportive partner to my fiance James. And we have unfortunately been subject to quite an unjust pursuit over the past five years between ourselves and the Australian regulator.

[00:02:56] With our previous or, or investment company that we were running. And unfortunately, it's still kind of going on to this day, which, you know, going through COVID, having a daughter has been quite challenging. And off the back of that, my goal and like, I strongly believe that this happened to our family.

[00:03:19] So, I could turn this pain into purpose in terms of helping others suffering from any kind of injustice, suffering from adversity, and just trying to find that inner peace within the chaos. Also, off the back of our experience, we've created a online platform media where you lose the narrative, you lose that voice that, you know, you really need in these quite, you know, tough times.

[00:03:47] And also allows you to maintain your most valuable asset, your digital footprint, and maintain your reputation. Because once that's gone, you know, it's really, really difficult if you don't have any control over it to manage. And to help you, you know, if you do have any adverse media to help you get jobs and, you know, build up your reputation again for the future and kind of allow you to have a fresh start. So, we're really excited to launch that. It's just come out now.

[00:04:16] We're kind of live at the moment, still doing a bit of teething issues and, you know, fine tuning. But, you know, we're really, really excited. Well, congratulations on taking a difficult situation and really turning it around. Is that how you define resilience or do you have a different definition when you think about resilience?

[00:04:36] For me, resilience, I've been thinking about this because it's not something, like it is something you're born with, but I feel like you will find yourself in a situation that will make you have to believe in resilience and believe. I feel like it comes down to self-belief and trusting your journey and trusting whatever's happening to you is happening for a reason.

[00:05:04] And once you do accept that and stop resisting the situation, whether it's a divorce, whether it's, you know, your loss of a loved one, whether it's, you know, something that's happened that you can't control, that you have to accept, that's when the resilience, I feel, really helps you move forward. So it's not like, you know, motivation or something that you can try and find. It's you have to believe it.

[00:05:32] I feel like in leadership, you can have different types of leaders. You can have fear-based leaders. You can have, you know, people that can let their emotions get the better of them. But I feel like when you do have that self-belief of capability to be able to allow space for people to lead themselves and not come from, you know, a fear-based leadership structure where you are the hierarchy, you know,

[00:06:02] when you can allow everyone to feel safe within their roles and within their positions, and you can allow them to feel comfortable to speak and you can allow them to just be themselves, that shows the best leadership qualities. So whether it's resilience or leadership, I feel like if you have that self-belief or if you have limiting beliefs on what you're capable of or self-doubt, that comes through in your leadership abilities because people can feel that you're not confident.

[00:06:31] And then, you know, there can be ego in place and there can be things that don't allow others to shine because you're worried about your position or you're worried about them outshining you. And so when you bring it all down, I feel like that limiting belief of self-doubt can always, always affect leadership. And so it's such an important thing. And that's one of my main strategies that I'm working on in my brand is to get to that limiting belief and work on that shadow work.

[00:07:01] Of why you don't feel worthy or why you have these limiting beliefs within. And once you can clear those, you're unstoppable. One of the things, Bridget, that you've talked about, like when you were saying no ego in place and getting at the core beliefs underneath that perhaps are, you know, around self-doubting. What kind of tools do you think help us connect to ourselves?

[00:07:28] So for me, the tools that I relied on, because I did get quite ill. I had severe hives through my body. I did remove a lot of foods, but I actually had to work on my thoughts because I removed all the foods, but I was still getting the reactive hives and I was still getting those issues. So when I realized it was actually my thoughts that were affecting me, I had to do the internal work. So I had to look at my health.

[00:07:59] My and because that obviously if you're not feeling healthy, you can't think clearly because you've got brain fog or you've got some kind of, you know, issue between the connection between the mind and the stomach. So firstly, the tool was to get healthy physically. So that was a lot of, I follow a page on Instagram called The Human Garage. They do a lot of fascia movements and maneuvers. They call them fascia maneuvers.

[00:08:28] And they work on that fascia level, which is between the skin and your muscle. And that's where a lot of your traumas are kept. And it also helps you with your hydration. So I've realized that majority of the population are dehydrated and not because they're not drinking enough water, but because a lot of our soils are depleted of minerals that we're not getting anymore. So there's a lot of minerals that we need to be putting into our bodies, whether it's like a Celtic salt or some form of hydration.

[00:08:57] There's sea moss as well. That's really, really amazing for hydration. And so once I started learning about these deficiencies that we were suffering from, that helped my mental clarity. Once I had mental clarity, I was able to be a lot more aware of my thoughts. So catching myself, if I was going to go into a victim state, I would be able to catch myself a lot easier because I had a clearer mind.

[00:09:22] And so once I started working on those elements and removing toxic, you know, chemicals and things out of like not drinking tap water, making sure that I use better pans and I try to avoid as many plastics as I could, you know, those kinds of things. I feel like I had a clearer channel to be able to hear that inner voice within. And so I then stopped going externally for my answers.

[00:09:50] Because when you're in a position where a lot of your family and friends have never experienced something that I've experienced, you know, they've always believed the government's looking after us and all of these things. And I'm seeing the opposite because there's things they're saying that are very false and very incorrect and they haven't done their research and they haven't done proper investigation. So how can they be looking after us when they're not doing their job correctly? And so I couldn't talk to anyone because I sounded a bit crazy at the time.

[00:10:19] Um, so I had to really trust myself and, and believe in that resilience piece that this was happening to me for a reason. I had to just trust my journey and I had to go within, um, because I didn't feel like I could get any solutions externally. And then I realized that I knew the answers anyway. I didn't need to ask other people what I should do. You know, before I'd ring everyone like, oh, what do you think I should do about this?

[00:10:46] Or this has just happened, but now I feel like I don't do that because I don't need to ask. Um, so the, and the biggest tool that I actually started with was a forgiveness, um, practice. I went to see a kinesiologist and she was able to allow me the space to forgive. I didn't know who I was forgiving. I just looked at a building with the regulator's name on it.

[00:11:14] And I just forgave everyone in that building for doing, you know, they're doing their job. They're being told what to do by who knows what's going on, but I was able to just process that. And once I was able to forgive, I was able to dissolve a lot of the anger and the hate, the bitterness, the frustration. And in turn, I felt lighter. So that was definitely the first step that I took. And then after that, once I felt, you know, more comfortable, more safe in my body,

[00:11:45] I was able to then work on those other elements like the health element and then the thoughts, just being really aware of my thoughts because they were leading me down paths that didn't even exist. I was creating stories in my mind thinking, oh, what if they're going to do this next? And, you know, living in a future that I've created, it's not even happening and it might not happen. So I think the being aware of your thoughts is so important. Yeah, definitely.

[00:12:12] And it sounded like you were kind of hinting in there about intuition, that with that clarity, you were able to tap in and listen to yourself a lot more. Was that the case? Yes, 100%. Yeah, I did a lot of meditating as much as I could. I did a bit of hypnosis just to like really clear a lot of the doubts. But then once I did get that clear pathway, I feel between the stomach and the mind,

[00:12:41] I was able to really just ask the questions I wanted to know. And that intuition was just kind of there a lot. It was a lot stronger than I've ever felt because I was actually trusting myself and not putting the trust into others and putting it more into me. And the more you build that trust muscle, the more your body's like, oh, I feel safe because you're listening to me now. And it's like sometimes I'd go to the shop. So I'd go somewhere and I'd get home and I think, oh, my body, like I knew I should have got that.

[00:13:11] Like I got a message to say, get that, but I just ignored it. So the more you do that, the less your body feels safe because you're not listening. But if you did just dial in and listen, then it starts to like really get strong because they're like, oh, she's listening now. Great. Okay. We're on the same page. And it's like this beautiful unison that I think people do disconnect a lot from younger ages because you don't know too much about it.

[00:13:37] Like you start going to your peers and you start just following trends and you're not actually listening to yourself. You're following society and what you think you should be doing. And so if we can all, yeah, connect a lot more, I feel like there'd be a lot more aligned people and a lot less chaos. Yeah. Yeah.

[00:13:59] I think that listening to ourselves, the confidence begins to really develop in ourselves. trust in what we're doing and what we're saying and what you see going on. And I think also too, perhaps there's a willingness to talk about it like you're doing today.

[00:14:29] And to be able to articulate all of the things that you've gone through and got it to this point, it's pretty amazing. Most of us would be stuck in some part of it. Yeah. But look at what you can do. Yes. I feel like as I did connect to that intuition and that trust, and I just kind of surrendered to accepting my situation, I was able to see the positive. And I'm like, no, I need to turn this into something positive now.

[00:14:58] Like I've learned more than I, I've achieved more than I ever thought I could. I thought I was strong before, but this was just a whole new education on what you're capable of doing if you get out of your own way. And if you don't let the victimhood and the ego and, you know, I was so worried about what people were reading about us in the paper. Like I was letting the thoughts of other people make me feel bad about myself when I knew I was, that wasn't correct, but I was allowing that to lead me.

[00:15:28] And I was like, why am I doing this? You know, I know who I am. And if they want to know me, they can contact me. If they don't, I don't care what they think. You know, it's like letting go of that, that ego. Sure. We just put up an episode. I mean, what you're talking about just so reminds me of our episode about let them, the let them theory by Mel Robbins in the book. I love her. Yeah.

[00:15:51] And the book is pretty amazing because what you're speaking is exactly what she is saying in the book and how it applies in different roles in our lives, you know, career and relationship and, you know, and social justice, which is what you're working on. So my goodness. Yes. Well, you know, we kind of covered our outline, but are there any other insights there that

[00:16:20] you want to offer today? I think the main thing I wanted to talk about was the tools, which I kind of covered the forgiveness, the body work, the thought awareness. Yeah. No, that's pretty much. Yeah. Terrific. I've touched on media.com. So that's good. Great. Is there any way our listeners and viewers can find you or follow you and learn more about your company? Of course.

[00:16:48] So media.com is live now. So you can find me at Bridget Panetta on media.com. I've gone Instagram with Bridget Panetta and YouTube, Bridget Panetta as well. So I'll link all those in the show notes and send them to you. That would be amazing. Yeah. So anyone needing, I've just had a girl contact me actually from the UK who's had a similar thing happen to her. She's having issues with the government there with her business and she's just absolutely flawed.

[00:17:16] And I guess in a state of shock. So I've had her reach out to me. So I'm so excited to be able to connect with people. Like I'm more than happy to jump on a Zoom if anyone's suffering from any kind of injustice. You might be hearing more from US people than ever before. So yes. Yeah. Yeah. I'm so happy for that because I feel like it's a very isolating experience and I feel like a lot of people, you know, we all need to come together so we can help each other

[00:17:43] through these kinds of chaotic times. And yeah, I'm more than happy to lend an ear or shoulder. So Bridget, what would you tell your 20 something self today? Oh, I would tell her to read more. I feel like I didn't read enough when I was 20, but I have caught up on that now, but I feel like just tell her to trust, tell her to trust herself, tell her to trust her journey,

[00:18:10] that it's all working out for her and that there's no rush. Beautiful. We can hear that all the time, can't we? Yeah. Trust your journey. Yes. I know. Trust. And don't just be gleaned. Yeah. And be patient. I've never had patience. I've always, you know, wanted that instant gratification. I think it's just the generation I was in and everything just kind of was happening too fast. And so you just expect results to be quick.

[00:18:39] Whereas when you stop and just surrender and be patient, it, yeah, you know that all everything's slowly working itself out for you. Yeah, it does. And it all builds on each other. That's the other thing that whatever we're experiencing today is going to, we're building on for the next experience. And who knows, maybe you're going to be a lawyer down the road. Who knows? I'm getting an education in it. That's for sure.

[00:19:07] And the last thing then is if you had a chance to go to our online store and just snoop around and see if there was anything there. I did. I loved the love bookmark. Talking about books. I want like, I love that. And I love that it had the beautiful angel on there. Like I really connected to that. Okay. Or photo. So yeah. Well, thank you for coming and joining us today and I'll send it on its way to Australia.

[00:19:36] Might take a while for it to get there. Amazing. Thank you so much. It's my pleasure. Sure. Thank you again, Bridget, for joining us and sharing your insights. They're really valuable at this time. Of course. Thank you so much for having me. Allow me to share my story and my knowledge that I've gained over this last five years. I really appreciate it. Thank you. Thank you for listening today. And we sure hope you enjoyed this episode.

[00:20:03] If you did, please leave a comment wherever you listen to your podcasts. Tell a friend about us. Join our public Facebook group, Girl Take the Lead, or visit our website, girltaketheleadpod.com. We also have a YouTube channel where your subscription would be appreciated. Once you're on YouTube, search at Girl Take the Lead. And we're also on YouTube music where you can find a video of this episode. And you can also find a video on Spotify.

[00:20:33] Some of my favorite quotes from this episode were, when you can allow everyone to feel safe in their roles and within their positions, you can allow them to be comfortable enough to speak. That shows the best leadership qualities. Another one was, if you have self-doubt or limiting beliefs, that comes through in your leadership. Others can feel you're not confident.

[00:21:03] And lastly, the biggest tool that helped me was a forgiveness practice. I could then work on other elements, like being aware of my thoughts. Here are three episode takeaways. One, resilience can come down to our self-belief and trusting our journey is happening for a reason.

[00:21:31] When you accept you can't control situations, that's when resilience helps you move forward. Two, once we can clear the limiting beliefs, we're unstoppable. There's no ego in place. And three, thoughts can affect us and our physical well-being. We need to do the internal work to look at our health

[00:21:58] and get a clearer channel to be able to hear our inner voice within. Our next episode will feature our guest, Amy Kemp, author of the book, I See You, and is the owner and CEO of Amy Kemp, Inc. She and I talked about influence, habits, and boundaries.

[00:22:24] She is all about helping us understand how deeply thought habits impact every part of our life and work. Please join us again and talk to you soon. Bye.