Trusting the Fertile Void

TED* Team · May 2, 2025

By Donna Zajonc

As I sit with the loss and change that David’s passing brings, I also feel called to reflect through the lens of The Power of TED* (*The Empowerment Dynamic), the very framework David created and lived by. You may read more about his sudden passing two weeks ago in my previous blog.

In The Power of TED*, we teach that the journey from Victim to Creator asks us not to react to life’s challenges out of fear or urgency, but to meet them with conscious choice. I find myself leaning deeply into these teachings now, especially as I move through this major life transition.

Almost 25 years ago, as a new professional coach, I discovered William Bridges’ groundbreaking book, Transitions. Bridges taught that every transition has three distinct phases:

1. An Ending
2. A Neutral Zone
3. A New Beginning

His key insight was that we cannot move cleanly into new beginnings without first acknowledging what has ended. David often echoed this idea, affectionately calling Bridges’ “neutral zone” the fertile void. I always loved that phrase—and now, with David’s passing, it holds deeper meaning than ever.

Without honoring the ending, we risk carrying forward confusion and unresolved attachments that can hinder the dormant seeds already present—seeds that are alive but not yet ready to grow, waiting for the right timing and environment.

Today, I am intentionally pausing to honor what has ended. Especially in moments of grief, it’s easy for me to rush into action, into “doing.”My mind says: “Move faster, Donna. Figure it out. Fix the situation.”But my heart knows: “Pause. Grieve. Reflect. Listen. Honor.”This space between the ending and the new beginning—the fertile void—is uncomfortable. It’s tempting to fill it. Yet it is in this very void that deep creativity and authentic next steps are born.

For years, I’ve been practicing what it means to be more than to do. In fact, that’s how the title of my book emerged: Who Do You Want to Be on the Way to What You Want? In the book’s teaching story, I shared how to integrate TED* principles into your coaching and leadership relationships. But just because I write about it doesn’t mean I’ve mastered it!

It is the TED* framework that reminds me I get to choose my Creator essence over feeling like a Victim. As a Victim, I might feel helpless in the face of uncertainty that is common to most transitions. I might let fear drive me into reactive busyness.

As a Creator, I can choose to see this fertile void as a sacred opportunity. I can trust that divine spirit and inner wisdom are already at work—even if I cannot yet see what will emerge. David often said that the insights that became TED* flowed through him, not from him.

In the fertile void we are not asked to “make” the future happen. We are asked to listen, to be curious, and to allow the future to unfold. Most of all, we are asked to trust the creative process—to trust the magic of the seeds already planted within the fertile void.

For those of you who have journeyed with us through the years, please know the spirit and heartbeat of TED* will continue. But for now, the right action is less about action but a call to rest in the void, to honor the ending, and to allow the Creator essence to guide what is next.

If you are also facing an ending or a life transition, I invite you to honor where you are:

• Pause. Grieve. Reflect. Name and honor what is ending.
• Resist the mind’s urgency to force the next chapter.
• Rest in the fertile void.

Trust that the seeds of your next beginning are already planted—even if you cannot see them yet.

Thank you for all the beautiful comments and pictures on David’s Memorial Board that you may view it here. I am deeply grateful to all who have donated to the David Emerald scholarship fund, dedicated to keeping his work and legacy alive. You may donate here.

Until next time, here’s to the Creator in you—and to the mystery of the fertile void.Donna