Between curling up and standing up
Midlife is not the time to check out. Here’s why I’m doubling down...
Some mornings I want to curl up and hide from it all—the news, the chaos, the weight of the world—and retreat into my bubble of dogs, laundry, and a crisp neighborhood walk.
Other mornings, I feel like standing on a chair and shouting: “Why are we just sitting here? This is our moment to do something!”
I toggle between those two extremes far too often: sipping chai on the porch or cutting my neighbor’s cable so she’s no longer bathed in the glow of Fox News.
I’ve only dipped into current events here in your inbox a handful of times because I try to keep us future-focused. And honestly, I know you’re saturated by it all. But here I am anyway—typing away because I care far too much about our future (and our kids’ futures) to stay quiet.
For months, I’ve even wondered if I should quit. Close up shop after 18 years of building a business, just so I wouldn’t have to keep pushing in a world that seems determined to wear us down..
But then my husband helped change my mind.
Last week was brutal. The kind that had me collapsing in slobbery tears, asking what I should do.
Does my work even matter when America is on fire and our kids have active shooter drills while Congress does nothing?
I mean, why would any mom want to focus on the next stage of parenting when we’re just trying to survive the present?
In that moment, my business felt frivolous.
But he stopped me from spiraling when he said, “I’d argue they need to figure out who they are and what they stand for now more than ever.”
✅ First of all, how dare he quote me back to myself.
✅ Second, he’s right (ugh).
We can’t help others if we feel powerless.
Between his words and some of yours (see P.S. below), I decided not to quit, but to double down instead.
Why? Because I believe so deeply in what I do. I have seen transformations up close that are quite literally life-changing. And because women have been quiet for too long.
It’s time to speak. To name what we want. To use our voices to create a world worthy of our kids.
One way I’m trying to move the needle is by creating more affordable courses and offering reduced-rate workshops. My consulting is about creating a future, a life you will be proud of, and I can promise you, when you’re 82 years old, you will want to look back on this moment with pride.
The truth is, we have more freedom today than we likely will in the future. This is not the season to check out.
I know it’s rough. But we get to choose: fight, flight, or freeze.
Even without today’s chaos, midlife is not the time to shrink. It’s the time to come alive. To get animated. Or even angry if that’s what you feel.
I want you to be so grounded in who you are that you know exactly what to do next.
To be confident shouting your beliefs into a megaphone, or calmly holding your own at the Thanksgiving table.
That’s how change starts. It always has.
We start with ourselves. We get clear. Then we act.
Because when we’re rooted in purpose, small steps ripple outward, and “How do I want to spend my time?” becomes “How do I want to shape my community? What kind of future do I want to help build?”
So yes, I wobble between curling inward and shouting outward. But maybe that’s the work of this season? To feel the uncomfortable tug-of-war and still choose to stay in the game.
Today, take one small step that aligns with what matters most to you. That’s enough. That’s the start.
I appreciate you and am so glad you’re here.
P.S. You’re also why I’m staying. Every DM, comment, and email fuels me. Just today, I heard from one mom who said the Fair Play Method changed her life, and another who thanked me for advice I’d given months ago. Messages like these remind me that my words matter, and so do yours.
P.P.S. If you’re looking for something simple to do, No Kings Parade is next month. Show up and show your community what matters. It’s also SO energizing to be in it together.
I toggle between these too❤️