This week gave me a very real reminder that rest isn’t just about sleep. I flew home from my trip to Florida just as the spring time change hit. Somehow, in a moment of ambitious optimism, I still thought a 7:00 a.m. Monday Pilates class was a great idea. By Monday afternoon, I felt fine . . . ish. By Tuesday, I felt like my brain was moving through molasses. By Wednesday, I realized something surprising: it was taking me most of the week to recover . Not because anything dr

Before anything else today, pause with me for a moment and ask yourself quietly: What is my best today? Not yesterday’s best. Not someone else’s best. Not the imaginary, pressure-filled version of your best. Just . . . today’s. This question sits at the heart of the fourth agreement: Always Do Your Best.  And the more I think about this agreement, the more I realize it’s not a performance standard—it’s a relationship with yourself. It's a quiet checkin to assess your capacity

Today we’re continuing our series on the Four Agreements , stepping into the third agreement: Don’t Make Assumptions.  And if there were ever an agreement designed to clear mental clutter and return you to possibility, it’s this one. This one hits us right at our core fears and insecurities. In life drafting, assumptions are like writing plot twists without evidence. We decide what someone meant, why they didn’t respond, what others think of us, or how something will turn out

The second agreement from The Four Agreements  by Don Miguel Ruiz  is simple, but powerful: Don’t take anything personally. Here’s how I think about it in real life terms. What other people say or do is almost never really about you—it’s about them : their mood, their past, their fears, their beliefs, their story. When we take things personally, we hand the pen to someone else. Suddenly they’re writing our confidence, our worth, our direction. As we keep layering the agreemen

I recently picked up The Four Agreements  by Don Miguel Ruiz (inscribed inside by my mom, Christmas 2000!) I have read it several times but wanted to reflect on it over the next 4 weeks. The first agreement: Be impeccable with your word. In the book, Ruiz explains that our word is our power. It’s how we create meaning, how we "cast spells" on others. But I want to take it a step further and talk about our words to ourselves. At first glance, this agreement sounds like it’s ab

First of all, I apologize for not sending this email yesterday morning. It was a perfect storm (pun intended) of the impending weather interruption and traveling to OBX for the retreat that had me completely confused on the days of the week. It was a complete oversite. Now that I am home from the beach retreat and settled in at home, I want to take the time to write to you all about the benefit of "retreat." Why We Retreat We retreat because clarity doesn’t happen in the mids

AI generated image There’s a reason so many people wait until January 1st to make goals, resolutions, and intentions. There's just something about shedding the old year and ushering in the new one that makes us feel like "this time it will be different." We want to embrace the "new year, new you" concept. This is not a post about how just setting a goal, a resolution, or an intention without the structures underneath (values, supporting habits and systems) are doomed to fail.

I've recently heard an interpretation of mindset by Dr. Alia Crum, mindset expert. I think sometimes "mindset" gets a bad rap. Like its the assumption that we are being told to "just think positive" and everything will be alright. This isn't helpful. Dr. Crum teaches that mindsets are not who we are, they’re simply settings of the mind . Like the settings on your phone or laptop. Helpful… until they’re not. Most of us are walking around operating from settings we never consc

Image generated by Gemini AI I don't always choose one single word for the year, but this year I did. Actually, I chose twelve, but one is the overarching, singular one that I will embody. I’m holding it as a working draft for the year: a clear direction, with room for revision as I learn, grow, and respond to what unfolds. My word . . . Flow : Flow is a cognitive state where one is completely immersed in an activity—from painting and writing to prayer and surfboarding. It i

Gemini Generated Image My sincere apologies for missing my regular Saturday morning email. I was deep in that holiday, fuzzy-headed, “what day is it?” fog last week and didn’t realize until today  (Monday) that I hadn’t sent one. I even double-checked, half-convinced I must have—but nope. All of this to say . . . I hope you are ready to begin a new year. How are you all feeling about it? Are you satisfied with how 2025 shaped up? Are you looking to make changes in the new yea

Image created using Gemini AI You all should know by now how I feel about New Year's Resolutions. Without the substance beneath them, they are simply wishes. Wishes that easily get pushed to the side when our life gets in the way. This is why I revisit this values - vision - goals process every year. Although my "values" of life in general remain consistent, my vision shifts a bit as I make progress and learn new things, so by re-assigning values that need to come to the for

Image generated using Gemini AI As 2025 comes to a close, I'm sure you won't be surprised to hear me say that it's time to take stock and plan for next year (in pencil, because Life Drafting). If you plan to come to the retreat, consider this your groundwork to prepare you for the work we will be doing there. If you aren't able to attend the retreat, simply use these exercises as the start of your 2026 planning. If you’re joining us for the retreat, consider this message your

Hey friends, I was listening to a recent Mel Robbins episode (I know… shocking!) where she interviewed Charles Duhigg, author of The Power of Habit . I’ve studied habits for years, but I somehow still haven’t read his book—despite it sitting on my shelf. But one simple idea he shared stopped me in my tracks: keystone habits . These are the habits that create a ripple effect—small practices that, when you do them consistently, quietly influence every part of your day. These “k

Last week I talked about cognitive offloading as a journaling strategy. Honestly it is my favorite. I truly am able to process through all the "stuff" clogging up my brain. Sometimes I have a-ha, lightbulb moments that really hit me as I'm writing. But I know that for people new to journaling, simply sitting down to write whatever comes to your head can feel silly, overwheming and uncomfortable. It's weird. I realize that it can be easier to write to a prompt - kind of like a

Ever catch yourself thinking, “If I could just get my brain to quiet down…” ? Do you have trouble falling asleep at night because your mind is racing with all the things you have to do the next day? Did you have a crazy day and just can't stop thinking about all that happened (or didn't happen)? That’s where cognitive offloading  comes in. It’s the simple act of moving thoughts, ideas, and to-dos out of your head  and onto something else —like paper. There’s real magic in th

I apologize ahead of time for my fan-girl behavior this week. You see, I simply adore Taylor Swift. I have been listening to her new album nonstop for the past two weeks, with a new ear worm each day. I literally wake up in the morning with a different one playing in my head. I have always enjoyed Taylor's music, but I was mostly a casual radio listener. A quiet fan. I admired her grit and humor. But I fell deep with the Era's Tour and The Tortured Poet's Department - and I a

If you’re not a morning person, this should resonate with you (and for those of you following along, I totally recognize that this is a...

I came across this quote recently and wanted to dive in a little more. I’ve noticed how easy it is to get caught in that pattern—always...

I have below the details for the retreat I'm planning for January, 2026. You all, as my members, are the first ones to see this, as well...

Sometimes at the end of a day I say "wow, I was busy today!" But what does that really mean. Often for me it's a statement of exhaustion...