I got a call this past week from a long-time, dear friend of mine. We were having trouble connecting on the phone and her voice in the message said, “Did you want to hear our new life update? No, I’m not pregnant.”

This made me laugh. Because I preface all newsy items like this. Mostly so my Mom doesn’t get overly excited about the prospect of a grandchild when the news is actually that I’m moving back from Italy.

We finally connected a couple of days later and I practically shouted into the phone,”Yes! Tell me!” I do love news.

She excitedly reported, “Were moving!”

Elizabeth and her husband are making a move to a new city for a few years. They’re renting out their home, packing up their cute toddler and hitting the road for another city located about an hour away. Her husband is interested in gaining more experience in his field and they knew he needed a bigger area and company to make it happen. Not forever, but for now.

“How exciting!” My eyes must have been glittering as I was speaking to her. Nothing gets me going more than a life adventure.

She went on to say, “I was really inspired to have the conversations with him about what we want out of life because of all you had been talking about over the New Year. About being truly happy about what WE wanted to be doing.”

Music to my ears!

Life is long and we live it in chapters. Right now their next chapter is going to be played out in a much different way than their previous ones. And likely the one after that. But all our chapters combine together in making up the book of our lives. Bound up and told via a story. Chapters aren’t forever and sometimes not all that long.

Don’t be afraid to turn the page to your next chapter. 

Making a move to something different and one more in line with who you are needn’t be scary. What if we thought of it all as a grand experiment? In this frame, there are no failures. There’s feedback. There’s more information, data points.

There’s more of, “Well, I tried this and I learned this from it.” Perfect.

And in the worst case scenario if Elizabeth and her family aren’t happy with their new chapter? Guess what — they just cut it short or they switch directions. They got some valuable new data points and can plan accordingly for the next one. All outcomes are serving them in the best way possible. Data points.

The most important thing is they had the conversations with one another and acknowledged they wanted to make this move. Both literally and figuratively. They grasped the book with both hands, and turned the page with gusto.

And that my friends, is the name of the game.

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Interested in planning your next chapter intentionally? Get my free workshop here and learn how. It’s all about not showing up for someone else’s game and instead making your own rules.