Sometimes life gets hard.

I don't mean inconvenient. I don't mean you had a bad day.

I mean hard.

The kind of hard that makes you question why you keep doing what you're doing. The kind that makes you tired of fighting, tired of explaining, tired of adjusting, and sometimes just tired of being strong.

I understand that kind of hard.

I've learned that people come into our lives for a reason, a season, or a lifetime. Sometimes we don't know which one they are until their part in our story has already changed.

Situations change, too.

Something that feels permanent today may actually be situational. Something that feels impossible today may look completely different six months from now.

That's why I try not to make permanent conclusions about my life based on temporary circumstances.

Because I still have a life worth living.

And so do you.

But here's the part that isn't always easy to hear:

Only you can decide what that life looks like.

Every step you take affects your pathway.

Every step you don't take affects it, too.

Every yes.

Every no.

Every time you try again.

Every time you decide you've had enough.

Every time you ask for help.

Every time you choose another direction.

They all become pieces of your story.

And sometimes we convince ourselves that if we don't make a decision, we're somehow standing still.

We're not.

Not making a decision is a decision in itself.

I've had to learn that in my own life.

There are things I cannot control. There are decisions other people make that affect me. There are things my body does that I certainly didn't choose. There are doors I thought would open that didn't, and roads I thought I would travel that changed underneath my feet.

I cannot control all of that.

But I can decide what I do next.

Maybe I take a big step.

Maybe today I can only take a small one.

Maybe I need to rest.

Maybe I need to rethink the entire plan.

Resting isn't disappearing.

Changing direction isn't quitting.

Asking for help isn't surrendering.

And having a difficult season doesn't mean you've reached the end of your life.

I'm still figuring things out myself.

I'm still making decisions.

I'm still changing plans.

I'm still discovering what this chapter of my life is going to look like.

Some days I feel powerful.

Some days I don't.

But even on the difficult days, there is something inside me that says:

Get up.

Maybe not this minute.

Maybe you need a minute.

But get up.

Because I'm not finished.

There are still people I want to help.

There are still things I want to learn.

There are still places I want to go.

There are still things I want to build.

There are still parts of myself I haven't even met yet.

So yes, I understand when life gets hard.

I understand when you question things.

I understand when you're exhausted.

I understand when the pathway you thought you were following suddenly doesn't look anything like the one in front of you.

I understand.

And I will not sit back and just fade away.

Neither should you.

You still get to decide what the next step looks like.

It doesn't have to be perfect.

It doesn't have to be big.

It just has to be yours.

I pivot. I don't quit.

LIVE. DON'T JUST EXIST.

— Kelli Frederick, M.A. Founder & CEO, Empowerment Coaching Global LLC empowermentcoaching.global