Welcome to On The Rise - a space for those navigating identity shifts, life transitions, and the often quiet realization that you’ve outgrown who you used to be. Let’s evolve with intention!

This week's newsletter is a 4-minute read (803 words).

Growth sounds exciting,

until you actually have to do something about it.

You can like the idea of starting a new life chapter, becoming a better version of yourself, or creating a life that feels more like you.

But the part that’s hard for a lot of people to sit with is that growth requires action toward something, which implies letting go of something else.

Growth isn’t just about what you gain. It’s also about what you have to let go of.

To put this into perspective, let me tell you a quick story.

Before I left Nebraska, way back in 2019, I knew the life I was living wasn’t aligned with the one I wanted. But I stayed anyway.

I tried my hardest to make it work. I constantly told myself that it wasn’t that bad and it could be worse. But deep down, I knew I was trying to hold onto something that I had already outgrown.

And if I’m being honest, the hardest part wasn’t the realization that I was going to have to let the life I was living go, it was getting to the point where I was finally willing to.

Because letting go is more than a decision, it’s an entire process.

You can know something isn’t right for you anymore and still keep tolerating it. Not because you don’t want better. But because it’s familiar.

And familiar feels safe.

It’s like that saying, it’s better to keep the devil you know than confront the devil you don’t.

And that’s the never-ending tension of growth.

The fact that you start to see things clearly before you’re ready to fully act on them.

But at some point, if you’re serious about wanting something different, you have to shift.

And most of the time, that ‘shift’ is about letting go. Like:

• letting go of the habits you know aren’t working,

• letting go of the patterns that feel comfortable,

• letting go of the environments and people that don’t support what you want.

It almost also always means letting go of parts of yourself.

That’s the part that’s hard to talk about. It’s one of the parts that was hardest for me to confront for a long time.

By leaving, I knew I would also have to leave behind certain parts of me. And that was hard because those versions served a purpose.

They helped me survive. They helped me get to where I was at that moment. Which was better than where I had been before.

So releasing them didn’t feel as much like growth as it did like loss.

And, I guess in a way, it was.

But here’s what I know now that I didn’t know then:

You can outgrow something and still grieve it.

You can know something’s not aligned and still feel attached to it. 

You can feel ready for more and still feel resistance.

But that doesn’t mean that you’re doing something wrong or that you’re not supposed to make the move.

It just means that you’re in it. The whole damn uncomfortable, yet necessary, and almost always extremely rewarding process of growth.

And it’s not an understatement when I say that growth will ask you to trust yourself before you feel ready.

It will ask you to step away from what feels safe so that you can find what feels right.

And yeah, that’s uncomfortable.

But so is staying in a version of yourself and life that you already know isn’t right for you.

Stepping into the life you want is what it means to be On The Rise.

Cheers to evolving!

Coach Tay

P.S. I’ve been keeping a secret! On May 13th, my newest poetry collection, Butterflies and Bullet Holes, will be released into the world. To follow along with all the pre-release shenanigans, follow my only writing page on Instagram @taylornoelwrites.

1. Ready for clarity? Whether you’re redefining yourself after military service, stepping more fully into authenticity, navigating a career shift, or simply realizing your current life no longer fits, my one-on-one coaching could be perfect to help you gain clarity and strengthen your mindset so you’re ready to step into your next life chapter with clarity and confidence. Jump on a free discovery call with me and let’s talk! Start HERE!

2. Favor. I only have one favor to ask. If there’s someone in your circle who could benefit from this newsletter, share it with them. Not only would it mean the world to me, but it would also be meaningful to them.

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