I Wrote This at 50. Five Years Later, These Lessons Still Hold.

When I turned 50, I wrote a list of everything life had taught me so far.

Some of it was serious. Some of it was hopeful. Some of it involved accepting that I might never completely figure out this whole balance thing.

And naturally, some of it involved owning the fact that I am occasionally a hot mess.

Now, five years later, I look back at that list and realize something.

These lessons were not only birthday reflections. They became Tashisms. Little truths I have lived, repeated and shared with the people around me.

And somehow, they feel even more true today.

Never Say Never

Life has a funny way of proving us wrong.

The opportunities we thought would never happen happen. The things we thought we would always want change. New people arrive. Old plans shift. Entirely different versions of our lives begin.

I have learned to leave a little room for the unexpected because some of the best parts of my life came from things I never saw coming.

It Is Never Too Late to Find What Lights You Up

At 30, I had no idea what I wanted to do with my life.

Eventually, I found a passion that became my work. That passion grew into Authentic Instructor Training and a community of thousands of instructors around the world.

Your purpose does not have an expiry date.

You are allowed to discover new interests, change direction and begin again at any age. You can still find the thing that makes you feel like you.

Entrepreneurship Is Harder Than It Looks

Building a business is exciting, rewarding and absolutely worth it.

It is also a lot harder than it appears from the outside.

There are risks, lonely decisions, unexpected expenses and days when you wonder what on earth you were thinking. There are also moments when you realize you created something that changes people’s lives.

My advice is simple. Talk to people who have done it. Ask questions. Learn from their mistakes. Then decide whether the dream matters enough to you to do the hard parts too.

Mental Health Comes First

Always.

Success means very little when you are struggling just to make it through the day.

Taking care of your mental health is not selfish. Asking for help is not weakness. Rest is not something you need to earn.

Learning about my ADHD helped me understand myself in an entirely new way. My brain is creative, quick, curious and occasionally running in seventeen directions at once.

ADHD can be challenging, but it can also be pretty cool. Trust me.

If You Love Something About Someone, Tell Them

Tell people when they inspire you.

Tell them when you admire their courage, their kindness, their energy or the way they make other people feel.

Tell them even if you barely know them.

We often assume people already know what makes them special. Many times, they have absolutely no idea.

A genuine compliment might take ten seconds to give and stay with someone for years.

See the Potential in Your People

Sometimes we can see something in another person before they can see it in themselves.

Be the friend who reminds them.

Give them the gentle nudge. Encourage the idea. Say their name in a room full of opportunities. Help them recognize what has been obvious to you all along.

Believing in your fellow humans is always worth it.

Your Past Does Not Decide Your Future

My beginnings included living in an orphanage.

That experience is part of my story, but it never got to decide what I could become.

What hurt you does not get to define you. What it taught you can help shape you.

You can remember where you came from while continuing to build a life that looks completely different from where you began.

Be EXTRAordinary

Heavy on the EXTRA.

Wear the outfit. Take up some room. Laugh loudly. Care deeply. Get excited. Let people see how much something means to you.

You were never meant to become a quieter, smaller or more acceptable version of yourself.

Your authenticity is not too much. It is the whole point.

Own the Hot Mess

I still have not completely found balance.

I am getting closer.

Maybe.

But I have learned that having everything perfectly figured out is not required for a meaningful, joyful or successful life.

You can be a work in progress and still be proud of who you are today.

So if you are a hot mess sometimes, own it.

That might just be your superpower.