Growing Anyway: Notes from a Seasoned (but Still Learning) Founder

Heeyyyy Rockstar 👋🏽

Let me tell you something I’ve learned the long, scenic, pothole-filled way: personal growth is rarely a peaceful hike — and y'all know how much I love a Goombay Hike!! IYKYK

Growth is more like a relay race where Life keeps tossing you surprise batons. Some gold-plated. Some on fire 🔥 😳 And somehow, you’re expected to keep running while smiling, moisturized, and mildly inspiring.

Let's review:

The Great Plot Twist of 2000 (the pandemic) had me thinking, “Okay, the world shut down. Literally. But, we made it through 🙌🏼” Cute. Then 2021 arrived with the unimaginable loss of my brother (arguably MY biggest cheerleader) and the kind of grief that sits in your chest and rearranges your oxygen. In 2023, a shiny business collaboration that I believed in collapsed like a folding chair at a cookout 😐 And in 2024, I said goodbye to my DAWG, my guardian angel who looked out in almost every way, leaving the kind of vacancy that makes your world feel lopsided for a while.

Meanwhile, life handed me two new roles I didn’t exactly apply for: easing into caregiver for my parents and somehow “adopting” a college student. (Apparently I give off “Rich Supportive Auntie Who Has Snacks and Life Lessons” energy ✨️) Add to that being a business owner-operator, Founder, digital creator, hospitality coach, and now a hotel investor… well, some days I look around like, “Whose life is this? And does she get vacation days?”

But here’s the thing:

I’m still standing.

Still growing.

Still learning how to pivot with grace — or at least with good posture.

Because the truth is:

Business ownership is tough. 

It will have you questioning your abilities, your sanity, your Wi-Fi, and sometimes your entire life plan.

Navigating business relationships may test your religion. Folks will promise you “synergy” and deliver you confusion. You will meet people who clap loudest for you in public but whisper doubts about you in private.

And you will also meet angels disguised as interns, baristas, conference attendees, and your own child's friends who randomly tell you, “I’m proud of you.” Those moments matter too.

Big wins can be intimidating. Nobody told me success comes with its own type of anxiety. Sometimes you get the blessing you prayed for and immediately think, “Lord… what am I supposed to do with this?”

But here’s the grounding reality I return to again and again:

Every achievement or heartache is within your realm of influence. If you want different, DO DIFFERENT.

Better yet: BE DIFFERENT.

Growth isn’t just about pushing yourself. Sometimes it’s about repositioning yourself. Choosing the uncomfortable truth instead of the convenient habit. Saying no without guilt. Saying yes without fear. Allowing yourself to dream again even when life has bruised you up a bit.

And to my younger ones, the almost-adults, the fully-adulting-but-secretly-overwhelmed readers:

We see you.

Your weight is real.

Sometimes my generation didn’t show you that we carried heavy loads too. Maybe we hid it. Maybe we ignored it. Maybe we powered through when we should’ve paused. But trust me, the confusion you feel trying to grow into yourself? It’s not new… it’s just finally being acknowledged.

And frfr, I’m glad you’re the generation that names the storm while walking through it.

So here we are.

Learning, building, failing, rising, crying in our car sometimes, celebrating small wins loudly, and figuring out how to be softer humans while navigating a harder world.

GOOD STUFF, BABE!!

Now it's your turn:

What season of “growing anyway” are you in right now?

Drop a line in the comments—your story might be the reminder someone else needs today.