WHAT NO ONE TELLS YOU ABOUT GROWTH

Something about me: I’ve always loved to write.

It’s how I process. How I connect. How I make sense of everything I’m feeling, especially when those feelings are big and layered and don’t always have a name.

I journal often, especially in moments that feel challenging and unclear. I like being able to return to those entries, years later, and witness my own evolution. It’s one way I hold space for every version of me that’s existed.

One of my journal entries recently started with this line:

“There’s something no one really tells you about growth: how uncomfortable it can be.”

It’s true. Growth isn’t always glamorous. It’s not a polished ‘before and after.’
It’s messy. It’s awkward.
It’s shedding layers that once felt like home. It’s grieving the comfort of old identities, even when you know they’re no longer meant for you.
It’s standing at the edge of everything familiar, heart racing, and choosing to leap, not because you feel totally ready, but because you know you can’t stay where you are.

Starting a business cracked me open. It was one of the most beautiful and deeply lonely things I’ve ever done. It asked me to stretch. To surrender. To examine where I’d been playing small and where I was ready to step into more. And with that came clarity: about who could meet me there, and who couldn’t. About what was real, and what wasn’t. It’s a vulnerable thing to grow. To evolve in real time. To be both proud of how far you’ve come, and painfully aware that parts of the journey still feel tender.

I’ve never been great at surface-level anything. I want depth. I want to be understood without having to over-explain. But here’s what I’ve learned: being deeply known by others begins with being deeply honest with yourself. About what you need. About what no longer fits. About who you’re becoming and what that version of you might require. And the more you choose yourself, the more you might notice things shift.

Not everyone will understand your boundaries.
Not everyone will celebrate your growth.
Not everyone is meant to walk every chapter with you, and that’s okay.

You’re allowed to want more.
You’re allowed to evolve.
You’re allowed to pivot, to change your mind.
That’s the beauty of free will: you’re not confined to who you used to be. You get to rewrite the script as many times as you need to.

But here’s what no one really tells you:
Choosing yourself can hurt. It can require letting go of what once made you feel safe even if that safety was rooted in staying small.

Growth doesn’t always look like a breakthrough.
Sometimes it looks like a quiet boundary.
A solo walk.
Tears in the shower.
A truth finally spoken.
Small steps forward.

Sometimes it looks like mourning the version of you you’re no longer meant to be, while holding space for the one you’re still becoming.

This is where the magic lives:
In the discomfort.
In the showing up, even when you’re tired.
In the choosing, again and again, to honor what feels aligned, even when it’s scary.

If you’re in it right now, stepping into something new, letting go of what no longer fits, or walking through a season that feels tender, I just want you to know you’re not alone.

Let it be messy.
Let it be real.
You’re planting something beautiful.
And even if it takes time, it’ll be worth it.

With love (and a big hug if you need one),

Morgan