(Side note: I wrote this in 2024 and rediscovered it in 2026 as I was clearing the website up to rebrand as The Curious Counselor... How wild... how relevant?! Stay curious.)
Did you hear the news?
I have officially quit designing jewelry. Ugh, I hate even typing that. There is so much shame in quitting. In my mind, quitting has always equated to failure. It's probably the reason I delayed making this decision even though my gut and the universe were screaming, "It's time!"
The truth is, I'm ready for the next season of my life. Next week, I turn 41, so maybe I'm having a mid-life crisis, but I'd rather think of it as a mid-life redesign. I officially start graduate school for counseling next month!
"But why a redesign?"
At the beginning of 2024, I chose the word "curiosity" as my word of the year. Full disclosure, I was inspired by the Ted Lasso quote "Be curious, not judgmental." This approach sparked something in me that brought me back to my childhood and had me asking myself...
"When did I stop being curious?"
My mom has shared with me that when I was a child, I would constantly ask questions. She thought it was cute but also increasingly annoying when the "But why?" questions never ended. Clearly, I was filled with curiosity from an early age!
As a teen, I remember playing devil's advocate, curious to get thoughts on the flip side of a situation and questioning everything, including authority. 😬 I was told I should be a lawyer so many times growing up that I started to believe that would be the perfect job for me.
Fast forward to 2024, and I started to realize I had lost that natural curiosity. I had become judgmental versus curious, especially when it came to looking at myself and my career. I found myself pushing to make something work even though it wasn't working and my spark had left. But I wasn't asking myself "why" or "what next?" I was just pushing forward with only one possibility in mind.
So I finally started asking myself curious questions:
Am I truly still designing a life I love?
Is there anything that I feel called to do in this season that I have suppressed in order to stay the course?
What if I explored my passion for personal development, mental wellness, and helping people?
What would that look like?
What would it take?
And as the answers started to reveal themselves, I started to feel some excitement for what I was discovering. Things just started to sort of fall into place and make sense.
It was like the universe said, "FINALLY, she's listening!"
Out of the blue, my son's therapist asked me if I ever considered becoming a therapist, and I admitted out loud for the first time that I had thought about it, but I thought I was too old to change careers. She encouraged me to look into some graduate programs, and the ball started rolling... a ball that had been rolling for some time, but I kept trying to ignore it.
The year before, I worked with an amazing intuitive life coach, Will McGreal. He noticed the spark that showed up when I talked about the work I had done with my guided journaling groups and the motivational speeches I had given. I, too, could feel my excitement for those things, but I felt like it was hard to incorporate into a jewelry business. He knew I had to let go of the jewelry business to pursue the ultimate goal, but I just wasn't ready.
Well, now I'm ready! I will be starting a graduate counseling program at LSU Health Sciences next month, and I couldn't be happier.
Becoming a Licensed Professional Counselor and being able to support others in becoming mentally stronger is such an exciting and rewarding path to be on.
Curiosity questions I'm currently contemplating:
Am I scared? Yes, change is scary and so is learning something new.
Am I excited? Yes, I feel like there is so much clarity on this path.
Am I taking a huge risk? Yes, but I'm brave, fully capable, and I believe in myself.
Do I feel like this is the right career move for my soul? 1000%! I feel fully aligned again.
Will I miss designing jewelry? Yes, of course. It's been part of me for 18 years. There are also deep-rooted ties to this industry, as my late husband and I worked together and shared a deep passion for jewelry and design.
Am I making the best decision with all of the information I have gathered? Yes, I'm confident that I am making the right decision for this season and for the rest of my life.
My hope for sharing this with you is that it inspires you to get curious and see where it takes you. It's never too late to forge a new path, learn something new, see things from another perspective, or simply be open to asking questions without preconceived notions of the answers.
Thank you for being on this journey with me. Cheers to curiosity!
