What Do You Think About When the Day Gets Quiet? Do You Wonder about what’s Next in Life?

It’s a little after 8 p.m.

The dishes are done. The house is quiet. You’ve made yourself a cup of tea and, for the first time all day, no one needs anything from you.

You settle into your favorite chair and your mind begins to wander.

Not to tomorrow’s to-do list or the emails waiting for you in the morning.

Instead, you start thinking about you.

Maybe there’s a book you’ve always wanted to write.

Maybe you’ve thought about starting a walking group in your neighborhood, but the idea of putting yourself out there feels a little uncomfortable.

Perhaps you’ve wondered what it would be like to go back to school, learn something completely new, change careers, or finally start the business you’ve been thinking about for years.

Or maybe you can’t name it yet.

You just have this feeling that there’s something more you’d like to explore.

Pay Attention to the Quiet Voice

During the day, it’s easy for those thoughts to get pushed aside.

There are responsibilities. Work. Family. Appointments. Emails. Errands. People who need us. Things that simply have to get done.

But when everything gets quiet, that little voice sometimes gets louder.

What if I actually did it?

What would happen if I tried?

Is there still time for me to do something different?

My answer to that last question is yes.

Your next chapter doesn’t have an expiration date.

And it doesn’t have to look like anyone else’s.

Your Next Chapter Doesn’t Have to Be Dramatic

I think we sometimes hear the words next chapter and imagine that we need to completely reinvent our lives.

Quit the job.

Move across the country.

Launch the business.

Write the bestselling book.

Make some enormous, courageous leap.

But most meaningful changes don’t begin that way.

They begin much more quietly.

Your next chapter might start when you sign up for one class.

Write the first page.

Invite three women to meet you for a Saturday morning walk.

Research a career that has always interested you.

Have coffee with someone doing work you’re curious about.

Take one small step toward a business idea.

Or simply admit to yourself:

I want something different, and I’m ready to find out what that might be.

That counts.

In fact, that may be one of the most important steps you take.

You Don’t Need to Know Exactly What’s Next

One of the things I see as a Career and Life Coach is the pressure women put on themselves to have the answer before they begin exploring.

What exactly do I want?

How would I make it work?

What if I make the wrong decision?

What if I’m too old to start over?

What will everyone else think?

Those questions can stop an idea before we’ve even given ourselves permission to explore it.

You don’t need a five-year plan.

You don’t need to know where the path will lead.

And you certainly don’t need to have everything figured out before taking the first step.

Sometimes the better question is simply:

What am I curious about right now?

Curiosity feels very different from pressure.

It gives you permission to explore without immediately needing to commit.

What Has Been Tugging at You?

Maybe nothing in your life needs to be “fixed.”

You may have a good job, people you love, a comfortable home, and a life you’re grateful for.

And you can still want something more.

Those two things can exist at the same time.

Wanting to grow, create, contribute, learn, connect, or challenge yourself doesn’t mean you aren’t grateful for the life you have.

It simply means you’re still becoming.

So tonight, when the day gets quiet, pour yourself a cup of tea and give yourself a few minutes without your phone, television, or to-do list.

Then ask yourself:

If I stopped worrying about whether it was practical, too late, or outside my comfort zone, what would I be curious enough to explore?

Don’t immediately talk yourself out of the answer.

Don’t make a list of all the reasons it won’t work.

Just notice what comes up.

Because sometimes your next chapter begins long before you make a big decision.

It begins on an ordinary evening, in a quiet room, when you finally give yourself permission to wonder:

What if?

Ready to Explore Your Next Chapter?

If something has been quietly tugging at you and you’re ready to give it a little more attention, I’d love to connect with you.

My complimentary Mini Coaching Session is a chance to talk about where you are, what you’ve been thinking about, and what your next chapter could look like.

You don’t need to come with the answers.

That’s what the conversation is for.

Book Your Mini Coaching Session

If you feel you are ready to explore your new career but don’t know where to start, please reach out to me via my website www.deborahvoll.com  and book a free exploratory call here.  Together we will discuss your situation and if life coaching is the best option for you right now!