Enter The Year of the Horse: Stepping Into A NEW You with Vitality, Intention, and Gratitude

I wanted to ask you a question this week. Have you been feeling it? That subtle restlessness, that quiet nudge, and that sense that maybe something is shifting. Well, we've just stepped into the year of the horse in the Chinese zodiac, and horse energy is all about movement and momentum. It's about freedom and reinvention. Which kind of excites me a little bit actually. The energy of the horse is not about standing still. It doesn't thrive in small paddocks. It wants open fields and spaces to expand and move. And when this kind of energy moves through a year, whether you follow astrology or not, you may feel it like I just can't stay here anymore. Or why does this feel harder than it should? Or is is this all there is? Or maybe it's just a quiet I know I want more. Not necessarily more stuff, but more expansion, more alignment, more you. And that's exactly what this episode is about. Because sometimes when things feel like they're wobbling, it's not necessarily that they're falling apart. It's just that you've outgrown them. And we've been talking a lot about that in the over the past few episodes here. Because the beginning of the year here on
the Life is Delicious podcast was all about recalibration. So stepping into this year of the horse energy, honestly, it's a perfect way for us to identify what's kind of going on for everybody and to maybe make a little bit of sense of it. So let me tell you about my weekend. I was uh packing for a little weekend getaway, and I just stood there looking in my closet, and I was pulling some stuff off the hangers, and I noticed something. I was like, there are so many clothes in here that I look at that I own but that I never actually wear. Do you know what I mean? You know the ones, oh, I have that sweater just in case, or those skirts are gonna be really cute one day. Or my favorite, which is I love that I have so many options, but truthfully, it it just kind of made me feel uncomfortable. And I realized that they're like little security blankets hanging on wooden hangers. And when it came time to actually pack, I didn't reach for them. I grabbed the same safe staples, the same yoga pants, the same easy tank tops, the same neutral, comfortable, do not draw attention to yourself pieces. And I thought to myself, isn't that interesting how we keep things as a safety net even when they no longer represent who we still are? And so I went away and it was a, you know, rustic kind of situation, so I wasn't gonna get all dressed up and fancy anyway. But when I came home and I actually unpacked and I started to put things away, I had a bit of a deeper look at my closet. And here's what kind of hit me inside those drawers and a couple of my armoirs were pieces that would actually look fabulous on me. Pieces that feel elevated or colorful and bold, pieces that whisper, hmm, there she is. But guess what? I haven't been wearing them. They've been in the bottom drawer. And it's not because they don't fit, it's because stepping into them feels like stepping into somebody else or something bigger. And there was a funny thing that happened a few years back. I was having a conversation with a friend of mine who's kind of an intuitive coach. And we just got to talking
about things, and she said, What's your favorite color? What do you like to wear? And I said, Oh, I love black. I wear a lot of black. And she said, Oh. You don't want to be seen. And I said, What? You don't want to be seen. And I was like, I don't understand. I mean, I'm a pretty gregarious person. I'm definitely an extrovert with a little bit of an introverted sidekick. But her comment was totally like a smack in the face. But when I really thought about it, she's absolutely right. I just didn't know that about myself before. And you know, we've all seen those women sometimes of all different body shapes. And they walk into a room and maybe they're in a bright red dress and they're just rocking it. And you can't take your eyes off them. And I always really admire those women and think, I wish I had that kind of confidence. And then I realize something kind of uncomfortable. I'm never that girl. I'm never that girl. At least not recently. But here's something interesting. Partly because of that conversation that I had with my friend, I've had an intention to add more color into my wardrobe. And so I bought this gorgeous yellow sweater, I bought this beautiful turquoise sweater, I bought this great, really great orange kind of pumpkin-y colored sweater. And I also bought this really interesting, um, vibrant, sort of almost like a leopard skin print. And I love it. But have I worn it? No. And so having the intention to wear more color, it doesn't count if you just hang it in your closet. It counts if you put it on and you wear it. So last night I was looking around in my closet and I found a leopard print sweater, and I thought to myself, I'm never gonna wear that. Oh my god, like that's just too much, too much. But I put it on and I walked around in it, and I thought, huh. Yeah, that's kind of loud, you know. I'm so used to wearing black that it would just felt loud to me and uncomfortable. But I thought, you know what? I'm gonna start wearing this stuff around the house just to get comfortable
with it. So I was in my weirdo yoga pants and this leopard print sweater. That's a visual right there. And I walked around the house all night last night and did whatever I had to do, watched some TV and you know, cleaned up and all the things. But every time I walked past a mirror, I felt just a little bit better about it. I was like, you know what? I actually kind of like this on me. It's it's actually kind of fun. And I think that's what we have to do in other areas of our life as well, is sometimes we just have to practice because things that are uncomfortable sometimes, you know, they don't come easy. And we have to just give it a minute for our bodies to recalibrate into this new version of the person that we're becoming. And it's okay to feel uncomfortable. It's okay to feel uncomfortable, but it's what you do with that discomfort that matters. So we don't always stay small because life is holding us back.

Sometimes we stay small because we keep dressing like the old version of ourself. Metaphorically and literally. We wear the same routines, the same conversations, the same identity, the same safe choices. And guess what? We feel fine. We feel fine. We don't feel fabulous, we don't feel awesome, we don't feel extraordinary, we just feel fine. And fine is the most dangerous place to live. Because it doesn't demand anything from us. It doesn't demand any change, doesn't demand any risk, and it doesn't demand any discomfort.

So I kind of realized that over the last little while I've been a little bit complacent and getting into a routine of not really stepping out of my comfort zone. And that's why it kind of just hit me when I was looking at all this stuff, and I thought to myself, wow, that is an interesting observation. And here we are in the year of the horse, and the horse energy is all about movement. You can't gallop forward while you carry everything from your old life with you. So you have to make a choice. You have to travel a bit lighter. And this weekend, I'm gonna do something radical. I'm gonna pull everything out of my closet, every hanger, every drawer, every shelf, every pair of shoes, and I'm gonna Marie Kondo it. And if you're not familiar with Marie Kwando, she has this philosophy, look her up, she's awesome.

And she talks about having a place for everything in your life. So everything goes on the floor, whether it's books or dishes or clothes or whatever it is, and you sort through it. And as you pick each item up, you decide if it brings you joy. And if it does not spark joy instantly, it's a no. It's just a hard no. But if it feels good, then you say yes and you hang it back up in your cupboard. And that is such an awesome thing. And I've wanted to do this for a really long time, but this weekend, looking at my closet, I just really thought, okay, it's time. I, for one, have way too many clothes, and I probably wear about 30% of the clothes I actually have in my closet right now. And there's probably a few pieces in there that are my skinny jeans and things that I've been wanting to get into for several years, and I still haven't. So I think maybe that's a scarcity mindset because if they do not fit, let them go.

And if you do happen to lose 20 or 30 or 40 pounds or whatever it is for you, celebrate by buying a new pair of pants. You don't have to hold on to eight pairs of skinny jeans just in case. So that's what I'm gonna do. And I love that, so I'm excited about it. So we'll see, I'll keep you posted. And I think it's really important to ask that question: does this item belong to the woman I'm becoming? Because I've decided that this year I need a new persona, I need something to inspire me to move forward, and I'm building this new company, and so I've decided that the woman I'm stepping into is my six-figure CEO self. And she does not hide in yoga pants every day. She doesn't shrink, she doesn't play a background character in her own life. She dresses like she expects to be seen.

And truthfully, if I'm honest, I've been really feeling this restlessness in this reinvention space. And I think it's time for a bit of a metamorphosis. So if you've been feeling that way, maybe it's that internal horse in you saying, Where do I feel ready to run? Where do I need to pull in the reins? And that tightening of the reins, those are your boundaries. And the truth of the matter is that boundaries do not keep us small. Boundaries actually allow us to identify what matters so we can expand in the best possible way. The way you've been yearning to for years.

So let me ask you, where are you keeping those just in case versions of yourself? Old friendships that don't feel quite like they used to, old habits that feel heavy or you know that aren't serving you, maybe you have some old beliefs about what you're capable of, or old stories about who you are now. Sometimes the feeling of discomfort we're feeling isn't a problem. It's actually an expansion. And the only way to step into a new
identity is to release what isn't working anymore, what we've outgrown. Even if it's good, even if it's comfortable, and especially if it used to fit perfectly a long time ago. Here's something kind of powerful actually. You don't become the six-figure CEO and then dress like her. You dress like her first. You call her forward, you invite her to step into your world. And you don't become confident and then take the risk. You take the risk and the confidence follows. Identity shift happens from the inside out, but they're reinforced from the outside in. When I put on that elevated blazer instead of that old sweater or hoodie, I just move differently, I speak differently, I decide differently. And that's how my new identity will solidify.

So I hope that inspires you. Because here's what I'm inviting you to do. Pull it all out. Your closet, your calendar, your habits, your roles, and have a look at them, lay them out in front of you. And ask yourself, does this fit the woman I'm becoming? Or does this belong to who I used to be? And then be brave enough to release whatever you don't need anymore. Make space because you cannot receive all the new goodness while you're still hanging on to the old stuff. So if you've been feeling a bit restless too, or maybe you're feeling like things are a little bit harder than they should be, or you've just been kind of coasting, I think I've maybe been coasting a little bit since Christmas, then maybe it's not falling apart. Maybe it's the year of the horse whispering it's time for something better. We don't have to burn everything down, but let's run toward that next version of ourself.

And maybe it just starts with something simple. Maybe a closet purge or a bold outfit or maybe just a radical decision that we've been dying to make. Because you're allowed to say, you know what, I'm not that girl anymore. And you're absolutely allowed to dress, live, and choose like the woman you're becoming. And that, my friend, is truly delicious.