Soft Power, Big Dreams

If you’ve always been the one who figures it out…
The responsible one. The overachiever. The dreamer. The mover. The get shit done girl.

Same.

Capricorn. Generator. Eldest daughter.
Trained since birth to carry, to manage, to lead, to endure.
And I’ve worn that identity like armor for most of my life.

And now?

I still love that ambitious version of me. A lot!
The one who wants to build something meaningful. The one who dreams big and shows up even when it’s scary. (Hi, starting-my-own-business energy 👋)

But I’m also learning to move through life a little differently these days…
A little slower.
A little softer.
A little more aligned.

Because here’s the thing I keep coming back to:
You don’t have to be defined by how you’ve always moved through the world.
You get to choose a new way.

Yes — the world is intense right now.
AI is changing everything.
The news is overwhelming.
The pressure to “keep up” is loud.

But I believe this can be true, too:
You can adapt and rest.
You can be informed and protect your energy.
You can take risks and trust your intuition.
You can do work that lights you up — even if it looks different than how you’ve always done it or what others expect of you.

Real Talk though…

Being an entrepreneur is no joke.
Starting something from the ground up, on your own is a lot.
You’re trusting yourself completely. You’re the visionary, the bookkeeper, the creative director, the tech support, the therapist… all in one.

Even in a city like Ottawa, where the design community is generous and supportive, it still feels like you’re building your own little island.

Some days I can’t even believe I did it — took the leap, chose the path of most resistance (because, of course), and stepped into something wildly unknown.

And you know what?
It’s been beautiful.
It’s been aligned.
And it’s also been hard.

There are weeks I feel unstoppable. Creative, productive, confident.
And weeks I feel completely paralyzed by my to-do list, my ambition, and the pressure to succeed. Because, for so long, that’s how I measured my worth.
If I wasn’t achieving, what the hell was I even doing?

Full disclosure: Last week?
Lots of tears.
Lots of learning.
High standards.
That annoying voice that wants to be great at everything and explode into overnight success like some Pinterest-perfect unicorn.

But beneath it all, there’s also a soft, steady knowing that I come back to.
A quiet dream to keep doing things my way.
To move at a pace that feels good in my body.
To build something sustainable. Something rooted in joy.
Something deeply aligned with my values.

And the irony is that I’m loving my work and clients, more than ever before! 

This isn’t about giving up ambition.
It’s about redefining what ambition looks like.

For me, ambition now looks like building a business that doesn’t burn me out.
It looks like creating with intention instead of urgency.
It looks like protecting my energy, honouring my capacity, and choosing quality over quantity.
It looks like trust and flow and letting go of the fucking shoulds.
Like nourishing my soul even when the world says grind harder.

If you’ve been feeling the shift too…
If you’re tired of carrying it all but don’t quite know what the other side looks like yet…

Let this be your reminder:
You’re not behind.
You’re becoming.

Let them be confused.
You’re not here to be understood by everyone.
You’re here to be true to yourself.

And that? That’s brave as fuck. 💫

xo,
Kayla

PS.
You’re doing better than you think. Keep. Doing. The. Thing!