There are a lot of reasons for our clients – and ourselves for that matter – to throw on the brakes right now.

A LOT of reasons.

It feels like every conversation I am a part of these days is framed with a story – or several stories! — about an ailing parent or a random breakdown of a major appliance or a flash flood in the basement or the death of a beloved pet or an unforeseen break up or a car accident or notice of a tax audit or economic concerns or geopolitical nightmares or…or…or…

And these stories, these experiences, are Real with a capital “R,” meaning they’re not trivial. They are not minor. They are not imagined or over-dramatized or inflated in any way. And those who are reporting these experiences are not exaggerating, either, the toll that it’s taking on them both physically as well as mentally and emotionally.

These are, in a nutshell, weird and chaotic times.

And in weird and chaotic times, I would have thought that many (most?) people would prefer to hunker down and ride out the storm.

And yet…

That is the opposite of what I am seeing.

In these weird and chaotic times, people are emerging, not hunkering! They are expanding, not contracting! They are claiming new dreams and taking action on old ones. They are reimagining their futures and putting their stakes in the ground. And it’s weird and it’s wonderful and it is, in a word, Remarkable (with a capital “R” because this, too, is not at all trivial).

It speaks to me of grand adventures and setting forth across the sea. Of explorers and risk-takers and those folks who set out to scale mountains whose peaks they cannot even see.

And it doesn’t feel reactive, this setting out on new adventures amidst the chaos. It does not feel like escapism or flights of fancy (nor of panic).

It feels oddly Right.

Like somehow this is exactly the Right Time for folks to be moving forward, taking their path by storm.

We’ve taken to calling this phenomenon “Go Energy” – and we’re seeing it everywhere we turn.

This Go Energy is a joy to witness. A breath of fresh air. It gives me goosebumps and, at times, has brought me to tears. But most of all, it has given me Hope.

Hope that we can still find Ourselves amidst what might appear to be rubble.

Hope that We, together, are forging something worthy of awe.

Hope that weird and chaotic times do indeed bring forth New Growth, New Possibilities, and New, Bigger, Better Futures for all.

And oh, Dear Reader, I am totally and completely here for that.

xx Rebecca

You can find more from Rebecca at Plaid For Women or connect with her on her website.