You know that feeling, don't you? It's Sunday evening, and tomorrow's Monday is looming. Your stomach does that little flip thing, and you can't quite shake the thought: "Surely this isn't it for the next twenty years?"
I've been having conversations with so many people lately who are feeling exactly this. Just last week, I chatted with Emma, a marketing manager who told me she'd been sitting in her car after work for ten minutes every day, just staring at her house, trying to summon the energy to go inside. "I love my life," she said, "but I'm not sure I love my work anymore."
Sound familiar?
The Great Summer Reflection
There's something about summer that makes us all a bit more honest with ourselves, isn't there? Maybe it's the longer days giving us more time to think. Or seeing everyone's holiday photos on Instagram. Or simply that mid-year pause where we naturally take stock.
Whatever it is, July seems to be the month when people finally admit what they've been thinking for ages.
I've noticed it in my own life too. Three years ago, I was having exactly these conversations with myself. Successful on paper. Ticking all the traditional boxes. But feeling like I was sleepwalking through my days.
The worst part? Feeling guilty about it. "I should be grateful," I kept telling myself. "Loads of people would love to have my problems."
But here's what I've learned: wanting more from your work life isn't ungrateful. It's human.
The Stories We Tell Ourselves
"I'm too old to change careers now."
"I should be thankful for job security."
"Starting over would be selfish with a family to support."
"I don't have any unique skills to offer."
"Everyone feels like this about work."
God, the stories we tell ourselves to stay put! I hear them all the time, and honestly, I told myself most of them too.
But then I started paying attention to the people around me who seemed genuinely happy with their work. Not just putting on a brave face. Actually energised by what they did.
And you know what I noticed? They weren't superhuman. They weren't born into privilege. They weren't necessarily more talented.
They'd just reached a point where staying felt riskier than changing.
Take my friend James. At 45, he was a senior manager at a tech company. Earning good money. Ticking along nicely. But he kept talking about this idea he had for helping small businesses with their marketing.
For two years, he talked about it. Always followed by "but I can't just throw away fifteen years of career progression" or "what if it doesn't work?"
Then one day, he said something that stopped me in my tracks: "I'm more afraid of getting to 65 and wondering 'what if' than I am of trying and it not working out perfectly."
Six months later, he handed in his notice. Eighteen months after that, he's running a thriving consultancy. Working four days a week. And telling me it's the best decision he ever made.
What Actually Changes Everything
I used to think successful career changes were about having a brilliant business idea or being naturally entrepreneurial. Turns out, that's not it at all.
The people who successfully create work they actually love? Whether that's starting their own thing, going freelance, finding more flexible employment, or completely switching fields? They all seem to have figured out three things.
They got honest about what they actually wanted. Not what they thought they should want, or what would impress other people, but what would genuinely make them excited to start the week.
They stopped waiting for permission. From their boss, their family, their bank balance, or some mysterious "right time" that never quite arrives.
They found their people. The ones who'd made similar changes. Who understood the fear and the excitement. Who could offer practical advice instead of well-meaning but unhelpful "you're so brave, I could never do that" comments.
That last one was huge for me. When you're surrounded by people who think job security is the ultimate goal, it's easy to convince yourself that wanting flexibility and meaning is unrealistic. But when you start talking to people who've actually created that life? You realise it's not only possible. It's probably more secure than hoping your traditional job will exist in ten years.
The Permission You've Been Waiting For
Here's what nobody tells you about that nagging "what if there's something more" feeling: it's not a quarter-life crisis or a mid-life crisis or any kind of crisis at all.
It's intelligence.
You're recognising that the old rules were written for a world that doesn't exist anymore. Work hard for forty years, retire at 65, hope you've got enough energy left to enjoy it. That was for a world where career changes were rare. Where working from home was impossible. Where creating multiple income streams wasn't even a concept.
But we're living in 2025. The tools exist. The opportunities exist. The only thing missing is permission.
And here's the thing about permission: you don't need anyone else to give it to you.
What I Wish I'd Known Sooner
If I could go back and tell my earlier self anything, it would be this: you don't have to figure it all out before you start.
I spent months. Years, actually. Waiting until I had the perfect plan. I wanted to know exactly how much money I'd make. Precisely how I'd find clients. Exactly what my day-to-day would look like. I thought I needed to have all the answers before I could take the first step.
What I eventually learned is that clarity comes from action, not from thinking.
You start by admitting what you want. Then you take one small step. Then another. Then you adjust based on what you learn. Then you take another step.
It's not a leap. It's a bridge you build as you walk across it.
Your Next Chapter Starts Now
So here we are, in the middle of summer 2025, and you're reading this because something in you knows it's time for a change.
Maybe you're not sure exactly what that change looks like yet. Maybe you are sure but you're scared to admit it. Maybe you've been thinking about it for ages but haven't told anyone yet.
All of that is completely normal.
What matters is that you're here, reading this, asking the question. Because the people who create work they love aren't the ones who never felt scared or uncertain.
They're the ones who felt scared and uncertain and decided to start anyway.
If you're ready to stop wondering "what if" and start discovering "what's next," I'd love to have a proper conversation with you about it. No pressure, no hard sell. Just an honest chat about what you want and how to start building it.
Book a free discovery call here and let's talk about turning your Sunday evening dread into Monday morning excitement.
Because life's too short to spend it building someone else's dream while yours sits gathering dust.