That quiet voice inside you might be pointing you exactly where you’re meant to go.
“The life you’re meant to live is usually hiding inside what you keep brushing off.” -Unknown
You guys… I did it.
I just made 10-year-old Kelli (and 39-year-old Kelli) so proud. I officially earned my first paycheck from my dream job — writing and photography. And I am just so giddy about it. Like, truly… wow.
Ever since I was little — dressing my animals up in my clothes and photographing them in front of a bedsheet (I mean… an elegant, very professional backdrop 😄)-see below photos for proof — I dreamed of traveling the world, taking photos, writing about it, and getting paid to do it.
It may be a decade or two later than I originally imagined, and it wasn’t exactly travel writing (it was interviewing locals in town like the cat ski groomer pictured above)… but I finally did it. I made money doing something I’ve always quietly wondered if I ever could.
And maybe the coolest part? I was brave enough, over the past few years, to actually say it out loud — that this was still a dream of mine. To believe that it’s not too late to start something. Especially the things that feel tucked deep inside you, just waiting to be brought to life.
So why am I sharing this with you?
Because I believe there are more of us out there who have something inside us — a voice, a talent, a passion, a pull, a knack. A quiet something that keeps whispering, don’t forget about me. Don’t forget about this dream that deserves a chance to exist in the world. You’re meant to share it. Not just for you… but for the people it might impact.
Recently, I was listening to one of my favorite podcasts, The Mel Robbins Podcast, and Mel Robbins had Hoda Kotb on. They were talking about reinventing yourself at any age — and one story Hoda shared completely stopped me.
She said she had always wanted kids. But life kept getting in the way — building her career, then breast cancer, then a divorce. And eventually, she told herself she had simply gotten too old to have children on her own. So she quietly let the dream go. Not because she stopped wanting it… but because she didn’t think it was possible.
And because of that, she never said it out loud. Not to others. Not even to herself. It hurt too much to admit how badly she wanted something she believed she couldn’t have.
Then one day, she went to a baby shower with a friend. Afterward, her friend casually said something like, “That was fun — even though we’re the kind of women who chose not to have kids.”
And it stopped Hoda in her tracks.
That wasn’t true. She hadn’t chosen that. But she had let the world believe it — because it felt easier than speaking her truth.
Later that day, she was home watching TV when a story came on about Sandra Bullock adopting a baby. Hoda immediately grabbed her phone, looked up Sandra Bullock’s age… and realized they were the exact same age.
There it was. Proof.
Proof that maybe it wasn’t too late.
Listening to her tell that story gave me chills. Because once she allowed herself to say it out loud — once she admitted what she truly wanted — everything shifted. And today, she has two beautiful children and a life she once thought wasn’t possible.
That conversation with Mel and Hoda kept circling back to one simple, powerful truth: you have to be brave enough to admit what you want. You have to let yourself want it. And then… be willing to figure out a way forward.
So, my friend — I’ll ask you the same question:
What is inside you that wants to come to life?
What Do You WANT… Not What Do You Need
Yesterday, I was out on a run listening to 10x Is Easier Than 2x and, if I’m being honest, I was kind of half listening… letting it play in the background while my mind wandered. But then something pulled me back in. The author started talking about wanting versus needing — and I actually laughed out loud.
Because this is a conversation we have in our house all the time with the kids.
“Do you really need that… or do you just want it?”
I felt very validated in my parenting for a solid 10 seconds. 😄
And then… he flipped it.
According to him, we’ve kind of had it backwards. Instead of downplaying our wants and prioritizing our needs, he suggests we actually do the opposite — that we pay attention to what we want and shine a light on it.
A few ideas from the book that really stuck with me:
• “Need” comes from pressure. “Want” comes from purpose.
• When your goals come from need, they feel heavy — like obligations. When they come from want, they feel energizing — like opportunities.
• “I need this to work” puts you in survival mode. “I want this to work” puts you in creative mode.
And one line that really made me pause:
You don’t need to justify your desires to anyone.
If someone asks why you want something… it’s enough to simply say — because I want it.
Whew. That one hits.
So much of life is filled with people (and systems) nudging us toward what we should need — the secure job, the steady paycheck, the safe path. And while those things can matter, sometimes they also create a false sense of security… keeping us operating from scarcity instead of abundance.
Wanting, on the other hand? That’s where expansion lives.
So let me ask you again — what is inside you that you want to come true?
Not what you think you should want.
Not what feels practical or responsible.
But what quietly keeps showing up in the back of your mind?
The what-ifs.
The someday-maybes.
The author shares that over 25 years ago, when he hit a rock bottom — divorced and bankrupt on the same day — he started a simple journaling practice: asking himself daily, What do I want?
Maybe that’s a place to start.
At the end of the day, the week, the month — just write it down. No filtering. No justifying. Just… wanting.
Because remember:
Your biggest breakthroughs don’t come from chasing what you need.
They come from having the courage to pursue what you truly want.
What’s Holding You Back?
Here are some common themes that hold people back from even considering their dreams, goals, and desires quietly living inside them:
Too Much Work:
A long time ago, I was floundering in my career path. Tony was in PT school in New Hampshire, and I was bouncing around between odd jobs because we knew we’d be moving soon. But if I’m being honest, I was also living in a world of need.
I wanted to be a writer and photographer… but I had no idea how to actually make money doing that. So instead of chasing what I wanted, I chased what I thought I needed — the potential for financial success somewhere else.
At the time, my mom was living in Boise, and a newer company, Scentsy, was taking off. She joined as a rep, and my dad quickly realized it hadn’t made its way to New Hampshire yet… so he signed me up too. 😄 For a few years, my mom and I were all in on the direct sales world, and honestly, at times, we did pretty well.
But I remember something so clearly. My mom once said she didn’t actually want to be super successful at it.
I was like — WHAT?? Why not? Isn’t that the whole point?!
Ahh, to be young, ambitious, and slightly confused. 😄
What I didn’t understand then — and deeply understand now — is that she didn’t want the level of work that came with that level of success. Financially, they were okay. She valued her time more than chasing more money.
And now… I get it. Time is incredibly valuable. But that’s a conversation for another day.
The point for today is this: if you’re feeling like my mom — like following that persistent want inside you might require too much work — don’t let that stop you before you even begin.
Yes, there may be a season of a lot of work. But over time, you can build, grow, and eventually leverage that work. You can create something that not only changes your life — financially and with more freedom — but also creates opportunities for others.
And here’s the other piece: when you’re doing something you truly want, it often doesn’t feel like work in the same way.
Right now, when I get the opportunity to do paid writing, even if it’s not the most glamorous assignment, it still feels exciting. I don’t resent the extra work on my plate because I’m operating from a place of creativity, purpose, and want — not pressure.
Yes, I’ve added more to my plate this year. But it feels different.
And if it ever starts to feel heavy? That’s my signal to adjust and start leveraging.
Failure:
I think a lot of people don’t speak up about what they truly want because they’re afraid of failing.
And yeah… failing is hard.
That Scentsy business my mom and I built? It didn’t last. It worked for a while, but not to the level we (okay, mostly my dad and I 😄) had hoped. In the end, we spent more money trying to grow it than we made.
And sure, I can look back and think — that was a waste of time and how embarrassing we failed, I can also think about the what if I had just gone all-in on travel writing instead?
But here’s the thing: I don’t regret it.
Not even a little.
Because what came out of that experience was so much more than money. I gained incredible memories with my mom — traveling around the country, hosting parties, working fall craft fairs in New Hampshire, going on trips, and building something together. I learned lessons I still carry with me today.
So was it a failure?
Not really.
It just didn’t turn out the way we expected. And that’s okay.
Also, if I regret anything from that time, it’s that I didn’t dabble a little in building the photography and writing business on the side while doing Scentsy. So, I’m taking that lesson with me today and building out this side passion project I’ve always dreamed about.
Limiting Beliefs:
Maybe, like Hoda, you have a little voice (or maybe a loud one) telling you that what you want just isn’t possible.
That’s normal. And there’s actually a reason for it.
Your brain isn’t designed to help you chase your dreams — it’s designed to keep you alive.
It scans for risk. It focuses on what could go wrong. It prefers what’s familiar and predictable. And it often confuses discomfort with danger.
So when you think about starting something new, going after a dream, or stepping outside your comfort zone, your brain jumps in with:
“What if it doesn’t work?”
“That sounds hard.”
“Let’s not.”
Not because you can’t do it… but because it’s doing its job.
So just remember — when your brain gives you ten reasons something might not work, that doesn’t mean it’s right.
It just means you’re stepping into something new.
The Naysayers:
And then there are the external voices.
There will be people — often people who love you — who question your choices. Who try to steer you toward what feels safer, more stable, more “realistic.”
Sometimes they’re projecting their own fears. Sometimes they’re shaped by their own experiences. And sometimes it’s just the culture we’ve all grown up in — one that prioritizes need over want.
I know my own family hesitated when I talked about becoming a travel writer. Not because they didn’t believe in me, but because they knew it wasn’t the easiest path.
And honestly? I hesitated too.
So when you come up against those voices — including your own — and someone asks you why you need that thing…
Try this instead:
“I don’t need it. I want it. And I want it because I want it.”
You don’t need to justify your desires. Let them wrestle with that if they need to.
Also, don’t be the naysayer.
Be the person who encourages others to go for it. When someone timidly shares an idea or dream, they’re often just testing the waters—seeing if it’s safe to say it out loud. Don’t shut it down. Help build it up.
Because yes, they might fail. But they also might succeed. And even if they don’t, they’ll be better for having tried.
And sometimes, all someone needs is one person who says, “You should go for it.”
And remember this:
Until you go after it, you’ll never actually know what’s possible.
So don’t wait until later in life wondering “what if.”
Test it now. Explore it now. Try.
Be Sandra Bullock
So here’s another reason to go after it — whatever your “it” is.
You need to be the Sandra Bullock.
Not literally, of course 😄… but you need to be the person who chooses to go for it anyway. The one who listens to that quiet pull and decides it’s worth following. Because when you do, it doesn’t just change your life — it ripples out in ways you may never even see.
We need more people willing to chase what lights them up. For a few reasons:
1. It creates more joy — for you and everyone around you.
If more of us were living in alignment with what we actually want — in our work, our hobbies, how we spend our time — I truly believe we’d see more happiness. Less heaviness. Less burnout. Maybe even less of the mental health struggles so many people are facing right now.
Joy is contagious.
At least, I think it is.
When I see someone fully lit up by their life — passionate, excited, in their element — it doesn’t make me feel behind… it makes me feel inspired. It reminds me what’s possible.
2. You never know who you’re going to impact.
Do you think Sandra Bullock knew that by adopting a child later in life — and simply living her truth — she would be the exact spark someone else needed?
Probably not.
Yes, she’s a celebrity, and sure, there’s influence that comes with that. But she didn’t do it for that reason. She did it because it was what she wanted.
And then it reached Hoda Kotb at exactly the right moment.
So the real question is… who are you that person for?
Because you don’t need a platform or fame to inspire someone. Sometimes it’s just one decision. One step. One moment of choosing what you want instead of what feels safe.
And someone, somewhere, is watching… and thinking:
If she can do that… maybe I can too.
Take Action
So today, I want to encourage you to pause and really think about it.
Your childhood dreams.
Your college dreams.
Your “someday maybe” goals.
The little things that whisper, that would be cool to do.
And then ask yourself — why am I not doing that?
You might have a really valid reason. You might realize it truly doesn’t align with where you are right now in life. I can relate to that. I still sometimes wish I had chased travel writing earlier, but part of what held me back wasn’t just fear or money — it was also that, after meeting Tony, I didn’t actually want to go gallivanting around the world alone. I wanted to build a life with him. I wanted family. So in that season, it wasn’t the right fit.
And now? Now that I’ve built a successful business (thank you, Elevate TC Services 🙌), I feel more grounded — and more confident — to start chasing that dream in a different way.
So yes, sometimes it’s okay that now isn’t the time.
But I also want to gently challenge you — is it truly not the time… or is that an easy place to hide?
Because if I’m being honest, I probably could have found a way to do both. It just would have looked different than the version I had in my head. Maybe less hopping on international flights and more weekend adventures closer to home. Maybe slower. Maybe messier. But still possible.
Don’t be afraid to really look at what’s pulling at you and ask — is there a version of this that could exist in my life right now?
So what is it for you?
What keeps nudging you?
Have you always wanted to run a half marathon?
Travel somewhere completely unfamiliar?
Own a horse?
Write a book?
Adopt a child or host a foreign exchange student?
Whatever it is — give yourself space to actually think about it.
Take a 20-minute walk today and let your mind wander there.
Or start a simple daily habit in your journal and ask yourself one question:
What do I want?
And just see what comes up.
Alright friends — thank you for reading along, especially when these Elevate Livin’ Life newsletters get a little long 😉.
So I’ll leave you with this…
Are you brave enough to share what you truly want?
Big or small — I’d genuinely love to hear it.
And I’ll go first:
I want to spend my days adventuring outside, traveling the world, and taking photos and writing about it. And not just because that is so fun to do, but I feel a bigger pull to help inspire others to live their lives to the fullest. I want to see everyone living out their wants.
There. Said out loud.
Now it’s your turn.
Be brave enough to name it. You don’t have to have it all figured out. You don’t have to know exactly how it will happen. Just start by saying it.
Heck — share it with me. I’ll help you hold it, protect it, and maybe even take a step toward bringing it to life.
Happy Spring!
–Kelli
Baja Mexico Adventures with the Family
Elevate TC Services 