A Shared Awakening — the stories that started it all.

It began when I lost my job.

It had been years and I still hadn’t found the courage to leave. I made excuses every time I got close, or something would change just enough that I would stay. And then, all at once, it was over in a 30-minute status meeting.

I had built a career and a life that to most people looked perfect on paper. It should have made me happy because I was successful by every typical measure.

However, underneath it, something was missing.

I first noticed it when I left the department that had launched my career. It surfaced again after returning from maternity leave. Each new role seemed to offer a fresh start, and for a time, it did. But eventually, after the excitement of the next achievement faded, the familiar feeling returned. It was an inner knowing that something was still missing.

Fast forward to the weeks before COVID. I had my two-week notice drafted and ready. I told myself I would get through my annual review later that week and then finally leave. I was terrified of what came next, but for the first time, I felt ready to choose it anyway.

Instead, when the world slowed down, my work shifted home. For the first time in years, I experienced a version of life that allowed space for my family, my friendships, and myself. Even while so much felt uncertain, something about that time in my life felt right. So, in that moment, I chose to stay.

Then, what I couldn't bring myself to do on my own, life ended up doing for me anyway.

After all that time, when I heard the words, "Your position is being eliminated," I expected to feel panic or even anger. Instead, what I felt most was relief.

As I was moving through the emotions of this massive life change, I started having conversations with other women. Deeper and more honest conversations than I typically had. And, in those conversations, I began noticing a pattern. I wasn’t alone in how I had felt for so long.

So many of us carry and ignore the same feelings that something is off, missing, or misaligned while still pursuing “the dream”.

About five months ago, as I was getting ready for bed one night, a thought came to me out of nowhere:

Why are so many women feeling this way, yet so few of us are talking about it with each other?

My mind immediately filled with questions.

What if women had a space to tell the truth about their lives—the real version, not the polished one? What if hearing another woman's story could help someone finally feel seen in her own? What if it could offer the validation and permission she didn't know she needed?

Those questions became the beginning of something much bigger than I anticipated.

It was a journey into women's stories. From the quiet whispers we ignore for years, to the disruptions that can change our lives in the blink of an eye. I've come to believe that when we share our stories, we create space for other women to do the same. We offer validation, permission, and the reminder that they are not alone.

Those conversations and realizations became a passion that continues to shape me today. In many ways, they led me to Clarity—both the idea of it and the work I'm pursuing now.