Let be. Let go. Make space.

 I'm back from a week away, and I've been reflecting on how easily we can set ourselves expectations that, in reality, are simply too hot to handle.

The kind that feel heavy, itchy/scratchy and all the things.

What was meant to be a week of fun, connection and celebration became an unexpected reminder of something I've been leaning into more and more.

Let be. Let go. Make space.

Six little words that have taken on a whole new meaning for me.

Because sometimes, before we can truly experience what's right in front of us, we need to recognise what we're carrying.

And that's exactly what happened during our week in Kielder Forest.

A little story about the baggage, the pause and the space that was waiting for me all along.

We'd planned a week away in the UK to create some fun memories with our new rescue dog, celebrate our wedding anniversary and enjoy some much-needed time together.

We were heading to Kielder Forest. A beautiful place to get away from the everyday, explore and simply be.

Except I'd packed a little extra baggage.

All the expectations. All the shoulds, need-tos and have-tos that come with who I am, what I'm building and who I think I need to be.

• I should be writing content.
• I need to stay on track.
• I have to be visible.
• I need to show up online so the algorithm knows I'm here and puts me in front of the right people.

Sound familiar?

Somewhere along the way, I'd picked up all these expectations about what it means to build something meaningful.

The advice from others. 

The doomscrolling. 

The constant messages about consistency, visibility and what we should be doing to grow.

And without really questioning them, I'd made them my own.

The thing is, I love what I'm building with Bloom Grow Flow. 

I want to be visible, to connect with more women and to create something that makes a difference.

But I'd started carrying those ambitions in a way that felt heavy rather than expansive.

And I'd brought that heaviness on holiday with me.

For the first 24 hours, I was physically away, but mentally I was still very much at work.

There was this constant background beeping.

A reminder of everything I thought I should be doing.

And it was taking up all the space I'd created for the very things I'd gone away to enjoy.

By Monday morning, I remember thinking, What am I doing?

Here I was, surrounded by an incredible environment, with the people and pup I love, and I wasn't allowing myself to experience it.

I was so caught up in what I thought I needed to do that I was missing what I actually wanted to be doing.

And that felt pretty itchy/scratchy. So I sat down and gave myself a moment to get curious.

• What did I actually want from this week?
• How did I want to feel?
• What was sitting underneath all those expectations that made them feel so heavy?
• And what choices did I need to make differently to align with the experience I'd come here to have?

Rather than fighting the thoughts or judging myself for having them, I allowed them to be.

They were there for a reason.

I explored the beliefs underneath them. The expectations I'd absorbed about success, productivity and what it means to show up.

And I started to recognise that just because I'd been carrying those beliefs didn't mean I had to keep carrying them.

I could choose differently.

That was my turning point.

I made a conscious choice to put down the shoulds, have-tos and need-tos.

Not because my work doesn't matter.

Not because I've stopped caring about what I'm building.

But because I wanted to be true to what mattered to me in that moment.

And as soon as I made that choice, I could feel the space opening up around me.

The beautiful thing is that we were already surrounded by space.

We were staying in the middle of Kielder Forest, and I've honestly never experienced anything quite like it.

The silence. The darkness. The enormous sky.

But it was only when I put down what I was carrying that I could truly experience it.

I could look up and see the sky.

Hear the silence.

Feel the stillness.

And let in the joy.

The silly statues we came across. The bats flying overhead. The seemingly endless number of crows.

And Saturn!

We actually saw Saturn in the night sky, which was pretty amazing.

All these little glimmers that had been there, waiting to be noticed.

And it struck me.

The space was always there. I just needed to become available to experience it.

That realisation has stayed with me.

Because how often do we find ourselves so caught up in the noise of what we think we should be doing that we miss what's right in front of us?

How often do we carry expectations that leave us feeling heavy, stuck, frozen or disconnected?

And what might become possible if we gave ourselves permission to put some of them down?

For me, the choice was surprisingly simple.

I chose not to be active online.

I chose not to worry about whether the Instagram algorithm could see me.

I chose not to create content just because I thought I should.

Instead, I chose to be present.

To enjoy the week we'd created.

To reconnect with what mattered to me.

And to trust that stepping away from being visible didn't mean I was any less committed to what I'm building.

That was my micro move.

Not a grand reinvention. Not a complicated plan.

Simply one small, conscious adjustment that brought me back into alignment with how I wanted to be.

And it gave me permission to move differently.

To move a little more me-shaped.

What I've taken from that week is a reminder of the power of stillness.

When we stop long enough to let the interference settle, we create space to hear ourselves again.

To recognise what's really going on underneath the thoughts that keep ping-ponging around our minds.

And to remember that we have choices.

We don't have to keep moving in the same direction simply because that's the direction we've been travelling.

We can pause.

Check the direction we're moving in against the direction we actually choose to take.

And make the smallest adjustment that puts us back on course.

Sometimes the most meaningful move forward isn't about doing more. It's about choosing differently.

And sometimes that choice is simply to stop.

To let be. Let go. Make space.

So here's my invitation to you.

Take a moment to consider where you are right now.

Not where you think you should be. Not where someone else has told you that you need to be.

But where you actually are.

How are you feeling?

What are the top three itchy, scratchy, heavy thoughts that keep ping-ponging around your mind?

Perhaps it's something you feel you should be doing.

An expectation you've placed on yourself.

Or a belief you've been carrying for so long that you've stopped questioning whether it's even yours.

Give yourself a moment to be still.

Let the ping-pong ball settle.

And then get curious.

• What's sitting underneath those thoughts?
• Is that belief actually true?
• Is it aligned with who you are and who you're choosing to become?
• Is it helping you move towards the way you want to live and lead?
• Or is it something you're ready to put down?

You don't need to have all the answers.

And you certainly don't need to make a dramatic change.

Simply consider what choosing differently might look like.

What's the smallest adjustment you could make today that would move you towards how you actually want to feel?

That's your micro move.

I believe there's something incredibly powerful about giving ourselves permission to pause and check our direction.

To notice where we're heading and ask whether it's still aligned with where we choose to go.

And when it isn't, to make the smallest adjustment that brings us back to ourselves.

Because those micro moves matter.

They create space to move more freely, live and lead lighter.

To notice the glimmers of joy that are already there.

To reconnect with ourselves and the people around us.

And to create ripples that reach further than we might ever realise.

My week away reminded me that I don't need to be constantly doing, producing or showing up to be moving forward.

Sometimes I simply need to put down what I'm carrying, look up and become available to experience what's already there.

So wherever you find yourself today, my invitation is simple.

Let be.

Let go.

Make space.

And choose that one small move that feels more like you.

Because when we give ourselves permission to move in a way that's true to who we are, we create the space to live, grow and flow.

A little freer. A little lighter. A little more me-shaped.

Always sparkle

Nicola

✨

Bloom Grow Flow | Live and Lead Lighter

Sept '26