Do What Lights You Up

@scottstocktonphotography

If I could give anyone one piece of advice, it would be this: do what lights you up.

That might sound simple, but for a long time, I wasn’t living that way.

On the outside, my life looked good. I had a solid career in the corporate fitness world, a steady paycheck, a title that carried weight. I was “on track.” I told myself I should be grateful and I was, in many ways. I spent 8.5 years building that career, and it gave me some of the most important relationships in my life. It taught me resilience, discipline, and what it meant to show up for something bigger than myself.

In the beginning, it was everything I wanted. I loved the energy of the industry, the constant connection with people, the feeling of being part of a mission. It lit me up...until it didn’t.

At some point, I started to notice a shift. The work that once left me buzzing with excitement started leaving me drained. What used to feel like purpose began to feel like routine. And no matter how hard I tried to push through, there was this quiet voice inside me saying: this isn’t it anymore.

That’s the thing about life: we grow, we evolve, and sometimes what once fit us perfectly no longer does. And if we ignore that, if we keep clinging to what we’ve outgrown, we slowly start to dim our own light.

For me, that’s when I knew it was time to make a change. It wasn’t easy, change never is...but I couldn’t keep betraying myself by staying in a place that no longer aligned.

And here’s the beautiful part: when you finally start doing what lights you up, you begin to attract everything that matches that energy. The right people enter your life, not by chance, but because you’re finally becoming who you’re meant to be. People who encourage you, who share your vision, who make you feel alive just by being around them.

So how do you figure out what that “thing” is for you? Here are a few ways that helped me find clarity, and maybe they’ll help you too:

1. Notice Your Energy

Your energy is one of the clearest signals you have. Pay attention to what fills your cup versus what empties it. At the end of the day, reflect: which parts of your day made you feel alive, and which parts left you exhausted? Energy doesn’t lie.

2. Look for Flow

What are you doing when you lose track of time? The moments when hours pass by like minutes, that’s called flow. Flow shows you where your gifts and passions collide. If you find yourself talking about something nonstop, researching it late at night, or daydreaming about it, that’s a clue.

3. Give Yourself Permission to Try

You don’t always just wake up knowing what lights you up. Sometimes you have to try, experiment, fail, and pivot. Every detour teaches you something, even the ones that don’t feel right. Each step forward brings you closer to the life that truly feels like yours.

Looking back, I can see that every obstacle and every chapter, even the ones that felt misaligned, were necessary. They were all preparing me for where I am now. And where I am now feels real. Authentic. Lit up.

So if you’re in a season where you feel stuck, drained, or unsure, let this be your reminder: you are allowed to change. You are allowed to outgrow what no longer fits. And you are absolutely allowed to pursue the things that set your soul on fire.

Because life is too short to live any other way.

-Karleigh