My late 40s was the first time I experienced run-of-the-mill fatigue about life. I woke up one morning and was like, ugh, are we doing this again? Lol. It wasn’t deep and angsty, it was more exhausted. Half a century in is a lot of life lived and you have to keep going.

Working on a creative career is like that. You can simultaneously feel proud of all you’ve achieved, excited about what you’re doing, and EXHAUSTED by the whole endeavor. I’m here to share some platitudes if you also feel exhausted on the journey. They may not be new, but they will be heartfelt. Ready? Here we go.

1. More to discover: Even though you’re exhausted, there is still so much more to discover. If I had quit just three years ago, there would be so much I would not have experienced in my writing career. Some thirty years after I first started writing, I’ve published my first novel and I’m rounding the bend on my second. All the 27 years of pushing before I got the novel published went into that success. And if I quit now, there’s so many new experiences I won’t have. Like I may publish a picture book. Will I meet that goal? I gotta face the exhaustion and keep going to find out.

2. The mysterious moments of mastery: One of my favorite things to do is to see retrospectives of artists who have been working for decades. I love seeing the earlier iterations of their work, how the seeds of mastery are there and how over the decades they refine and focus and evolve the core beauty/power/message that was already there to stunning new levels. And I always feel this tug of desire to reach the level where I’ve surpassed my beginnings and found the magical alchemy that allows me to create the purest, most impactful version of my work. 😍 If I quit now, I’ll never get there and I’ll never discover what mastery looks like for me.

3. Learning to love life with less: The interesting side effect of surviving middle-aged melancholy is I’m so much more appreciative of the everyday pleasures of life. When I have a really great moment in the park, with friends, or on the dance floor, I’m so deeply appreciative. I feel like I’m becoming more powerful and more able to feel peace because when it’s not here—there’s no amount of amazing experiences that can resolve the discontent. I feel like if I keep going, I’ll just learn how to be more and more appreciative of everyday life.

We are our own coaches and we have to figure this thing out! We’re here until we’re not and we have to do what we can to make the journey manageable. Wishing you powerful, nourishing self-talk in the face of disappointment, exhaustion and challenges.

We’re still on the journey!

Onward.