Turning the Page: How to Start a New Chapter
Part 1. Endings Become Beginnings
Change arrives in many forms, through loss, inspiration, crisis, choice, disruption, or a quiet restlessness whispers 'life could be different'. Inside all of these is a seed of change, ready to grow.
The end of the old way, is the start of something new. But what? How exactly? And, when? Well, that's not how it works. Life mirrors nature; seasons to life, and weather patterns within those seasons. Things grow gradually, coalesce, emerge. Writing new chapters is a skill, writing extraordinary life chapters may just be the ultimate artform. I know a bit this from my personal and professional experience, to name just a few of the new chapters I’ve walked through:
Navigating redundancy, and the grief and uncertainty it brought.
Experiencing the loss of my mum, dad, and brother in my 20s and 30s.
Shifting career paths from Commercial Pilot, to Human Resources, to serving in Victoria Police , to becoming a Line Leader, and entering Executive Coaching.
The uncertainty and test of my values during the covid era as somebody who saw vaccination as a personal choice. One that I choose to exercise despite the pressure.
Establishing my own business today bringing together the worlds I love of Coaching, Counselling, Meditation and Breathwork.
Not to mention supporting thousands of professionals and selection processes over the past 20 years.
Each chapter has reinforced core lessons:
The change that’s possible is beyond today's imagination, we can only see a sliver at the start. So, trust has a role here.
External shifts require inner adjustments to take root, it all starts within. This requires action.
Discovering what I truly want and what aligns authentically for me. Enter, curiosity.
So, the new chapter formula is Trust + Action + Curiosity.
The truth is, starting a new chapter is about learning new ways of being, and discovering that who we are is not what we thought we were. These moments of change hold incredible opportunity.
🎯 Takeaway: The more uncertainty a chapter opens with, the more is possible. Move forward by trusting you will find the right answers, take relentless action, and question everything through a lens of curiosity.
Part 2. What Holds Us Back
The termination date approaches. Divorce papers are signed. The funeral service is held. Logically, we know we’re opening a new chapter, but for your nervous system it can feel more like a threat.
Parts of us hesitate, clinging to what feels safe and familiar. Fear and doubt can arise. And there is the very thing about paradigm shifts: we can’t understand them until we’ve stepped into them. So, we either close and return to what is familiar, or we stay open in the face of this discomfort and get curious.
The most common obstacles I see that cause use to close, and limit our opportunity, are:
Lack of clarity about what we truly want.
Procrastination fuelling stress and shame.
Fears of failure or anxiety about the unknown.
Harsh self-criticism.
One C-level client recently shared that he was surprised to find what felt like barriers became openings through the processes, questioning and emotional intelligence practices I use. We were able to help turn his relationship obstacles into natural doorways.
Feel a lack of clarity about what you truly want, and the uncomfortable feelings that come with it? They are not signs that something is wrong. This is what opportunity feels like. We were never taught how to co-create with life, only sold a Disney story. When you work authentically with what arises, space opens to explore and uncover your true self.
Experiencing procrastination, then with the stress and shame it brings? These are not signs of weakness, they are encoded signals. Procrastination points to systems within you carrying more than they can handle. Fear points you toward what matters most, even if it feels easier to avoid. When you learn to listen instead of fight, procrastination becomes a guide toward freedom.
Fear of failure or anxiety about the unknown weighing on you? These are not dead ends, they are beacons saying 'dig here'. Anxiety opens the way to self-understanding, showing you what you value and how to carry yourself through uncertainty. Without it, it can be harder to find these nuggets. When you choose to step through instead of away, fear becomes a teacher and the unknown becomes exciting possibility.
Harsh self-criticism from your inner voice? That voice is not pure cruelty, it is a protection mechanism that once kept you safe. It has a positive intent, and would have been useful at one time in your story. But what once protected you may now be holding you back. The work is not to silence it, but to use it as an entry point and follow the thread.
These barriers do more than slow us down, they shape the boundaries of what we believe is possible. When fear or doubt are in control, endings stay as endings rather than becoming beginnings. Holding on to what is familiar may feel safe, but it keeps you from stepping into what could be.
🎯 Takeaway: The obstacles you face are not the end of the road. When met with courage and openness, they become the very path into your next chapter.
Part 3. Going Deeper Than Surface Change
Bob Proctor once said, “I decided I am going to have to change ME, because these are MY results.”
How many things can you name about the world around you that you would like to fix? Every single one is a finger pointing back at yourself. If you choose, you can follow that pointing finger and free yourself.
Lasting transformation does not come from chasing the next skill or polishing the next CV line. It begins inward, by bringing unconscious beliefs, emotions and patterns into awareness. Without this, change remains cosmetic. With it, new chapters have a foundation that lasts. In practice, this inner work involves:
Learning the language of emotions so that they guide instead of overwhelm, confuse and haunt.
Seeing thought patterns clearly and loosening the grip on thoughts.
Recognising recurring themes in career, relationships and behaviour, then tracing them to their roots within you.
Using structured tools and frameworks to help make the invisible visible, the unconscious conscious.
I've found that combining coaching and psychotherapy practices, overlaid with a business background, creates a powerful approach for transformation. The core framework I use is The Depth Model, which maps the layers beneath behaviour. I developed it while navigating my own personal journey, and over the past 10 years I have continued to refine and simplify it through client work. Alongside this are practices to uncover unconscious beliefs, protective patterns and hidden drivers. Held within a high-performance and therapeutic container, these approaches reveal not only what is happening on the surface but also what is shaping it at the core.
As a senior leader I work with recently said, “Learning how to connect with my emotions and working with them gave me clarity I've never had access to before.”
Once the roots are uncovered and understood, outer change follows naturally and with far greater ease.
🎯 Takeaway: Surface change fades quickly. Real transformation begins when you take ownership of your results, look inward, and find the root of the patterns creating them.
Part 4. From Awareness to Action
"Until you make the unconscious conscious, it will direct your life and you will call it fate", powerful words from Carl Jung. Awareness is the first step. Yet we don't know what we don't know, right?
There are practices that shine a light on what was hidden, bringing patterns, emotions and beliefs into view. Awareness is great, but on its own is not enough. A new chapter only takes shape when awareness is channelled into strategy and action.
50% of people hold themselves back from goals because of doubt and fear of failure.
65% of professionals are dissatisfied in their current role.
80% of adults experience procrastination daily.
Awareness of these realities can feel sobering, but it is also empowering. Once you recognise what is limiting you, you can begin to move differently. The bridge from inner work to outer progress looks like:
Learning to tune-in to the wealth of information your body and energy are broadcasting to you continuously.
Building the muscle of turning these insights into clear direction.
Taking consistent, purposeful action, no matter how small, or how uncertain, that compound into meaningful results.
As one client reflected, “This approach gave me the confidence to trust myself, to start my own business, and to prioritise working with partners that who share similar values.”
A new chapter does not arrive fully formed. Often, it arrives as a cloud of uncertainty to be walked through. Discovered step by step. Built brick by brick. Dream. Act. Eat. Sleep. Repeat.
🎯 Takeaway: Awareness shows the path, but only action moves you forward. Begin with a clear direction, release the need for every detail, and take even the smallest aligned step. This is how possibility becomes reality.
Part 5. Building a Life That’s Truly Yours
At its heart, every transition is about alignment. Do your choices reflect what matters most? Are you leading with values, or simply reacting to circumstances? What's your courage setting set to?
I decided a long time ago, in the words of Emiliano Zapata that "I’d rather die on my feet, than live on my knees.".
When you uncover your true values and live from them, new chapters stops being a gamble and becomes an inspiring co-creation with the limitless intelligence and unbounded energy in you. Deep trust replaces doubt. Your words, actions, career and life begin to reflect your deepest purpose. Can you feel it?
A CIO client I have been working recently told me, “I wouldn't have got here with a traditional executive coach". We went deeper than surface-level skills, or project support. We focused on emotional responses to situations, noticing what was fleeting and what pointed to something deeper. That shift created clarity, acceptance and ultimately the confidence to trust themselves. Once you connect with yourself in this way, we enter the realm of nothing being impossible.
This is why I created the six-week Start a New Chapter program. Over six 1:1 sessions I help people go beyond surface strategies to uncover the unconscious patterns holding them back and chart a new path forward. We create clarity about what is important, and build the invisible muscles to pursue it. Blending inner work with outer work helps open your new chapter to the fullest extent possible. Read more about the Start a New Chapter program.
Starting a new chapter is rarely easy. But it is possible. With the right support, it can become the most defining move of your life.
🎯 Takeaway: A new chapter is not about fixing what is broken, it is about building a life that is truly yours. With clarity, confidence and alignment, what once felt uncertain becomes the beginning of something extraordinary.
👉 If you feel a new chapter is calling, I invite you to book a free strategy call. We'll explore where you are, where you want to go.
💡 I help leaders, teams, and professionals unlock their full potential by uncovering the real patterns limiting decisions and behaviours.
