40 Lessons at 40 - When I Grow Up

40 Lessons at 40 - When I Grow Up Im 40 today. Youll find none of a mid-life crisis here, or a freak-out when it comes to getting older. Instead, I immensely feel one thing: Gratitude. Ive made it. I should be so lucky to be in mid-life right now. Im glad Im alive, cancer-free, and on the cusp of a breakthrough year. I can feel it. Theres part of me that feels like Ive lived many lives up until now. There was my Performer Life, my NYC Life, my Coaching Life, my Mama Life, my Cancer Patient Survivor ( Patient Survivor) Life. In all those lives wrapped up in 40 years, I figured I had some lessons to jot down. Here are a neat 40, one for each year: 1. A gay man will not change for you. (This is a lesson my Mom and I learned together from a silly TV movie we watched years ago. It always comes to mind when I think of lessons Ive learned.) 2. Going after your dreams is always worth it. 3. Your dreams are allowed to change, and you are allowed to change with them. 4. Nobody will be disappointed in you. You are loved and supported unconditionally. 5. You are a fighter, stronger than you can even imagine. 6. There is life after cheese. 7. Green smoothies are not disgusting. 8. Playing with Ramona solves everything. 9. Everything makes sense in hindsight. 10. You are always of choice. 11. You will fuck up. The important stuff happens afterwards. 12. There is no failure, only learning. 13. Coming at things with a sense of play and experimentation is always a good idea. Always. 14. You can be a million-dollar business owner and TED speaker and best-selling author, if you want. If you dont, thats OK, too. 15. Compassion is key. 16. The things you do are not who you are. 17. Once youve found the What, you can always find the How. 18. Baby steps build the strongest foundation. 19. Your career can be an And instead of an Or. 20. Owning a business can be more stable than having a traditional job. 21. Making things ease-y and fun and simple is not a shortcut. 21. Busy does not equal productive does not equal successful. 22. You dont need to work harder, but smarter. 23. Yes, it really can be as simple as not doing what you dont want to. 24. A no can be kind, and doesnt need a made-up excuse. 25. For the love of all thats holy, put your phone away. 26. You make a difference. 27. You are enough, although youll have to remind yourself of it, often. 28.  No matter how many scars you have and how much of your body has been removed or replaced (I mean, really), you are not broken. 29.  Its important to be your own best friend. 30.  Do your best to operate from abundance. 31.  Good health is  everything. Everything. 32.  Dream and plan and scheme and then offer it up to the Universe. 33.  Theres something to all the woo stuff. 34.  The more vulnerable you are, the more youll feel connected. 35.  Raise money and fight for a cause you care about. Its a pride unlike any other. 36.  It all comes back to boundaries. 37.  Being a business owner is the biggest self-development tool ever. 38.  You know your shit. You belong here. 39.  Get quiet and ask your intuition. It knows what to do. 40.  Ask for help. Its all around you. To celebrate my 40th, Im offering 40% off Leave Your Job Launch Your Biz in 2018: A 2-hour Planning Session through Tuesday. Id love it if you learned all the lessons first-hand that come from being a business owner. Go grab it now.