Holding Joy + Grief: What This Season Is Teaching Me About Life & Business

You know those moments where your heart feels full and heavy at the same time?

That was me this weekend, celebrating my sister’s baby shower, surrounded by laughter and love… while quietly aching for my aunt who passed just weeks ago.⁠

It reminded me of something a client once said (and I’m paraphrasing here): “Happiness and sadness are sisters. Where one goes, the other follows.”

Nothing has felt more true in this season of my life. I’m holding immense joy and quiet grief at the same time. Both are real. Both are valid. Both belong.

The thing is, Motherhood doesn’t pause for grief. Neither does entrepreneurship.

When I lost my aunt, old hustle culture habits crept in. I felt like I couldn’t step away from my business. I convinced myself I had to keep showing up—until I entered a mastermind call and my incredible community of women entrepreneurs came to my rescue.

They reminded me (and gave me permission) to pause.

I didn’t spiral into panic about stepping away from my business for a few days. I didn’t feel like I had to put on a brave face 24/7 or “bounce back” the next morning.

I let myself feel it.

And what I realized is this: Over the past few years, I’ve been doing the work to build a business that doesn’t collapse if I need to step away.⁠ That includes:

✅️ Systems that run behind the scenes

✅️ Clients who respect my humanity

✅️ A community I trust

✅️ And most of all, a business model that leaves space for me to be human

This didn’t come overnight. I had to learn it the hard way, through a fertility journey, a newborn, postpartum fog, and years of believing that everything would fall apart if I wasn’t “on” 24/7.

This season cracked something open in me. It made me realize how much more is possible when you give yourself permission to build a business that supports your life, not one that demands your life to support it.

It gave me clarity around the future - maybe that means expanding my family one day, or just allowing more ease into my life in general.

But here’s what I know now:

When life happens (because it will), my business won’t break.

Because I’m not chained to my desk anymore.Because support, systems, and self-trust are baked in.

If you're in a season of transition, grief, growth, joy, or all of it at once, you are not alone.

You’re allowed to take time. You’re allowed to rest. You’re allowed to build something that doesn’t need your hustle to survive.

And I’m here to remind you: it’s not just possible, it’s worth it.