Oct 23, 2026 · Theme of the week: becoming
Feeling Friday - Edition 42
| Feeling Friday |
| Theme of the week: becoming |
| On Monday, I shared how difficult it was to accept that my chapter as a professional athlete had ended. For so long, the future I imagined revolved around competing. When that changed, I struggled to see where I belonged. |
| Over time, I began to recognize that my passion for sport still had a place in my life. The experience I had gained could help someone else. Coaching gave me a way to carry that part of myself forward. |
| I could not have pictured this future from my hospital bed. But allowing my life to take a different shape gave me the opportunity to build it. |
| Perhaps there is a part of your life that looks different from what you expected. A career, a relationship, your health, or a timeline you thought you would have followed by now. It can be difficult to move forward when you keep measuring the present against what you thought it would be. |
| This Friday, let's work on that |
| Mindset Activity: Release, carry Forward, Become. |
| 1. Release: What expectation am I ready to loosen my grip on? |
| Think about an idea of who you should be or where you should be by now. Is holding onto it helping you, or creating pressure that makes it harder to engage with your life today? |
| For me, it was the expectation that my future had to involve competing as a professional athlete for it to feel fulfilling. |
| You do not have to force yourself to be okay with a change. You can acknowledge the disappointment while considering whether an old expectation still serves you. |
| 2. Carry forward: What still matters to me from that chapter? |
| Look beneath the role or outcome you were attached to. What did it give you? What values or passions did it allow you to express? |
| Sport gave me a sense of belonging and the opportunity to perform. Those things still matter to me. I can continue to pursue them through coaching and helping athletes grow. |
| A chapter ending does not erase what you learned or what you loved about it. |
| 3. Become: What is one small action I can take from where I am today? |
| Choose something realistic that allows you to express what still matters to you. It might be exploring a different role, reconnecting with a community, or making time for a passion in a way that fits your current circumstances. |
| You do not need a complete picture of your future to take that step. |
| When I think about Seneca’s words about swimming ashore without our baggage, I think about the expectations we carry. Some can become so heavy that we struggle to see the possibilities in front of us. |
| This weekend, give yourself permission to honour who you were while making room for who you are becoming. |
| Stay strong, even when you are not. It's okay, you are not alone. |
| Love always, |
| Michael Argyrides |
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