This is 45.

There’s something surreal about crossing this line, not in a dramatic, mid-life-crisis way, but in a quieter, more grounded way. The kind of moment where you pause and realise: Alright… I’m officially in the second half.

They say by now we’ve got a fully developed prefrontal cortex, meaning more wisdom, more clarity, more understanding. But honestly? It feels less like I’ve “completed” anything and more like I’m only now starting to understand how life actually works.

What I do know with certainty is this: life is measured in connection.

I’ve learned that being rich in friendships is infinitely more valuable than being rich in things. Because without connection, the wins mean less and the losses feel heavier.

Quality time with quality people.

That’s the good stuff.

That’s the stuff that sticks.

But here’s the honest part, the part most people don’t put in a birthday post:

I’m not exactly happy with where I am or who I’ve been these last few years. And instead of pretending otherwise, I’m using 45 as the line in the sand. Sometimes change begins with something symbolic, a physical manifestation of a shift happening inside you.

So, yeah: I went blonde at almost 45.

A drastic move? Absolutely.

A cry for help? No.

A declaration? Yes.

A reset? Definitely.

A reminder that if you want life to look different, you have to be different.

You have to make a change if you want to feel changed.

So 2026 is the year everything comes together - the year I redesign my life for impact, for purpose, for growth, for something that finally feels aligned. A year where I consciously build the life I actually want to live.

So for the next five years, I want to get sh*t done:

I want to make an impact.

I want to be excellent in my field, not just competent, not just good, but respected. Like, properly good (Doyle’s level!).

I want to be known as someone with integrity - someone who shows up, someone who does the work and does it well.

I want to focus on my career, sharpen my ambition, and finally step into the version of myself I’ve always known I could be.

But it’s not just about the grind.

It’s also about expansion: personal, emotional, spiritual.

In the next 5, 10, 20, 45 years, I want to:

Travel more.

Love more deeply.

Learn with humility.

Listen without defensiveness.

Grow with intention.

And be truly present in the moments I used to rush through.

If the first half of my life was about figuring things out, surviving, holding tight to the foundations.

Then the second half is about becoming.

Becoming someone more grounded.

Someone more awake.

Someone who doesn’t just live life, but lives it well.

So here’s to 45.

To the honesty.

To the evolution.

To the blonde era.

To doing the inner work.

To getting shit done.

To connection.

To courage.

To change.

To joy.

To impact.

To being blonde.

To walking away from what isn’t right and walking toward what is.

To the chapters that haven’t even been imagined yet, but are finally ready to be written.

Cue “unwritten” by Tash Bedingfield