40 Lessons Learned by my 40th Birthday

May 2

"You can do it. Just start asking the hard questions and having the hard conversations. Sometimes all it takes is a person to listen."

What better way to celebrate the return of One Spark Stories than with a special episode. Join Katie as she commemorates her 40th birthday 🎂 by sharing 40 life lessons she's gathered over the years. She shares insights from her own observations and experiences that will inspire you to spend time on your own introspection, find the courage to do the hard things, and celebrate the joy in our personal and professional lives.

Take a listen as Katie dives deep into the importance of self-advocacy, embracing our uniqueness, and the continuous journey of self-improvement. Whether it's standing up for oneself in challenging situations or encouraging creative thinking, there's a lesson for everyone.

Top 40

Never feel like you have to justify your joy.
Embrace childlike curiosity and wonder.
Stand your ground.
Think differently to guide innovation.
Be unapologetically weird.
Ask questions.
Still need clarity? Then ask a few more.
Make a mistake. Own it. Learn from it. Move on.
Be a force to be reckoned with.
Laugh and smile when it feels right.
Don't force a smile when you’re displeased.
Use your voice to speak your truth.
Use your imagination.
Family, faith, and friendships can be your priority.
Help others who haven't found their voice.
Say no when it feels right, even if you can’t explain why.
Say yes when it feels right, even if you can’t explain why.
Trust your gut. Your intuition is right.
Affirm the efforts and impact others.
Everything you need to know you learned in kindergarten. Then lost by 6th grade.
Be authentic to who you are, not who you think they want you to be.
Integrity will allow you to sleep at night.
Productive disruption can be done with courage and grace.
Celebrate your unique spark.
Don’t bite your tongue. It only causes you pain.
It is okay to be optimistic. It’s also okay to feel really sad.
Just because others can’t see your vision doesn’t mean it isn’t valid.
Humor is a unifying language when it isn’t used at the expense of others.
Using discipline to teach something without providing clarity is a waste of time.
Kids are brilliantly curious. Adults have to stop standing in their way.
You are allowed to explain yourself. You also don’t have to explain anything.
Advocate for yourself. Change doctors, banks, coaches. You know what is right.
There are choices that you make that you know are wrong. Make it right again.
It’s not always about you.
Not everyone likes you. In fact, some people think you’re weird.
Your art is beautiful if it brings you joy.
Take pictures. Ask people to take pictures of you.
Your smile brings comfort to others. Stop hiding it.
Life-changing decisions will come. Stick with the ones that are life giving.
One day all the moments make sense. The tears, the lessons, the heartache, the friends that disappeared, the bosses that made your life hell, the partners that didn’t want to pay, the job offers pulled out from you, the experiences that seemed out of the ordinary. Not all at once, but over time. And those moments help make each future mountain feel like a molehill. It gets easier. You just have to keep moving forward.