A couple years ago, I had one of those unassuming yet unforgettable conversations that quietly rearranges your thinking. I was chatting with a new friend from Australia—we’d been covering all the usual topics: family, careers, travel. But at some point, with her usual clarity, she turned to me and said, “I’m here for a big life, you know?”

She said it like she might say she was headed to the store. No fanfare. No explanation. Just a simple declaration of her purpose.

And the thing is—she meant it. She wasn’t waiting for a promotion, or for her kids to hit a certain age, or for her calendar to magically clear. She was already living her big life, right there in the messy, ordinary middle of things.

And it made me reflect: how often do we declare our intentions so simply—and actually live them?

That moment still echoes for me, especially now as summer settles in.

There’s something about this season that invites a kind of gentle inventory-taking. We start pulling out patio furniture and realizing we’ve been on autopilot since October. We notice that our to-do lists have gotten longer, but our conversations with old friends have gotten shorter. And we’re often tempted to “just keep going” instead of stepping off the hamster wheel to actually enjoy the season.

But if I’ve learned anything from that Aussie friend—and from my own journey with burnout—it’s that a big life doesn’t mean a full calendar. It means full presence. And sometimes, that means doing less, not more.

Summer is a built-in opportunity to press pause. To take a real vacation. Not just a few emails from the beach or half-hearted check-ins between hikes. I’m talking about true, deliberate disconnection—the kind where you forget what day it is because your nervous system has finally settled.

It’s also a chance to reconnect—not just with the people you love, but with the parts of yourself that winter buried under layers of busy. Maybe there’s a friend you haven’t seen in months, or a hobby that got shelved when life sped up. Maybe it’s time to spend a little less energy squeezing more in, and a little more noticing what actually brings joy.

And while we’re at it, let’s get honest about something:

Living a Big Life Isn’t Always Easy

A big life often comes with bigger bills, scarier decisions, and more opportunities for imposter syndrome to show up, whispering: Who do you think you are?

But here’s the secret: everyone who’s living big has heard that voice. They just stopped letting it drive. They chose bravery over certainty. Alignment over approval. Intention over perfection.

A big life will stretch you. But that’s the beauty of it. It teaches you you’re capable of more than you thought.

 

How to Live a Big Life This Summer

Want to shift from “someday” to “right now”? Here are a few small ways to start living your big life this season:

  • Book the damn trip. Even if it’s just two days somewhere new. Let “someday” be today.
  • Create tech-free hours. Not just while sleeping. Give your brain room to breathe.
  • Say yes to spontaneous joy. The last-minute invite, the moonlit swim, the totally impractical idea—go for it.
  • Have one bold conversation. Ask the thing. Say the truth. Let yourself be seen.
  • Make beauty a priority. Buy the flowers. Set the table. Sit somewhere with a view—even if it’s your front porch.
  • Revisit an old passion. Dust off the guitar, pull out the paints, lace up your runners. Joy lives in forgotten corners.

 

The Power of Boundaries

One of the most powerful habits of people living big lives? They know what they’re not available for.

My Aussie friend modelled this constantly. She’d say, calmly and confidently, “I’m simply not available for that.”

Not in a dismissive way—but in a deeply self-honouring one.

This summer, consider what you’re no longer available for:

  • Guilt-soaked obligations
  • Over-scheduling
  • Scrolling your self-worth away on social media
  • Saying yes when your gut says no

Instead, make yourself available for:

  • Long walks and belly laughs
  • The sound of your kids playing while you’re fully present
  • A nap in a hammock
  • A conversation that fills your soul
  • Time to dream again

 

This Summer, Write Your Own Mission Statement

If you want to live big, start small. Start clear.

Write yourself a personal summer mission statement. Something like:

This summer, I will live in alignment with joy. I will protect my peace. I will say yes to what energizes me and no to what drains me. I will laugh more, rush less, and remember that this season—this one right here—is part of the big life I came here for.

Then ask yourself:
What am I available for?
And just as importantly—what am I not?

Summer will come and go either way. But imagine if this year, it became the backdrop for real connection, deeper rest, and more of what actually matters.

Because you, too, are here for a big life.

Let this be the season you start living like it.