This is just one chapter

Life has a way of making us feel stuck. We fall into routines, get lost in the day-to-day grind, and before we know it, we start questioning everything. Is this all there is? Is this really the life I’m meant to live? It’s easy to get caught in that trap, to feel like there’s no way out. But here’s the truth—you are never truly stuck. Where you are right now is not where you’ll be forever.

Think back to when you were 15 or 16 years old. You had just gotten your learner’s permit or your license, and suddenly, the world opened up. You could go places you’d never been, see things you’d never seen. Life felt like an endless horizon of possibility. Maybe you were thinking about finishing high school and heading to college, learning a trade, or landing your first real job. Whatever it was, you looked ahead with excitement, ready to take on the world.

Now, fast forward to 25 or 30. You’ve likely finished school, settled into a job or career, and maybe even started a family. The excitement of possibilities has faded. Instead of looking ahead with hope, you feel trapped in a routine. You stop seeing options. You stop believing in change. Maybe you’ve even started resenting yourself, your circumstances, or the people around you. That fire you once had? It feels like it’s burning out.

I know these feelings because I’ve lived them. I spent years angry—angry at my situation, angry at myself. And for what? I was stuck because I chose to be. I bought into the victim mentality that so many people cling to, and it got me nowhere. The truth is, the only thing standing between you and the life you want is perspective. The moment I stopped seeing myself as a victim and started taking control, everything changed.

I used to hate when people said, "High school will be the best years of your life." That statement told me everything I needed to know about them. They had given up. They stopped trying. They believed their best days were behind them. But here’s the thing—you are still a child when you graduate high school. You’ve barely scratched the surface of life. The problem isn’t that life stops offering opportunities. It’s that somewhere along the way, we stop believing we deserve them.

A good friend of mine once said something that hit me like a ton of bricks. He was going through one of the hardest times in his life when he looked at me and said, "This is just a chapter in our lives." And he was right. Life moves in chapters. Some are incredible, others are painful, but none of them last forever. No matter how stuck you feel, the page will turn—if you’re willing to write the next chapter yourself.

When you feel like quitting, when you feel like this is all there is, remind yourself: this is just one chapter. You have the power to change the narrative. You are the author of your story. And every chapter moving forward is yours to write.

This is your life.

Don’t squander it.

Be better than you were yesterday.