Yikes. It ain’t good. All your emotional baggage is being thrown to the curb and doused in gasoline. The fumes are noxious and stanky. Some part of your world is burning, and the floodgates have opened. Being a Millennial often feels like surviving a catastrophe . . . global warming, perhaps. You’ve made it through a few decades of trauma so far—honestly, what’s one more day?

Once all the toxic waste burns, the fire goes out and you can breathe again. You just lost seemingly everything, and yet here you are, still alive. You are more than your things, relationships, grief, or identity. You exist even if they all go away. The key to starting over is to learn how to recycle so you stop creating so much stinking trash. When you change the behaviors that led you to the initial crisis, you set yourself up for a clearer, cleaner future. There is a fearlessness available in having nothing—because then there is nothing to lose.

Sometimes when you feel safe and stable, it may scare you because you aren’t used to it or don’t think you deserve it. You assume a storm must follow the calm and be on its way. There is a certain adrenaline rush that comes with navigating crisis, and there is satisfaction in overcoming an obstacle. Before you blow up your life and go into full self-sabotage mode, look for a way to create a challenge- but not a problem—for yourself to solve and overcome.

You’re brimming with feelings of unfulfilled potential as you fear your success may never arrive. Welcome to a critical juncture of your life, when the weight of responsibilities feels heavier than your meditative breathing techniques prepared you for. As you get ready for your big moment, performance anxiety sets in. With feelings of perfectionism, thoughts of quitting, and nervous energy, you’re on the brink of overwhelm

This is a moment to look back and celebrate the passion and love you’ve put in so far and to know that the result does not need to define your success. Ironically, doing less, prioritizing, paring things down, and even accepting the possibility of failure can give you the resolve and relief to continue to the best of your abilities at any capacity, which can be the release you need to get it done.

Perhaps a little worry would be useful. You may feel a sense of complacency despite not having reached your goals. Be wary of a lack of urgency or caution lulling you into a false sense of security. Is it complacency or wisdom bringing about your new sense of chill? You may just have new clarity that your previously committed buy-in was the result of a delusional sense of importance—or selfimportance. You may see it simply isn’t the end of the world if it isn’t perfect . . . or if it doesn’t happen at all.

The photos are in, they’re cute AF, and you’ve put them on blast. You made a commitment. You had the talk, put a label on it and became official, got engaged, and tied the knot. You’ve made a choice, a decision, or a commitment to choose to love or, maybe, to part ways. You’re at a juncture where it’s about elevating a relationship to a new level of intimacy—or picking a radically new direction.

Love can be a choice. And a complicated choice at that—how you choose to love, whether you choose to love and whether you let love in. Love is a twoway street, a dance of give and take. Ask yourself if you want to enhance or alter the relationship’s direction. To choose is to commit, and doing so permits you to inch deeper into vulnerability with the agreement that you are safer to be vulnerable. Choosing something else is also a commitment to yourself and a new future. Both choices require bravery

Perhaps there is a relationship that feels imbalanced, or you know you need to make a choice but are stalling. It may be time for a heart-to-heart to check in with how each of you are feeling. Address your fears, doubts, and hopes honestly with your partner. You have the power to redefine the terms of your relationship, to make it more authentic and fulfilling through the wondrous powers of communication

Treat yo-self, all day errday. Do your skincare routine, hit the gym, open that meditation app. It’s about time for “me” time. Take a mental health day—or at least a power nap. Allow yourself some introspection and, even more so, a little peace and quiet away from social media, overbearing family, kids, or the busy city. It’s a moment of self-love, so recharge your batteries, because the only turbulence you need right now is from your vibrator.

Take care of your body, and your body will take care of you. Tranquility and equanimity stem from stillness, but it doesn’t happen overnight. It comes from consistency and steadiness, not haphazard impulsivity. Regular practices of healing, praying, meditating, and resting are crucial. When chaos flares up, sometimes our self-care is the first to go. Set up systems of daily reminders to ease the friction and make it easier to prioritize your well-being. Simple routines like cleaning your face and moisturizing twice a day will always out-glow occasional grand gestures like a monthly face mask. Build a daily habit of care, and it will be your protector.

No need to overdo it. A spa day is a delightful treat, but a hobby of luxurious treatments may be overindulgence. A simple nightly face wash sounds swell, but a twelve-step skincare routine—well, that’s a part-time job and may be less about beneficial self-maintenance than about chasing an unattainable beauty ideal. It’s all good to indulge as long as you recognize it for what it is and keep a healthy balance

They say to fake it ’til you make it, but you’re afraid you’ll get found out. You avoid eye contact in the office halls, timidly speak up in meetings, and are baffled at how confidently your colleagues spew nonsense ideas. How can they be so wrong yet so confident? Riddled with self-doubt, you are nervous about being seen as a fraud. To bolster your confidence and know-how, you take online courses, read articles, and seek mentorship. Gradually, the student becomes the teacher, the intern becomes the manager, and you gain the courage to take charge and be a boss.

Growth comes from expanding your area of mastery, inch by inch, skill by skill, awkward situation after awkward situation. Finding mentorship where you feel uncomfortable can, in itself, be an uncomfortable thing to do. To let someone help you requires the vulnerability to allow the other person to see your honest skills and watch you mess up. You may come across as inexperienced at times. In this way, feeling like a failure or novice can actually be a sign that you’re rightfully tackling something new and not pretending to know it. Balance is key—avoid being overly self-critical or excessively confident. When you’re honest about your current abilities, you can more clearly see where there’s room for improvement.

Sometimes those who appear most confident are actually the least informed. When you don’t know what you don’t know, you also don’t realize when you should zip your mouth because there are actual experts in the room. You may be overconfident about a skill, coasting on past successes, or believing you’ve already learned all you need to know. This can lead to stagnation and a lack of growth. It’s crucial to maintain a beginner’s mindset and to celebrate the effort you put in rather than the results and corresponding validation