Have you ever had a moment in your life when you felt it was time to take a huge leap, and get on the path to something bigger?

Something that may not have made total sense at the time… but somehow felt right?

Keep in mind, when I say “huge leap”, I’m talking about major life upheavals here. Moments when the only thing between you and achieving the life you’ve been dreaming of is… your entire life as you know it.

Maybe you’d have to leave everything you know, or invest thousands of dollars you don’t really have, or release lifelong relationships to create space for magic, and what comes after.

Then, I’d like to ask: What happened next?

If you decided to move forward: Was there ever a right time to take the step? How did you know it was a good plan to decide to chase a dream, and uproot everything so you, your business, and your future could transform?

If you decided to stay put: What about that moment was the wrong time? Do you think, if you could do it over, that you’d make the leap after all?

These are all questions I’ve been asking myself for the past couple of years, as I’ve undergone some of the most incredible, powerful, painful changes of my life and business.

I spent yesterday in front of the lens of the incredible photographer Caroline White, doing my first photoshoot in years on the beautiful beaches of L.A. (You can see a few sneak preview shots from her camera above!)

While I played in the sand, watching the sun set… I couldn’t help reflecting on the complete whirlwind the past couple of years have been.

I uprooted my home in Canada, where all my dearest friends and family lived, and moved to the U.S.

I started a new life, and a new headquarters for She Takes on the World in Los Angeles.

I left a more than decade-long relationship, one of the hardest things I’ve ever done.

And now, based on the journey I’ve taken, I’ve decided to reinvent the entire She Takes on the World brand and mission. (Hence the photoshoot! But more on that in a moment.)

Of course, at every step of my journey, everyone wanted to know: “Why did you do it?”

Why was total upheaval the best choice for me, out of everything I could have done?
Why did I shake up my life completely when my life was “fine” as it was?

The answers to those questions run deep – and finding them (for myself, and for you in this new series) is one of the most important adventures I’ve ever embarked on.

Often, the deeper truths that only we know — the truths that create a burning hunger for change, alignment, and greatness within us — are some of the hardest to explain.

They’re the leaps that create greatness; in our lives, in our companies, and in our place in the universe.

That’s why, over the next few weeks, I’ll be looking back at the evolution of She Takes on the World, and exploring what it really means to make a big shift and answer the calling of your soul — so it comes through in your work, your business, your heart, and everything you do.

I’ll be exploring the evolution of the She Takes On the World brand, and the experiences leading up to the huge changes coming. Did you know She Takes on the World will be 10 years old this year?! What’s coming as part of the next version of this brand is more powerful than anything you’ve seen from us yet.

I invite you to reflect right along with me, and explore where you might need to take some leaps and make changes to your life and brand — and celebrate the great strides you’ve already taken.

We’ll be reviewing where She Takes on the World began, and how growth realigns your priorities as an entrepreneur. Going through my own story, you’ll see the ways I’ve evolved (and the reasons why the website was the last piece of the puzzle to start to embody those major shifts), and get a sneak peek at the changes on the horizon.

This is a story about what it really means to live in alignment in all things – in mind, body, soul, and business.

I hope you’ll come along with me as I dive in.

For today, we’ll start this story at the beginning: With the reason why I chose to completely shake up my life, and leave Canada.

Let’s head back in time to the end of 2014. I had just signed a book deal with my dream publisher and our business was rocketing to new heights. Things were really good.. but something was off.

That’s the most important starting point of a soul shift: there’s a specific feeling when you’re being called to take one. And you can’t shake it.

It’s different for everyone. Some of us feel endlessly restless. Others feel an ache in their heart for whatever next phase is waiting for us

For me, I was feeling like a tree planted in a small pot with roots that had nowhere else to go. You can keep a tree in a pot and then you can repot it in a bigger pot so it can continue to grow, but if you want it to grow into all that the tree’s seedling was perfectly programmed to be, you’d plant it outside.

I was feeling that in order to become all I was programmed to be, I needed to be repotted — in the United States.

To tell you the truth, the feeling had been growing more and more powerful over the years. But still, I resisted. (Yep, even after all that training in reiki, EFT, meditation, and more, I resisted the clear calling of my soul. It happens to all of us!) Now it was at its peak, and for weeks I pushed it down. I had lived in Ontario, Canada my whole life.

And yet, no matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t shake what my intuition was guiding me to do.

As you may know, U.S. immigration isn’t exactly a walk in the park, so you can’t just up and move. As much as I felt the move was necessary, I also knew I was more likely to be denied a green card as an entrepreneur than to be granted one.

So I did what I often do in those moments: I challenge the Universe to a game of “heads or tails”.

If I was approved for a green card, I’d take that as the sign it was, and I’d go. If I couldn’t? I’d stay put.

Long story short, I was granted a green card in record time — over a year sooner than I thought I would be, if I even got it at all — and I was given a small window of time in which I had to move my life and two companies, during a launch and book tour.

Take note: When you challenge the Universe to a game of Heads or Tails, you better be prepared to make good on your end of the bargain.

That’s exactly what happened as I embarked on one of the most terrifying, costly, and emotional experiences of my life.

After I was granted residency, I had no idea what to do next or where to go. I didn’t really have a plan because I thought I had more time to get the details sorted!

But I’d lost the bet. The Universe was pushing me forward — and I’d promised myself I’d listen. So, listen I did. After finding a good initial base in New York, I planned a road trip that would take me to all over the U.S. so I could check out other cities, and get a feel for where I should plant myself.

Next week, I’ll tell you what happened once that search began, and the way those shifts started to pay out in my business. But for now, I want to ask you two questions:

Is there a leap you should be taking (and are currently maybe resisting) right now? A jump that would make you feel so much more aligned in your work and business?

What’s holding you back, and what could you create if you did choose to step forward?

I encourage you to reflect on these questions in your journal, in the comments below (so you can claim your next steps, and get accountability!), or just turn them over in your mind over the next few days.

Because when we take huge risks? We make room for even bigger successes and payoffs.

However, the longer we stay put and stay small? The further we distance ourselves from all the beauty and brilliance that could be waiting for us just around the corner… if we’d only say yes.

I hope with this series, and my story, you learn how to claim that “Yes” to the alignment of your soul when the time comes.

But for now: I’ll see you next week, when we’ll talk about the reason I ended up in a city my tax attorneys told me absolutely not to live in, and what that signaled for the future of She Takes on the World.

I can’t wait to continue the journey with you!