Why you show up in 2025

As we step into 2025, it’s worth pausing to ask:

"Why are you showing up in life, and how are you embracing the phase you’re in?"

Over the past three decades, I’ve had the privilege of working across different domains:

• A decade mentoring teens, helping them navigate the transformative years of identity and self-discovery.
• A decade building and launching startups, grappling with risk, reinvention, and impact.
• A decade working with cities to improve social and economic outcomes, aligning collective ambitions with individual potential.

What I’ve learned is that we all exist in phases. The more aware we are of our “why” in each phase—and the more honest we are about what that phase requires—the more useful we can be to ourselves and the world.

The Five Phases of Lifelong Learning

Life isn’t a straight line; it’s a series of evolving chapters, each with its own opportunities and challenges. I call this Logical Lifelong Learning, and understanding where you are can help you show up with clarity and purpose.

1. Listen: This is the phase of discovery—listening to the world and yourself, absorbing knowledge, and figuring out where you fit. It’s often about asking the big questions: What do I believe? Who am I? What matters to me? Ask Yourself: What am I learning right now, and how is it shaping my direction?
2. Launch: Here, you step into action, whether it’s starting a career, a project, or an experiment. It’s about taking risks and testing the waters. Ask Yourself: What am I creating or contributing? How am I stretching myself?
3. Leap: Midway through life or a career, you might feel ready for reinvention. This phase is about leveling up, pivoting, or deepening your impact. Ask Yourself: What’s the next level for me? What risks do I need to take to grow?
4. Legacy: This is a time of reflection and giving back—sharing your wisdom, mentoring others, and making a lasting impact. You become a guide for others, helping shape the paths of the next generation. Ask Yourself: How am I using my experiences to uplift others?
5. Legend: In the final phase, your body and mind may begin to fail you. The mentorship and contributions of your legacy phase start to fade, and you find yourself dependent on others physically and emotionally. While this may feel like an ending, it is also a time of profound transformation: you become a mythical figure to the community of learners and doers you’ve touched. Upon death, your life and work are established as a legend, and your influence carries on through the stories, systems, and people you leave behind. Ask Yourself: What story am I writing with my life, and how will it live on when I’m gone?

Liminal Spaces: The Transformative In-Betweens

Between each phase is a liminal space—a period of uncertainty, discomfort, and transformation. These in-between moments are where the real magic happens. They allow us to integrate what we’ve learned and prepare for what’s next. At times we even jump back and fourth or co-exist in multiple phases at once.

Rather than rushing through these times, embrace them. They’re not roadblocks to a finish line; they’re bridges to an epic life.

What Phase Are You In?

As you enter 2025, take time to reflect on where you are in this framework. Are you learning? Building? Reinventing? Giving back? Preparing to become a legend?

More importantly, ask yourself:

? Why am I showing up in this phase?

? What does this phase require of me?

? How can I engage intentionally and authentically?

The more aligned you are with your “why,” the more you can contribute to your growth and the greater good.

Why This Matters

We live in a world that often pressures us to move fast, be everything to everyone, and chase goals that may not align with our true purpose. But meaningful impact comes from intentionality.

As someone who has spent decades guiding individuals, companies, and cities, I’ve seen that self-awareness—not speed—determines success.

Being honest about your current phase isn’t a limitation; it’s a superpower.

Your 2025 Challenge

This year, commit to knowing your phase and showing up for it. Whether you’re listening, launching, leaping, building a legacy, or preparing for your legend, engage with intention.

Because when you align your actions with your “why,” you don’t just grow—you thrive. And the world thrives with you.

What phase are you in as you enter 2025? Do you have a friend who has become a Legend that deserves a shout out? Drop it below in the comments.

If you'd like to join a global community in 2025 that is showing up in each phase to live deeply and suck out all the marrow of life... reach out.