Standing at the Threshold: What August Taught Me About Transitions

August is almost over, and honestly? I’m feeling it.

There’s something about this time of year that gets me every time. Maybe it’s the way the light changes just slightly, casting longer shadows in the late afternoon. Or how you can almost smell fall in the air during those cooler morning walks. But it always makes me pause and think about where I’ve been and where I’m

August always surprises me. It’s this unique month that sits right at the intersection of summer’s freedom and autumn’s structure. It’s when people start getting real about their year, really real. The New Year energy has worn off, summer’s been a beautiful blur of vacations and lazy afternoons, and suddenly we’re face-to-face with September staring us down like a gentle but persistent reminder that time keeps moving.

The Reality Check Month

Here’s what I’m seeing in my practice (and feeling myself): August is reality check month.

Those big, bold goals we set back in January? They’ve probably shifted. Mine sure have. I started the year convinced I’d have my morning routine perfected by now, thinking I’d be running 5Ks regularly, and believing I’d finally master the art of saying no to commitments that don’t serve me.

The truth? My morning routine looks nothing like what I planned. Some days it’s doing a workout and walking to work. Other days it’s coffee and scrolling through my phone while my dishes stare at me and both are okay.

And you know what? That’s not giving up, that’s life happening. That’s growth. That’s learning that rigid expectations often need to bend to accommodate the messy, beautiful reality of actually living.

The Unexpected Breakthroughs

One thing that keeps surprising me, both personally and in my work with clients, is where real change actually happens. We’re all waiting for those big, dramatic transformation moments, the lightning bolt realizations, the life-changing conversations, the moment everything clicks into place.

But some of my biggest breakthroughs this year happened on random Tuesday afternoons. Like the day I realized I’d stopped checking my phone first thing in the morning without even trying. Or when I caught myself automatically reaching for water instead of another cup of coffee. Or the moment I noticed I was setting boundaries without the internal struggle that used to accompany every “no.”

These weren’t the result of intense personal development sessions or dramatic life overhauls. They were quiet shifts that happened while I wasn’t paying attention, like flowers blooming when you’re not watching.

The Rest Revolution

I’m learning something important this August (again, because apparently I need to learn this lesson multiple times): I can’t pour from an empty cup.

For most of my adult life, I bought into the myth that rest was the opposite of productivity. That taking breaks meant I wasn’t serious about my goals. That successful people powered through exhaustion and came out stronger on the other side.

What a load of garbage.

This month, I’ve been experimenting with what I’m calling “productive rest”, not the kind where you’re still checking emails or planning tomorrow’s tasks, but the kind where you actually let your mind wander. Where you sit on your porch and watch the world go by. Where you read fiction just because you want to escape for a while.

The result? I’m getting more done, but more importantly, I’m enjoying the process more. Rest isn’t lazy. It’s necessary. It’s strategic. It’s what makes sustainable progress possible.

The September Questions

As we head into September, I keep coming back to these questions:

What do I want to take with me?

This summer taught me that I actually love having unstructured time. I love long conversations that meander through topics without agenda. I love the feeling of finishing a book and immediately starting another one. I want to carry this sense of spaciousness into the busier months ahead.

What am I ready to let go of?

I’m ready to let go of the pressure to have everything figured out. The need to optimize every moment. The guilt that creeps in when I’m not being “productive” in some measurable way. These things aren’t serving me anymore.

How can I be more me?

Here’s something I’ve realized: I don’t need to become a completely different person. I don’t need a personality overhaul or a complete life redesign. Sometimes the best thing I can do is just be more of who I already am. More curious. More present. More willing to admit when I don’t have the answers.

What August Taught Me

If I had to sum up August’s biggest lesson, it would be this: transitions don’t have to be dramatic to be meaningful.

We’re always standing at some kind of threshold between seasons, between chapters, between versions of ourselves. And while we’re often looking for the big moments, the real magic happens in the small, daily choices to show up as authentically as we can.

August reminded me that growth isn’t always about addition, sometimes it’s about subtraction. It’s about letting go of what doesn’t fit anymore to make room for what does. It’s about trusting the process even when you can’t see the destination clearly.

As I write this, I can hear kids playing outside, probably squeezing the last drops of summer holidays out of these final days. There’s something beautiful about that urgency mixed with presence. They’re not mourning the end of summer or anxiously anticipating school, they’re just fully here, fully now.

Maybe that’s what August has been trying to teach me all along.

Your Turn

So tell me, what’s August been like for you? What’s one thing this month taught you? What are you ready to carry forward, and what are you ready to leave behind?

I’m genuinely curious. Because while my August lessons might resonate, your story is uniquely yours, and there’s wisdom in that difference.

Here’s to September and whatever it brings. Here’s to being exactly where we are, exactly as we are, and trusting that it’s enough.