“What are we giving our time to?”

At this point in my life, I find myself a little more focused on what—and who—I spend my time on.

Not just who I see or talk to, but what I consume. What holds my attention. What I choose to stick with… and what I let go of.

The workouts. The routines. The products. The habits. The people.

(And no, not the products that turn back the hands of time… although wouldn’t that be nice?)

What I mean is this: I’m trying to be more intentional with my time.

As I get older, everything starts to shift. What feels important. Who feels important. And maybe most of all—the ease of it all.

We’re all juggling something. And what matters most looks different for everyone.

If you’ve followed my Instagram page, Under the Influence, you’ve probably seen me try a lot of things. Buy something, test it out, decide if it’s worth keeping… or if it’s getting tossed.

And honestly, I think that process matters.

We need to do a little “spring cleaning” in all areas of life from time to time.

Because sometimes the hardest part isn’t knowing what’s wrong—it’s making a decision about it.

So we avoid it.

We push it off.

We tell ourselves we’ll deal with it later.

And in the meantime, something just feels… off.

Maybe we don’t notice it right away.
Maybe we do—and ignore it anyway.

Both are normal. Both are human.

But at some point, it asks to be looked at.

For me, writing has been one of the ways I start to sort through it.

Not perfectly. Not all at once. Just slowly.

Things I thought I had moved on from show up again. Thoughts I didn’t realize were still sitting under the surface start to come through.

It’s not always clear. Sometimes it’s messy. Sometimes it doesn’t even make sense at first.

But getting it out—on paper, on a screen, however it comes—creates space.

And sometimes that’s all we need to begin.

It doesn’t have to be labeled.
It doesn’t have to be shared.
It doesn’t have to be good.

It just has to be honest.

And maybe that’s why I’ve always been drawn to writing—not just reading it, but creating it.

Because sometimes what’s underneath the surface is far more layered than what we show.

That idea—of things not being exactly what they seem—is something that has always fascinated me.

It’s part of why I’m drawn to psychological stories. The subtle shifts. The hidden pieces. The things you don’t notice until you do.

Maybe that’s also why I ended up writing stories like Deadly Reflection and Auction Girls.

Because sometimes the most important things aren’t obvious.

They’re just… waiting to be uncovered.

Have you ever tried writing things out just to see what comes up?

Or do you have another way of working through what feels stuck?