Are You Living in Default or by Design?

Welcome to Watercooler Wednesday, where we slow down and talk about the real stuff…the things people think about but don’t always say out loud.

Today’s question might sound simple, but it goes deep:

Are you living in default… or are you living by design?

It’s a powerful reflection…especially if you’ve been feeling stuck, disconnected, or like you’ve outgrown the life you built.

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🛋️ The Default Life: Comfortable but Confining

Most people don’t choose the life they’re in.
They ease into it.

A job leads to a house.
A neighborhood leads to a school district.
A routine forms around a commute, some bills, and a few weeks of vacation each year.

It “makes sense.”
It’s comfortable enough.
But deep down, it doesn’t feel like you anymore.

That’s the default life…a life that runs on autopilot, not intention.

And it can be exhausting to maintain, especially when your soul is craving something deeper, richer, and more aligned with who you’ve become.

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🎨 The Designed Life: Intentional, Aligned, and Alive

Living by design means making deliberate choices that support your values, your wellness, and your vision for the future.

It’s not about having a perfect plan.
It’s about asking better questions.

• What would your life look like if you created it from scratch today?
• What rhythms bring you peace instead of pressure?
• What environments make you feel inspired, not drained?

People who relocate to Central Florida often tell me they didn’t just move zip codes…they finally started living a life that felt like themselves.

Sunlight. Slower mornings. Time with family. Magic woven into daily life.
And space…mental, emotional, physical…to reconnect to what really matters.

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⚠️ The Cost of Staying in Default

Here’s the thing:
You can keep the job.
You can keep the relationships.
You can even keep your favorite furniture.

But if the environment around you is working against the life you want to live, eventually it catches up.

And the longer you stay misaligned, the more you normalize:

• Stress that shouldn’t be normal
• Numbness that feels like productivity
• Disconnection that gets masked as “staying busy”

Living in default doesn’t ruin your life.
It dulls it.

Living by design doesn’t require a full restart.
It just takes one brave step toward clarity.

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You weren’t meant to live a life that just works on paper.
You were meant to live one that feels right in your bones.

You don’t have to flip the table.
You just have to stop letting the default lead.

Start designing something beautiful.
You get to choose now.