It’s no secret that I’m in a season of transition.
I’m learning to be more kind to myself.
To be more intentional with my boundaries.
And to be ruthless about the promises I’ve made to myself.
Like writing, which up until recently, has taken a backseat to life.
Because of that, I live a simple life.
Y’all may call it boring because if I’m not at Zumba or running errands, I’m at a coffee shop working.
If I’m not any of those places, I’m home making sense of a life that hasn’t made sense for months, one small routine at a time.
Two weeks ago, I took the weekend off and went to see The Devil Wears Prada 2 (DWPD2) with my friend, Quay.
And one thing about me is I’m always going to support anything with a writer. It’s my way of staying close to a dream that’s taken the scenic route.
Plus, I love the original so much that after a month of not even turning on the TV, I rewatched it with glee.
Watching Andy Sachs live what I always dreamed my life would one day be still brings me so much joy.
I took full advantage of the recliner seats and walked away with a couple of lessons too.
Here are Three Power Moves Andy of DWPD2 Modeled for the Woman in Transition:
Meet the Moment with Authenticity
Too often, seasons of transition begin with disruption.
That’s true for my life and the life of Andy Sachs.
A moment — an award ceremony to be exact — that should have been a highlight of her career took a HUGE turn.
A life‑changing, wtf is going on and where’s your human decency kind of turn. She and her colleagues were fired via text.
As I watched, my heart sank. I’ve not been in that situation, but I know how it feels when your life changes without a whisper of warning.
Despite being blindsided, Andy met the moment with authenticity and utter confusion.
She could have masked her emotions.
She could have pretended she never received that text.
She could have swallowed the hurt and followed the rules.
She chose truth.
As someone making the same choice every week, I understand what people mean by: the truth will set you free.
The transition may be hurtful and inconvenient, but perhaps it’s also a torch to light your next steps.
Allow it to reveal the unexpected to you.
Let the Fire Consume You
Have you seen that image of the dog sitting at a table while the room is engulfed in flames?
That’s what comes to mind every time someone asks how I’m doing.
And watching Andy transition into the newly created role at Runway felt like that too.
She was not set up for success.
Miranda didn’t even know she was coming back.
Then she proceeded to act like she didn’t know who she was.
Ma’am.
Ma’am.
Like the original movie, Andy struggled to find her footing.
Then something clicked.
She knew what she had to do even if it meant lying to Miranda about having an interview she didn’t have.
Didn’t know how she was going to get it.
All she knew was she had to see it through.
A friend warned her she was playing with fire.
“I am the fire,” Andy retorted.
My goodness.
Sometimes, our lives beckon us to become one with fire.
To stand in the flames long enough not to harm us but to forge us into something new.
Andy’s response revealed a truth shaped by experience and time: she can withstand the heat.
This fire season — with all its uncertainty — I’m learning that about myself too.
It’s uncomfortable, believe me, but it’s melting away the one‑sided ways we ask women to show up in life.
There are so many things I could be doing.
Things people think I should be doing.
I’m using this time to focus on me, myself, and I.
To hear my thoughts and voice with a clarity not swayed by fear of the unknown.
There are not a lot of moments in life when you get to invest in you and only you.
Whatever the circumstance, use it with care.
Save Yourself
There’s a gut‑wrenching pain that comes when you try so hard to save everyone around you.
Only to realize that those same people may be working against you.
They’re not trying to save the unit with the same heart and intentions.
Your protection is not their concern.
In fact, their only concern is themselves.
Andy, like all women conditioned to save the unit, learned the hard way.
She partnered with Emily and her boyfriend under the guise that it would save Miranda’s job and Runway.
Emily — now working in retail — had other plans.
Miranda, always a step ahead, revealed those plans because she knows Emily. Perhaps better than Emily knows herself.
As you can imagine, pure‑hearted Andy was devastated.
Clearly, that didn’t work out, so she pivoted.
This time with more intentionality and strategy.
She no longer operated from a place of over functioning like so many women do — me included. And in doing so, she saved herself.
Andy and I learned the same truth: saving yourself isn’t selfish — it’s alignment.
From one woman to another in a fire season, I know there’s a time and place to extinguish the flames.
It may be hot, it may be scary and it may feel like ruin.
I’m learning that this is the refining moment.
A time waiting to reignite the spark life has dimmed.
Like Andy, no matter the circumstance, you can handle the heat.
If you’re in your own fire season and want a place where we name it honestly, I write about it more in my weekly newsletter. You’re welcome to join me there.
