Welcome back to Transformation Thursday, where we dive deep into the moments that reshape our lives—not through massive overhauls, but through the power of strategic simplicity. So far we have looked at my move to put my marriage first, feeling lost in a place I thought I escaped, a winter of feeling totally hopeless and without purpose. We will not look at building up some roots and how I came to that decision that changed my and my husband’s lives forever.
The Overwhelm Trap
How many times have you looked at your life and felt like everything needed to change? Your job, your location, your habits, your mindset, your relationships, your daily routine—the list feels endless, and the weight of it all becomes paralyzing.
My husband and I found ourselves in exactly this place. We were stuck in patterns that no longer served us, going through the motions of a life that felt increasingly disconnected from our values and dreams. The temptation was to tear everything down and start over, but that felt overwhelming and frankly, terrifying.
Then we discovered something that changed everything: the power of isolating one variable.
The Science of Single Focus
In scientific research, when you want to understand what's really causing change, you isolate variables. You keep everything else constant and change just one thing. This allows you to clearly see cause and effect, to understand which lever actually moves the needle.
The same principle applies to life transformation. When we try to change everything at once, we can't tell what's working. We spread our energy too thin, overwhelm our capacity for change, and often end up changing nothing at all.
But when we isolate one variable—one significant change that has the potential to create ripple effects throughout our entire system—we can focus all our energy and attention on making that one shift successful.
Our Variable: The Great Remote Work Experiment
For my husband and me, that one variable was our work location. After careful consideration and honest conversation, we realized that many of our other challenges—lack of time together, feeling disconnected from our values, the stress of commuting, limited flexibility in our daily rhythms—all stemmed from being locked into traditional office-based work.
We made the decision to negotiate remote work arrangements. This wasn't easy. It required difficult conversations with ourselves, overcoming imposter syndrome and finding trust in the abnormal, at the time. It would take sacrifice, engineering, and faith, but we committed to this one variable with everything we had.
The Ripple Effect
What we discovered was profound: changing this one variable created a cascade of positive changes we never could have predicted.
Time Reclaimed: The hours we used to spend commuting became time for morning walks together, for cooking meals at home, for actually connecting with each other at the start and end of each day.
Values Alignment: The re-brand allowed us to structure our days around our priorities rather than arbitrary work schedules. We could take breaks when we needed them, work during our most productive hours, and create an environment that supported our best work and more intentional living.
Financial Freedom: Reducing our living costs gave us economic freedom as we chose to live full time in our RV allowed us to maximize on our budget to build out our financial values.
Relationship Strengthening: Being in the same space, even while working separately, created opportunities for small moments of connection throughout the day. Quick check-ins, shared lunches, the simple comfort of each other's presence.
Adventure Accessibility: Remote work opened up possibilities we'd never imagined. We could work from different locations, visit family for extended periods, and say yes to opportunities that would have been impossible with traditional office constraints.
The Key: Full Commitment to One Thing
Here's what made this work: we didn't try to simultaneously change our exercise routine, overhaul our finances, revolutionize our social life, and relocate to a new living space. We focused exclusively on making remote work successful.
We invested our change energy—which, let's be honest, is a limited resource—into this one transformation. We researched best practices, set up proper home offices, established new routines, and proved our value to our employers. Because we weren't divided among multiple change initiatives, we could give this one the attention it deserved.
Your One Variable
As you watch this video, I want you to consider: what's the one variable in your life that, if changed, could create the biggest positive ripple effect?
Maybe it's:
Your morning routine
Your living situation
A relationship that needs attention
A habit that's been holding you back
A skill you've been wanting to develop
A boundary you need to set
The key is choosing something significant enough to matter, but focused enough that you can commit to it fully.
The Transformation Thursday Challenge
This week, I challenge you to:
Identify your one variable—the single change that could impact multiple areas of your life
Commit to focusing on this one change for the next 30 days
Document the ripple effects you notice as this one shift starts influencing other areas
Resist the temptation to add more changes until this one becomes integrated
Why This Works When Everything Else Doesn't
Isolating one variable works because it:
Focuses your limited change energy- MICROWINS!
Allows you to measure clear cause and effect - BEHAVIORAL ACTIVATION
Builds momentum and confidence- POSITIVE CYCLING
Creates space for unexpected positive consequences- INTENTION
Prevents the overwhelm that kills most transformation attempts- BALANCE
The Compound Effect of Simplicity
Six months after we made the shift to remote work, we looked around and realized our entire life had been transformed. Not because we changed everything, but because we changed one thing that touched everything else.
That's the magic of isolating variables. You don't need to overhaul your entire existence. You need to find the one lever that, when pulled, moves your whole world.
Join the Conversation
What's your one variable? What single change could create the biggest positive impact in your life right now? Share in the comments below—sometimes naming it publicly gives us the courage to finally pull that lever.
Remember, transformation doesn't require revolution. Sometimes it just requires the wisdom to know which domino to tip first.
Ready to isolate your variable? Hit subscribe for more Transformation Thursday insights, and let's build a community of people committed to strategic, sustainable change.
Next Week: We'll explore what happens when your one variable doesn't work out as planned—and how to pivot without losing momentum.
