Welcome to the Blooming Mindset, a weekly dose of clarity, mindset, and practical wisdom to help you stay consistent, think more deeply, and build a life aligned with your identity and purpose. I’m Ruth Rieckehoff, and I’m so glad you’re here. Please share this newsletter with a friend!
Beloved Architect of Identity,
The most expensive mistake I ever made on a hike wasn’t the shoes.
It was pretending I could “just make it work.”
—
I love hiking. I’m not a hardcore, ultra-light, gear-obsessed hiker. But over the years, my capacity has grown. The trails got longer. The climbs got steeper.
In the beginning, I made all the classic mistakes. Especially with gear.
One day, we picked an easy hike. 1.5 miles round-trip. About 800 feet of elevation gain. The plan was simple: hike in the morning, beach in the afternoon.
I had just bought new tennis shoes. They felt fine on flat ground. At the time, I was using tennis shoes as hiking shoes. Sometimes that works. I just didn’t know when it didn’t.
The trail was rocky. Uneven. Steeper than it looked.
Everything felt fine… until it didn’t.
Halfway up, my feet started to hurt. Then more. Then a lot more.
I didn’t say anything. I didn’t want to ruin the hike. I should have listened to the early signals.
We reached the top. The view was beautiful. I couldn’t enjoy it. I collapsed on a boulder and waited while my husband took photos.
I thought, “At least the worst is over. Now it’s downhill.”
I was wrong.
When I stood up and put my full weight on my feet, a sharp pain shot through them. To this day, I’m not sure what exactly happened. I just know it was bad.
My feet had absorbed every shock on the way up. The shoes did nothing to protect me.
My husband noticed. That’s when I admitted I’d been in pain for a while. He gave me his shoulder. Found a strong stick to use as a cane.
I moved inch by inch. He offered to carry me. To call the rangers. I said no and kept going.
That was the longest mile of my life.
Eventually, we made it back. I rested for hours. The next day, we went to a specialized store and bought real hiking shoes. They were expensive. I still have them.
I’ve never had that problem again. Not even a blister.
That mistake taught me something that stuck:
Preparation is cheaper than recovery.
Since then, I don’t “wing it” with hiking. I know what I need. I pack it. I maintain it. I upgrade slowly.
And I see the same pattern in business all the time.
Winging it. Being disorganized. Being “scrappy” when what we really mean is unprepared.
There’s a quiet shift that happens when you stop surviving and start preparing:
You define what you’re trying to do.
You think a few steps ahead.
You gather the right tools.
You build capacity before you need it.
Not perfection. Just fewer self-inflicted disasters.
Preparation doesn’t make the path easy. It makes it walkable.
Until next time, keep blooming,
Ruth
Reflect
- Where in your work or life are you relying on “I’ll figure it out” instead of setting yourself up properly?
- What is one “wrong shoes” decision you’re still paying for, and what would the right gear look like?
Reframe
Old belief:
“I just need to push through. I’ll deal with the consequences later.”
New belief:
“Small preparation today prevents big suffering tomorrow.”
News
If you want to stop winging it and start choosing with intention, the Aligned Choice Guide is for you. It helps you choose courses and programs that actually work for you.
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Product & Resources
Reflection to Revenue – A rapid-response GPT that turns any setback into a clear action plan or monetizable asset in minutes. Setbacks → Clarity → Action →Revenue
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From Reactive to Rooted – Tired of putting out fires? This mindset and action guide helps you shift from scattered to strategic, so your days flow from clarity, not chaos.
P.S. You don’t need to be perfect. You just need better shoes for the trail you’re already on.
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