There’s a common belief that success follows a straight path. You set a goal, work hard, and eventually arrive at your destination. But life rarely works that way.
Sometimes the roads we travel don’t lead where we expected. Sometimes doors close. Plans fail. Dreams shift. And while those seasons can be painful, they often serve a greater purpose than we realize at the time.
Over the past year, I attempted to branch into Legal Nurse Consulting. With more than three decades in healthcare and years of experience as a Psychiatric Mental Health Nurse Practitioner, it seemed like a natural next step. I invested time, energy, money, and countless hours learning about the field and trying to build a consulting business.
If I’m being honest, it was discouraging.
The opportunities I expected never materialized. The passion I hoped would develop simply wasn’t there. What looked promising on paper turned out not to be the right fit for me.
For a while, I viewed that experience as a failure.
But something interesting happened along the way.
As I struggled to make Legal Nurse Consulting work, I found myself increasingly drawn back to something I had loved for years—writing.
Writing has always been the place where I feel most at home. It’s where creativity, faith, and purpose come together. While one door seemed to be closing, another was quietly reopening.
Today, I can see that what felt like failure was actually redirection.
Over the past several months, I’ve had the privilege of publishing two books:
The Rosary Coloring Book for Catholics
and
Be Still: A Catholic Coloring Book for Anxiety
Both projects allowed me to combine faith, encouragement, and creativity in a way that has been deeply fulfilling.
Even more exciting, I will soon be releasing Be Still: A 60-Day Marian Devotional, a project that has been especially close to my heart. This devotional is designed to help readers slow down, spend time with Our Blessed Mother, and find peace in God’s presence amid life’s chaos.
At the same time, I have returned to another passion that has been quietly waiting for me all along—fiction writing. A new novel is currently in development, and I am excited to share that journey in the months ahead.
Looking back, I realize that my year of “failure” wasn’t wasted at all.
It taught me valuable lessons.
It stretched me.
It humbled me.
Most importantly, it guided me back to where I truly belong.
If you’re in a season where things aren’t working out the way you planned, I want to encourage you today.
Failure is not proof that you’re incapable.
Failure is not proof that God has forgotten you.
Failure is not proof that your dreams are over.
Sometimes failure is simply a course correction.
Sometimes it closes the wrong door so the right one can finally open.
And sometimes failure is evidence of something worth celebrating:
You are still trying.
The people who never fail are often the people who never take a chance. Every setback means you were brave enough to step forward, risk disappointment, and pursue something meaningful.
Keep going.
Keep learning.
Keep trusting.
The path may not look like what you imagined, but that doesn’t mean you’re lost.
You may simply be finding your way home.
Blessings,
Anne Rhodes (Author, Nurse Practitioner, and Friend)
