Life doesn’t move in a straight line. You can be thriving in one part of your life and falling apart in another. You can be winning at work but hurting at home. You can be calm one day and lost the next. That’s not failure. That’s what it means to be human.
For me, these seasons came one after another. Throughout my time serving in the Department of the Air Force, I experienced two divorces. And between 2014 and 2019, I spent more time in courtrooms than I ever expected—fighting to stay in my daughters’ lives in the way I desired to be. Each case had its own battles, emotions, and lessons. There were moments I felt strong and moments I felt completely broken.
But through all that pain, I learned something important: you don’t rebuild your life all at once. You rebuild it in stages. That’s how the C2R2E Framework was born.
What C2R2E Means
C2R2E stands for Collapse → Confrontation → Realignment → Reclamation → Elevation.
It’s not a list of steps—it’s a cycle. A cycle that keeps showing up in every part of life.
Collapse is when the structure falls apart. Maybe it’s a relationship, a job, or a belief about who you thought you were. Everything feels uncertain.
Confrontation is when you face what’s real. It’s the moment you stop pretending everything’s fine and start looking at what needs to change.
Realignment is the work of adjusting. You rebuild habits, boundaries, and systems so that life starts to make sense again.
Reclamation is when you take your power back. You stop letting pain define you and start creating from a place of purpose.
Elevation is growth. It’s when you finally feel the lift that comes after the hard work—when your new life begins to feel like yours.
But here’s what makes C2R2E different: these stages don’t happen in a straight line. You might be elevating in your career while collapsing in your personal life. You might be reclaiming your confidence while still confronting old wounds. Life doesn’t wait for one area to be “finished” before the next begins.
And that’s okay. You’re not meant to be perfect in every area at the same time. You’re meant to be honest about where you are—and willing to keep moving.
How This Framework Changed Me
During those five long years in court, I learned to see collapse differently. It wasn’t the end—it was a signal. Something in my life needed truth, structure, and healing.
I started to notice the same cycle at work, in parenting, and even in business. Collapse showed up when systems stopped serving me. Confrontation showed up when I stopped ignoring what wasn’t working. Realignment came through small, quiet choices—waking up early, journaling, and rebuilding trust one conversation at a time.
Then came reclamation. I stopped letting other people’s opinions define my worth. I stopped replaying every mistake. That’s when elevation started—not as a sudden rise, but as a steady climb.
C2R2E became my compass. It reminded me that I could rebuild, no matter how many times life reset. And it’s the same framework that now guides Elevatus Coaching. Because everyone, at some point, will face collapse—but not everyone knows how to rebuild from it.
The Real Lesson
C2R2E isn’t about being positive all the time. It’s about being present. It’s about understanding where you are in your own cycle and learning what each stage is trying to teach you.
If you’re in Collapse, start with honesty.
If you’re in Confrontation, seek clarity, not control.
If you’re in Realignment, give yourself grace while you adjust.
If you’re in Reclamation, protect your peace like it’s oxygen.
And if you’re in Elevation, stay humble—because the cycle will come again, and you’ll be ready for it this time.
Final Thought
You might be collapsing in one part of life, but rising in another. That’s the balance of being human. The beauty of C2R2E is that it meets you where you are—whether you’re standing in the ashes or standing on the mountain.
You don’t need to start over. You just need to start again—from experience, from awareness, and from strength.
That’s the Elevatus way: we never start over, only rise from experience.