A Pause Before the New Year: Reflection Questions to Close the Year with Clarity and Intention
December 2025
Hello Community—I hope you’re all enjoying the holiday season!
The week between Christmas and the New Year always reminds me that time is a shape shifter.
This past year, I struggled with my relationship to time. There were moments when I felt like I was running out of it, feeling behind or frustrated by how long certain things were taking. Other times, I felt anxious about how quickly it seemed to pass.
And yet, something shifts during this particular week of the year.
Time feels different, almost as if it bends to meet us where we are. There is more space and less outside pressure. There also seems to be a collective permission to slow down. To binge a show or a good book. To take naps. To rest. To restore.
This week is also a powerful time to reflect on the year before welcoming in the new one.
Last year, I wrote a newsletter where I shared two rituals I have practiced for over a decade as a way to close the year with gratitude and step forward feeling grounded and ready. You can read that newsletter here.
This year, I wanted to share a few reflection questions I have been using with my clients to help them close out 2025 with clarity and satisfaction, no matter what the year held. The intention is to support you in entering the new year with more confidence, motivation, and openness.
These questions can be done individually, as a team, or even as a family.
Reflecting on 2025:
What is one thing you are proud of yourself for this past year?
What is something you accomplished this year that gave you a deep sense of satisfaction?
Where in your life did you grow, stretch, or evolve?
During times of challenge, how did you support yourself and navigate through?
Where or on what did you spend too much energy this year?
What do you want to release, leave behind, or move on from as you close out 2025?
What did 2025 teach you that you want to carry forward into 2026?
Visioning for 2026:
What energy do you want to bring into the year ahead?
What needs to shift mentally, emotionally, or behaviorally to support that energy?
What is one big goal you want to pursue, the kind that feels a little scary but deeply meaningful?
What is one small, consistent action you can commit to that will move you toward that goal?
Imagine you got everything you hoped for in 2026. What was one choice, habit, or decision that made it possible?
How do you want to feel at the end of 2026?
If there is one thread running through these reflections, it is the reminder that how we experience time, change, and growth is deeply connected to our energy.
In my newsletters this year, I shared more about my work as a certified Energy Leadership coach and how this approach supports the whole person, both professionally and personally. Whether through executive and leadership development, team and group dynamics, or life and career transitions, Energy Leadership offers a lens for understanding how our thoughts, emotions, and energy shape the way we show up.
Energy Leadership teaches that when we become more aware of our inner landscape, we gain greater choice in how we meet our lives. Not perfectly, but more consciously and with more compassion for ourselves.
As you move into 2026, my hope is that you feel supported in leading yourself in a way that feels aligned, sustainable, and true.
Thank you for being a part of this community! If you feel inspired, I would love to hear what surfaced for you as you reflected on the questions above. You are always welcome to reply and share.
Wishing you all a safe and happy New Year! ✨
P.S. As I look ahead to the new year, I’m currently booking Q1 and Q2 for both individual coaching and work with companies and organizations. This includes 1:1 coaching, leadership development and training programs, and keynote speaking engagements. If you or your team are ready to move forward with more clarity, confidence, and intention, I would love to support that work.