AI Transparency: This article was supported by AI to assist with organization and clarity. The content is based on Anese’s original work and was reviewed and approved by Anese.

As the year comes to a close, there’s a familiar pull to rush ahead — to reset goals, plan next steps, and push forward into what’s next.

But before you do, there’s value in an intentional pause.

Not to judge the year or rush to meaning — but to honor it.

When leaders don’t take time to reflect, we often carry unfinished energy with us into the new year. Lessons go unnamed. Wins go unacknowledged. Depletion goes unnoticed. And without realizing it, we begin again already tired.

A pause — even a short one — creates space to reconnect with yourself, your leadership, and the way you want to show up moving forward.

Below are a few reflection prompts you can sit with over the next few days or weeks. You don’t need to answer them perfectly. Just honestly.

A Few Prompts to Close the Year with Intention

1. Notice Your Energy

Take a moment to check in with yourself.

• How would you rate your physical energy right now?
• How present do you feel mentally?
• What is the quality of energy you tend to bring into rooms — calm, rushed, grounded, distracted?

No fixing required. Just awareness.

2. Look Back — Gently

Think about this past year.

• What were one or two pivotal moments for you?
• What did they reveal about your leadership, your boundaries, or your resilience?
• What did you learn about how you lead when things felt steady — and when they didn’t?

3. Honor Yourself

This one matters more than most.

• What are you genuinely proud of yourself for this year?
• Where did you take care of yourself — and what was the benefit?
• Where didn’t you — and what did it cost you?
  
  

4. Decide What Comes With You

As you step toward the new year:

• What do you want to keep? (habits, relationships, ways of being)
• What are you ready to release?
• Where might there be an energy leak — and what boundary or action could shift it quickly?

Sometimes one small, honest decision changes everything.

5. Look Ahead — Beyond Goals

Instead of asking, What do I want to accomplish? Try asking:

• How do I want to be as I move forward?
• What kind of presence do I want to bring to my leadership, my work, and my life?
• What would it feel like to lead from alignment rather than depletion?

This way of being becomes the foundation for everything else.

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