As the year winds down and the holiday season arrives, I always feel pulled toward reflection.
What worked.
What didn’t.
What changed.
What stayed the same.
This time of year often brings multiple feelings together:
- Gratitude, joy and exhaustion
- Connection, memories and loneliness
- Hope, excitement and uncertainty.
And lately, I’ve been thinking a lot about how much has changed—and also what has remained the same.
In this essay, we’ll look at:
- How work, business, and communication have changed
- What hasn’t changed, even in a technology-driven world
- A quieter way to reflect at the end of the year
So Much Has Changed
I started coaching 15 years ago, and so much about how we live and work looks different now.
When I began:
- Social media wasn’t part of daily life
- People called more than texted
- AI wasn’t influencing how we write, think, or work
- Zoom wasn’t a thing
- Career paths were clearer
- Business moved slower
- Communication felt simpler and people could read paragraphs vs. snippets
Today, we live in a world of constant input and information overload, where we aren’t even sure what information is real. We are expected to:
Make faster decisions
Operate effectively with more noise
Know and use more tools (again effectively)
Experience more pressure to keep up as things continue to change and evolve
As we head into another new year, it’s understandable if you feel overwhelmed—or even a little anxious and disconnected.
What Hasn’t Changed (Even as Everything Else Has)
Despite all of this, some things remain deeply human and deeply true.
Career change still requires courage and connection.
Business still depends on trust and relationships.
Growth still happens through conversation—not algorithms.
The more technology we have, the more humanity we need.
Warmth.
Curiosity.
Listening.
Presence.
No matter how advanced our tools become, people still want to feel seen, understood, and supported—especially during times of transition.
Freedom Isn’t One-Size-Fits-All
The end of the year often brings big questions:
- Should I make a change next year?
- Should I stay where I am?
- Should I build something of my own?
I’ve coached employees and entrepreneurs for years, and here’s something that often surprises people:
Owning a business does not automatically mean freedom.
And being an employee is not a failure.
Both paths come with tradeoffs.
Both require self-knowledge.
Both can feel limiting—or expansive—depending on the season of your life.
The real question is always the same:
What creates a more limit-free life for you right now?
A Quieter Kind of Intention Setting
As this year comes to a close, I’m less interested in big declarations and more interested in honest reflection.
Where do you feel most like yourself?
Where do you feel drained?
Where do you crave more connection, ease, or clarity?
These aren’t questions technology can answer for us.
They require humanity—ours and others’.
And that’s what I’m leaning into as this year closes.
Next week, I’ll share more about why money has become such a central part of this work—especially during the holidays, when financial stress and reflection often collide.