December 31 is always a strange day for me. It is like turning a chapter or even a new book. While I know I will inherit everything from last year, the good and the bad. Yet I feel January 1 is a new thing and demands more action.
Maybe December 31 asks us for more honesty in welcoming the new year.
As this year closes, I’m not thinking about new goals, bigger plans, or doing more filling every waking hour with something. I’m thinking about value.
Most of us don’t struggle because we lack the skills. We struggle because we spend too much energy on things that look important but don’t truly matter. I realize I fall into that trap often and have to be reminded by myself or others.
When workplaces reward speed, visibility, and responsiveness, over time, activity cab start to feel like progress.
Busyness begins to replace meaning. We move faster, attend more meetings, respond quicker and yet can feel strangely unsatisfied at the end of the day.
Real value is more complex than that and less noisy. It shows up first as clarity before any action can happen. As fewer meetings, not more. As one thoughtful decision that prevents ten future problems. As saying NO early instead of fixing things later. These moments rarely attract attention, but they compound over time.
As I look at 2026, my intention is simple, to focus less on motion and more on meaning.
To ask better questions before offering answers. To choose depth over volume. To create and share work that helps us all think clearly about what we do, why we do it, and who we are becoming by doing it.
Not everything can scale. Not everything needs to be urgent. But they all need to be useful. They all need to deliver value. That is the direction I plan to choose for the year ahead.
Wishing you a thoughtful closing to 2025 and a clearer beginning to 2026.
Penpositive 
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