Hey, it's Rachel Cook, your modern mentor.

I'm the founder of Lead Above Noise, where we help leaders tweak how their teams do the work

so that results stay strong and engagement and well-being thrive inside the work.

When leaders struggle here, no one wins.

I would love to come speak at your next event or offsite to deliver the clarity, confidence,

and tools your leaders need to bring this shift to life.

Reach out today at leadabovenoise.com slash connect.

So speaking of speaking, I was speaking just last week to an organization's leadership team.

And to kick things off, I asked everyone to just choose an emoji that reflected how

2025 has felt for them.

And let's just say, had this been a popularity contest, poop would have been crowned both

king and queen.

2025's been a hard and heavy year for a lot of people.

And a lot of what made it so hard, all the uncertainty around us, the constant change,

the things outside of our control, it's not likely to fade as we turn the calendar to

2026.

But this is not a reason to feel helpless.

Instead, I would love us together to find ways to feel empowered,

to face 2026 and beyond, in ways that leave us feeling, if not in control, then just armed and ready

to tackle it head on. Today, I'd love to share some of my favorite practices to help us focus on our locus of control,

to focus on what we can actually influence. These are five practices I'm recommending to my clients

as we head into the new year and beyond. The first is check your ambition. I don't mean shrink it.

...