If you're ending the year with some disappointment or regret, if things didn't go quite the way you imagined, this episode is for you.

Hello, friends, and welcome to the Bright Morning podcast. I'm your host, Elena Aguilar, and in each podcast episode,

you will learn how you can lead conversations that build connection and spark change.

So today we're talking about the years that didn't go the way we hoped, the ones that feel messy, unresolved, or just a little

off, because those years happen and you might be at the end of one of them right now, and they

don't mean that you have failed. So let's get it to it. There's a moment I will never forget. It was late

May and I had just wrapped up a coaching conversation with a leader that I've been supporting all

year. I'm going to call her Sam. She sat back in her chair. she looked out the window, and she said, I feel like I've been

holding this team together with duct tape. And I nodded because I knew exactly what she meant.

The year had started strong with great energy and clear goals and

strong relationships, but by January, things got hard. A teacher had resigned in the middle of the

year. Two others were out on leave, and the team had struggled to stay cohesive.

By the spring, meetings were sporadic, and trust was frayed, and Sam felt like she was

failing.

But here's what we uncovered in that conversation and what I want to share with you today,

which is there is learning, growth, and impact to be found and celebrated in even the most

challenging years. Sam had been showing up with courage all year. She had listened.

She'd adjusted. She'd owned her missteps. She kept people afloat even when they were tired and grieving.

And that matters. So if you're in a place right now

where you feel like you're ending the year on a shaking note, I want you to take a breath. And then I

want to offer you a few questions to guide you back to center.

So here's a reflection practice for you for this week.

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