Happy Holidays!

In this Season of gatherings, decorating and gift-giving… I share a reminder that what really matters is kindness, expressing gratitude, and finding and creating connection.  What really matters is that those around you receive… YOU!

Sometimes, there’s a challenge:  what starts as a joyful Holiday preparation process can quickly shift into overwhelm, fatigue and stress as your original goal of making someone else happy, creates suffering in yourself.

If you are in one of those moments, here’s the good news:  You can shift your situation immediately!

Elevate Your “To Do” List to Your “So That” List:

Instead of having and valuing a list of all the tasks needing to be accomplished, take a good look at the tasks, and ask yourself these questions. (be prepared: these questions can reveal limiting beliefs about yourself and what others may think or expect.)

1. WHY did I put the task on my list? Is it a “should”? (says who?!) or a “want?” (why do you want it?)
2. When I do it, how will I feel, and how will others feel? Why? In what ways?
3. IMPORTANT:  How can I acheive that FEELING in other (simpler) ways?

Any observations? What do you want to remove over these next days SO THAT you can achieve, experience, convey what you (really) want?

So often good-intentioned people make self-sabotaging assumptions about what tasks “need” to occur.

You power through, you’re stressed.  

And, unfortunately in some cases, the outcome itself – the impact of what your tasks are meant to create and acheive – falls short! The guests leave and you realize you were in the kitchen the whole time and didn’t have the conversations that you hoped to have. You’re so tired from decorating the night before your party, you get sick.  You beat yourself up about being behind schedule, not doing enough, and move through your day complaining – when you had hoped to feel joyful.

What if…

• …you don’t decorate your tree like you always do? What can you do to create the ambiance you love?
• …you don’t mail hand signed Holiday cards this year?  What can you do to connect with those who you are thinking about?
• …your presents don’t arrive in time? What can you do to make sure your loved ones know how much you care?

The more you can move through your life and career having clarity on the impact you are seeking rather than focusing on the tasks, the more you are able to make Next Step decisions, manage your time, “move the needle,” and find ease, momentum and joy.

In my coaching, this concept of connecting to the intersection of impact and joy, transforms careers and lives in breakthrough moments. You can find more information and exercises in my BLOG Archives.  

Thank you!

Thank you for being a member of my e-mail community.  Thank you for looking inward. Thank you for being my clients, my colleagues, my friends, my mentors, my inspiration.  Together we are creating a movement of people making our families, businesses, communities, country and world an amazing place.

A Toast to You!

Let’s toast to what you will “do” in 2025, and more importantly, let’s celebrate the ripples of impact that you will make possible!!

Kathryn

Your Next Chapter Coach
Creator of The Career (Life!) Breakthrough AcademyTM