Gentle Visioning: Ending the Year Lightly and Starting Fresh
Dec 19, 2025You have made it to the final stretch of the year.
And if your brain is already in holiday mode but your calendar is still pretending it is August, you are not alone.
December has a way of creating unnecessary pressure. Pressure to review everything. Pressure to reflect properly. Pressure to choose the right system or framework so we can close the year “the right way”.
For many leaders, that pressure becomes the reason reflection does not happen at all.
This week’s theme is Gentle Visioning, because finishing the year well does not require intensity. It requires simplicity.
For a long time, I believed reflection had to be structured, detailed and done properly or it was not worth doing. I would overthink which review system to use, worry about whether I was asking the right questions, and then convince myself I did not have enough time left to do it justice.
So I did nothing.
What I have learned is that when reflection becomes complicated, it becomes avoidable. That is why I now follow the KISS principle. Keep it simple. No over analysing. No spiralling. No dwelling on what went wrong.
Just enough space to notice what comes up and move forward.
I call this soft sketching.
This year, soft sketching mattered more to me than ever. Like many people, I had a few tough circumstances come up that were completely out of my control but had a significant impact on me. They affected my energy, my capacity, and at times my confidence.
What I did not need at the end of this year was a harsh review of everything that did not go to plan. I did not need to beat myself up for goals that were not met or outcomes that shifted due to factors I could not influence.
What I did need was time to gently work through the soft sketching exercise in the Glow Up. To lay a few things to rest. To acknowledge what was hard. To recognise what I handled as well as I could. And to consciously choose what I was not taking with me into the new year.
That process allowed me to end the year lightly.
Not dismissing what happened. Not minimising the challenges. But also not letting them define how I step forward.
Gentle visioning is not about ignoring reality. It is about being honest without being heavy.
It asks simple questions.
What do I want more of next year
What do I want less of
What energised me
What drained me
What behaviours are worth carrying forward
And what can I leave behind with zero guilt
These questions do not require spreadsheets or strategy sessions. They require a pause.
And that pause matters.
Because when leaders try to plan from exhaustion, they create goals fuelled by pressure rather than clarity. When they slow down just enough to let their nervous system settle, the answers come more easily and with far less judgement.
The best plans do not come from panic. They come from pause.
As we close out 2025, this is your permission slip to keep it simple. To reflect without overwhelm. To choose progress over perfection. And to trust that doing what you could, to the best of your ability, is enough.
You do not need to drag every lesson into the new year. Some things are meant to be acknowledged and left behind.
January will thank you for that.
If you would like a feel good, grounding way to finish the year, my free 10 Minute Leader Glow Up is designed to support this exact process. It uses soft sketching to help you reflect lightly, let go of what no longer serves you, and step into the new year with calm clarity.
👉 https://www.edgeofpossibilities.com.au/pl/2148725323
Thank you for being here this year.
Lead lightly.
I will see you in the new year.
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