Looking back at 2024 & Taking Off into 2025 with an Expanded Vision
It is wtih a lot of excitement and anticipation that I start the New Year with an epic adventure through Australia and New Zealand to celebrate my Dad’s upcoming 80th birthday. Off we go!
As I write this I am sitting in a first-class pod on a plane on New Year's Eve, heading to take in the magical delights of the Land Down Under and its friendly neighbor, New Zealand. When my Dad contacted me in fall to share that my mom had to pull out of a month-long adventure to this region - the beginnings of his 80th birthday celebrations - I knew that this was a memory I would not want to miss. When I travel with my Dad, it is often an elevated experience, so I have no doubt that some pampering and pleasurable moments are in the cards for the month ahead.
I am fresh off my end of year reflections, and only beginning to plant seeds of dreams for 2025. This year I took a bit of a different approach on gleaning the lessons from the year, after some instagram inspo on the eve of the Winter Solstice. For the days between Dec. 21st and 31st, I focused on a month per day from the previous year. So, on the 21st, I looked at my calendar and photos from the month of January, and so on. I was reminded how this year, I took a quarterly approach to exploring my range of interests. Q1 was Team, Culture, and Organizational Development. Q2 was International Education and Global Engagement. Q3 was Storytelling and Content Creation. Q4 ended up being mostly a time of integration and re-evaluation.
I realized a lot of what I thought was going to happen, or who I thought would journey with me through the year, shifted and evolved. I had a mastermind collaborator in mind in January, but that did not materialize, and yet, another woman entered that space by May. I had a workshop collaborator in place in February, but by April, we were going our separate ways. I had an accountability partner who bowed out in early 2024, and by August, another friend approached me about this type of collaboration. So, there was a lot of “turnover.” Key takeaway - trusting that support systems evolve.
Celebrating the holidays with friends and family in the last month has been full of honoring old traditions, while introducing new ones, like Christmas Karaoke. Grateful for the sweetness of this season!
Another part of my reflections on the year included hosting a workshop with a colleague on Dec. 29th, where we explored the themes of ‘Expansion, Exposure, and Empowerment’. We drew upon the numerology for the year 8, reflecting on where we showed up as a more complete and powerful version of ourselves in our lives.
Despite believing we would celebrate the various wins of attendees, it ended up being a space for honoring the grief many had experienced over the course of the year. This included the loss of parents and siblings, miscarriages, as well as career setbacks. When others face their grief head on, you can’t help but be invited to face some of your own. As we collectively honored the truth of each other’s experiences, I realized the power that grief holds as a form of expansion.
A previous therapist had told me that grief is the only emotion that expands our hearts, when we feel it. Compassion then grows for ourselves and anyone else who has felt a similar kind of loss. The more we feel it, the more we can stand with presence and power in the face of the grief of others, and not be afraid of being overcome or overtaken by their pain. The women part of our workshop knew how to hold their own pain, as well as that of others. The wounds that were exposed received a bit more healing before closing out 2024.
With this mirror, I realized I had overlooked some of my own lingering grief, as my final weeks of 2024 were a time of clearing. On one level this felt exciting and invigorating, because I have a vision of what I am creating space for, but there is no doubt also some sadness. I turned down a full-time job offer with the Global Engagement Institute, stepped back from my role as Director of Partnerships at Postcard, and closed the door on staying connected to a few fellow travelers.
Wrapping up the year with a community of kindred spirits from around the globe to reflect on lessons from the year felt like such a beautiful way to bring proper closure to 2024. Thank you for your sacred offerings!
The vision that is emerging - it feels like the time has come to commit to designing an inspired platform that intersects my interests in global engagement, sustainable development, and workforce development. In retrospect, it seems like the inevitable conclusion to the leadership journey I have been on over the course of 2024.
So what else is in store for 2025? 2024 included being more visible across platforms, and stepping into sharing my light and lessons more fully. And I believe that momentum will continue into 2025, with hopes of developing some kind of keynote talk and embracing public speaking. I have launched my YouTube Channel, where I have been and plan to carry on hosting conversations with people who inspire me in the ways they are prioritizing growth, connection, and contribution. This will help me continue to follow the thread of my storytelling and Choice People themes, amplifying the voices of those with an important message to share. You can check it out and subscribe here.
And while I explore Australia and New Zealand, I will be planting seeds and conducting research around my emerging vision for 2025. Self-expression is becoming one of my top values and “preparation over planning” is developing into a new mantra. My words for the year include: Magic, Alliances, & Resourced. So, let’s see where these impressions and ideas take me in the coming year.
What dreams are taking shape for you for 2025? Always here for a chat to explore and expand your visions! Happy New Year!
Final message in the transition from 2024 to 2025 was from Sophia, the Gnostic goddess, who reminds me that when you least expect it, opportunities and meetings can spring up as if out of nowhere. Trust that you are divinely protected and directed. Faith before results!
