Reflect, Reset, Realign: Preparing for a Fresh Year 📱

Описание: December can offer project leaders a built-in pause before the new year’s momentum kicks in.

It is the ideal moment to step out of nonstop execution and into meaningful reflection so your mind, workload, and leadership energy can realign.

In this episode of Calm in the Chaos, Program Manager and Workforce Development Strategist Michele Badie and Corporate Workplace Wellness Expert Valerie Carmel Dorsainvil LCSW highlight why this pause matters. Together, they explore how reflection, micro-breaks, and intentional mental resets support sustainable performance, especially for project leaders managing complex workloads.

Show Notes:
00:00 – Year-End Welcome & Setting the Reflection
Holiday greeting, closing out 2025, and setting the intention to reflect on the year and prepare for 2026.
00:55 – Systems, Mental Health & Leading With Empathy
Discussion on mental health awareness, empathy, and how emotional awareness supports leadership and relationships.
03:15 – Personal Signals to End the Workday
Creating intentional end-of-day rituals to transition out of work mode and protect personal energy.
05:41 – Emotional Patterns at the End of the Year
Fatigue, relief, stress, and complex emotions that surface for project professionals during Q4.
13:02 – The Cost of Skipping Emotional Processing
How unresolved stress carries over into the new year as emotional and cognitive “lag.”
13:25 – Reflection Without Performance Reviews
How organizations can encourage reflection without turning it into evaluation or judgment.
15:30 – Leadership Modeling Reflection
Why leaders initiating reflection helps teams normalize self-awareness and growth.
18:06 – Project Grief, Setbacks & Anxiety
Exploring unresolved setbacks, project grief, and how they manifest as anxiety.
19:20 – Naming the Problem, Not Just the Feeling
Why identifying root causes matters more than trying to fix emotions alone.
21:28 – Lessons Learned vs. Self-Criticism
Breaking the cycle of “should” thinking and self-torment; learning without blame.
25:23 – Being Someone Others Want to Work With
How leadership impact is shaped by interactions, not just deliverables.
27:02 – The Power of the Pause in Leadership
Using self-awareness, reflection, and pauses to model healthy leadership behavior.
28:49 – Resetting the Nervous System After a Demanding Year
Nature, movement, rest, and creativity as tools for nervous system recovery.
33:45 – Letting Go of Perfection in the New Year
Why perfection is a trap and intentionality matters more when starting a new year.
36:10 – What to Leave Behind: Self-Abandonment
Reclaiming needs, boundaries, and prioritization instead of silencing oneself.
38:20 – Closing Reflections & Gratitude
Final thoughts, appreciation for the community, and encouragement to move forward intentionally.

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