2023 Year In Review

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It seems like every single year when the new year starts, the phrase I hear over and over again (also, the thing I think, because let’s be honest, I’m totally in this camp myself) is “I can’t believe it’s <insert the current year here> already!”

And lo and behold, here I am struggling to start this with anything other than a version of exactly that! 😆

So, instead of fighting it, I’m going to own it. I seriously cannot believe it’s already 2024, that we are two weeks into the new year, and how fast last year flew by.

Now that I’ve acknowledged it, I can move on…

I always enjoy the last few weeks of December, not because of the holidays per se, but as a result of what happens because of the holidays. What I mean by that is I love how everything slows down and it seems like there’s room to breathe. Whether or not people take time off work, there’s always a much more balanced pace around the holidays. People have more patience for things taking longer than normal, they expect that others will take time off to spend with those they love, and there’s a very flowy, slow, enjoyable vibe everywhere, overall.

(Now, if only we could do something about that pesky Christmas music. 🙄 And don’t @me if you’re in the camp of loving Christmas music... I worked in retail for too many holiday seasons when I was younger to have any love of Christmas music left in me. But you do you!)

I feel very fortunate to have seen some of my favourite people over the holidays, especially the friends who don’t live where I do but come back to the city to visit at the end of each year. My holidays are always spent with my chosen family, and they are really about connecting, relaxing and enjoying time with each other. I can’t think of a better way to spend the end of each year in anticipation of the next.

So far, 2024 has been a bit of a whirlwind for me. I was on a plane at 6:30 am on the 2nd (and for those who know me well, you know that I am not at my best at that time in the morning)! Then, I spent the week with some of my favourite clients in planning. I can’t even tell you how wonderful it was to start the new year by connecting with a group of people who I am proud and humbled to work with every day, who remind me that it’s possible to love what I do and who I do it with.

And then, I got sick. Whatever cold/sinus infection/non-Covid virus has a hold of me is a beast and I spent the next week doing all the things to get better, taking as good care of myself as possible, and as I write this, I’m definitely still getting worse.

Although I am frustrated and annoyed with all of that, it’s also a wonderful reminder of the duality of all things. After a few weeks of joy, connection, and quality time with people, I’ve been forced to cocoon at home with my cats, slow down, and take care of myself. Both these things serve different purposes and fill different buckets in my life. Now, while I would have preferred to have opted into the rest and cocooning on my own, without the “forced by illness” part, I can still appreciate that I needed some “introvert” time after more “extroverting” than is typical for me these days.

The theme of “both things can be true” is central to many conversations I have with leaders. It’s tempting as a human, let alone as a leader, to want to create buckets for things, define those buckets, and attempt to make everything fit in one bucket or another. And yet, despite what it might seem when reviewing the information that is out there, everything is about nuance. The reality is that it’s neither sexy nor particularly marketable to push the idea that there is no one “right” answer, that multiple things are true at once, and that everything is far more nuanced than we’d like. Yet, it doesn’t take away from the fact that it’s still true.

Therein lies a wonderful reminder for the upcoming year: both things (or sometimes all things) can be true at once – that’s what makes life interesting and engaging and is truly at the forefront of why I do what I do, professionally and with the podcast.

I hope you enjoy this week’s episode, which is a bit of a twist on our normal year-end reflection, as this time, it’s me being interviewed by my podcast producer extraordinaire, Erin. I want to thank all of you who read these braindumps of mine and all of you who listen to and engage with the show.

I hope to grow the audience even more this year so, please, if you find any of the episodes thought-provoking or helpful, I would ask you to share them with someone, leave a comment, or send me a message. I read them all, and I really do appreciate everything you have to say.

Happy 2024!