​As we wind up week three of December, I bet you’re frantically trying to wrap up projects before the holiday break, sandwiching an “important” meeting between a team holiday event and running to your kids’ concert. All the while responding to “just one more thing” before you put on your “Out of office” email, if you are lucky enough to be able to do that.

Maybe you’ve started to mentally check out, counting down the days until you can finally take a breath. In our perpetual state of overwhelm, it’s easy to see how that’s your daily mantra: Just let me get this done, so I can enjoy the break.

And you deserve a break! And I don’t want to add one more thing to your list before you go. However, there is one really important thing you may have overlooked. Something you need to do before you return to work or the busyness returns. You need to PAUSE and PONDER. You need to create a bit of space to look back over the last year before you dive headfirst into the chaos of the new year.

Most nonprofit managers skip this step entirely. They jump straight from December 31st to January 1st without ever pausing to learn from the year they just lived.

I teach my students a different way. Why? Because we all know that most women in leadership never get reliable feedback on their personal growth. That can leave us feeling overlooked and undervalued.

Right now, my students in the Training Library are going through their Annual Analysis, taking a moment to

•  Celebrate how far they’ve actually come.
•  They’re discovering patterns they didn’t know existed.
•  They’re celebrating wins they’d completely forgotten about.
•  And they’re identifying what actually works for them instead of trying to model someone else’s strategy that doesn’t fit.

​ know you’re busy. Trust me, I get it. You’ve got a strategic planning session in January to organize, a report due before you sign off, a staff schedule to figure out, and probably a million things waiting for you at home.

So why should a busy nonprofit manager take the time to review the past year? Because skipping it costs you. Here’s how:

1. You don’t know what actually worked
Maybe you think you need to attend more networking events next year, but when you look back, you realize the most valuable connections came from the small mastermind group you joined, not the big conferences. That’s important information.

2. You repeat the same mistakes
If you don’t pause to notice that every time you overcommit in January, you burn out by March, you’ll do it again. And again. And again.

3. You miss celebrating your progress
I cannot tell you how many times I’ve watched a woman leader go through this review process and literally tear up when she realizes how much she’s grown. She’d been so focused on what she hadn’t done yet that she completely missed the transformation she’d made.

4. You set disconnected goals for next year
Your goals aren’t built on the foundation of what you’ve learned about yourself. They’re just random things that sound good or that someone else told you that you should work on.

5. You stay stuck in the gap
You stay stuck in what Dr. Benjamin Hardy calls “the gap.” We often set goals based on who we want to be or what we want to accomplish. But your happiness as a leader is dependent on what you measure yourself against.

The Gap is when you measure yourself against an ideal.
It’s when you think, “I wanted to be more confident this year, but I’m still not where I want to be.” Or “I wanted to have a better work-life balance, but I’m still overwhelmed.”

The Gain is when you measure yourself against where you started.
It’s when you think, “A year ago, I couldn’t have that tough conversation without losing sleep for a week. Now I can prepare for it and handle it with composure.”

When you’re doing your year-end review, I want you in the gain. I want you to celebrate how far you’ve come, not beat yourself up for not being at some imaginary finish line yet. There is no finish line in personal development. It’s a journey, and the only relevant comparison is to who you were a year ago.

Have I convinced you yet? Good. But before you run off to do this on your own, I need to warn you about something called recency bias.

Need a gift for that special person on your team, a colleague, your sister, or maybe even yourself? Grab Character Driven Leadership for Women or Mastering Confidence or maybe even both!

Recency bias means whatever’s been going on in the most recent past, maybe the last few weeks or months, is what dominates our thinking.

• If you had a stressful December with budget cuts and difficult staff conversations, then suddenly the whole year feels like it was a disaster.
• If you go to set goals after you’ve had a relaxing two weeks off over the holidays or while on the beach, you might look back and think, “You know, it wasn’t that bad.”

But both of those perspectives are incomplete. They’re not giving you the full picture of your 12-month journey. You’re missing so much of the story.

​This review process is about gaining a wider perspective on the entire year. Not just the highlights. Not just the hard parts. All of it. The full, messy, beautiful, complicated journey of your growth as a nonprofit leader.

You don’t need to do a deep dive into every single day of the past year. That would be overwhelming and unnecessary. But there are some key areas worth exploring.

Your growth and self-discovery
What have you learned about yourself this year? Maybe you realized you’re more resilient than you thought. Maybe you discovered a trigger you didn’t know you had. Maybe you identified a value that’s more important to you than you realized.

Skills you developed
What did you actually get better at? Public speaking? Delegation? Having tough conversations? Financial management? Write it down.

Values alignment
Did you live in alignment with your values this year? Where did you honor them? Where did you compromise them? What does that tell you?

Emotional intelligence progress
How did you do with managing your emotions and understanding others? Where did you get triggered? How did you handle it? What’s improved?

Leadership development
How did you grow as a leader? Did you get better at coaching your team? At balancing tasks and relationships? At asking for feedback?

Self-care and wellness
How did you treat your body, mind, and spirit this year? Did you prioritize rest? Movement? Connection? Or did you run yourself into the ground? As a woman manager in the charity sector, you’re likely giving so much to others. Did you give to yourself?

This isn’t meant to be done in one sitting. In fact, I strongly recommend against that. Give yourself permission to work through this over a few days or even a week.

First, gather some data
This is the prep work that makes everything else easier.
Go through your calendars, both the work one, the family one, and even that one on the fridge. Look at your photos from the year. Scan your journals or notes if you keep them. Check your text messages and emails. Look at what books you read, what podcasts you listened to, and what courses you took. You’re just refreshing your memory about the full year, not just the last few weeks.

​Then, look for themes and patterns
What kept coming up? What surprised you? What “aha” moments did you have? What emotions keep re-emerging? This is where the real learning happens, and you begin to have PIVOTS in your perspective. You start to see patterns you didn’t notice in the moment. You realize that every time you said yes to that one committee, you felt drained for weeks. Or that the months when you prioritized morning walks were the months you felt most clear-headed.

Next, celebrate the gains
Write down what you accomplished. How you grew. What you learned. Who you’ve become. Let yourself feel proud of that. Tell someone about it. Give yourself a high five. I’m serious.

And then, identify areas for growth
Not from a place of shame or “I should have done better,” but from curiosity. What do you want to explore next? What skills do you want to develop? What version of yourself do you want to grow into?

I know how it feels to have no clear way to get feedback on your personal development as a leader. No one was focusing on my inner growth and development either for years. Not the kind of growth about who I was, rather than what I’d accomplished. I had to create my own system for this.

Once I started regularly reviewing my growth, everything changed. I had the certainty that I was evolving. That certainty gave me the confidence to use my strengths and the courage to help others discover theirs, which helped develop a team and team culture in ways I couldn't have imagined.

I’ve now helped hundreds of women leaders in the nonprofit and charity sector do the same thing because I know that your ongoing personal and professional development is your path to success in leadership and life. Without regular analysis of how you’re doing, it’s hard to know what to work on next. And that makes it hard for you to excel.

FREE RESOURCE
​So here’s what I want you to do today: Download my free Strategic Year-End Review Guide. It’s going to give you an exercise to strategically reflect on the past year so you can move forward with clarity and intention.
Do this free exercise
​
DO THE DEEP DIVE
If you want to go deeper with a structured system, grab the full Annual Analysis like my Training Library students are doing. I'd love to have you join us. The course includes 12 comprehensive worksheets covering everything from your self-discovery journey to your leadership development, plus guided lessons to walk you through the entire process. And as a Training Library member, you'll also get access to the full library of leadership courses, live coaching calls, and a community of women leaders who get it.
Join The Training Library

Do this today because if you don't prioritize your personal growth and development, no one else will. Stop waiting for someone else to tell you how you're doing. Become the ever-evolving woman leader you want to be known for by learning from your past.

~ Kathy 
Do the inner work. It's worth it.
P.S. My Training Library students are doing their Annual Analysis right now. Join us before the new year so you can start January with clarity instead of chaos.

As the busyness of the season ramps up, you not only have gifts to buy, baking to do and decorating to complete, but you also have all of that stuff at your programs too!

If you aren’t careful, you’ll end up in survival mode. I know, because I did.

You know what I’m talking about when I say survival mode. It’s that place where you’re barely hanging on. You are afraid you’re going to drop the ball. I felt so overwhelmed and so behind. This left me feeling frazzled and grumpy, always run-down and sick, and constantly exhausted.
​
You may be thinking, yup, that’s me too! And you may be wondering how the heck you can change this feeling in the midst of everything that’s going on? Because Lord knows, we don’t have time to take care of ourselves… or do we?

​First, I need you to know that you aren’t the only one struggling.

According to YMCA WorkWell’s 2024 report, 1 in 3 Canadian nonprofit leaders are experiencing burnout often or extremely often. And if we include those burning out “sometimes”? That number jumps to 71%. That’s an alarming number of leaders experiencing burnout!
​
Add to that the Christmas season and everything else you’ve got going on, and it’s no wonder you’re feeling like a bag of wet noodles with nothing left to give

There were many years when I was not fond of Christmas. While raising four children and working full-time was challenging, the magnitude of “stuff” I dealt with during the holidays often put me over the top.

There were always deadlines to meet by the end of the year, sorting out how to meet client needs over the holidays, staff time off, and ensuring proper coverage. No wonder I was a basket case by the time old St. Nick had to put the presents under the tree.
​
While I knew everyone was struggling to a degree, I felt alone with my struggles. I didn’t want to share my burdens with other people who seemed to be enjoying the holiday build-up. So, I suffered alone for many years.

​Do you put on a smile and power through the last few days leading up to Christmas? It doesn’t have to be this way!

​Need a gift for that special person on your team, a colleague, your sister, or maybe even yourself? Grab Character Driven Leadership for Women or Mastering Confidence, or maybe even both!

We can’t change how many hours are in a day, but we can manage our energy, because it’s often our energy that’s drained.

There are four energy pots that need tending:
 Physical energy
 Emotional energy
 Mental energy
 Spiritual energy

When we’re slipping into survival mode, getting cranky, feeling that cold coming on, and getting drained, yet we’ve still got parties to attend, a team who needs us, and work to finish before the year ends, we need to put something back into those pots, and we don’t have a lot of time to do that!
​
So, you need to think about what you can do in the micromoments you make. Think about 1 to 5-minute pockets where you can “fuel back up”.

Here’s your 5-minute strategy to restore your sanity:
Step 1: Pause and ask yourself: Which energy pot is the emptiest right now? (your physical, emotional, mental, or spiritual pot?)
Step 2: What can I do in five minutes or less to put back into that pot?
Step 3: Do that thing.
That’s it.  It’s a temporary fix until you have time for a deeper charge.
But it will keep you from falling apart, burning out, and resenting Christmas.

If your physical pot is drained: Eat something nutritious. Drink water. Stretch. Go for a short walk, even around the building. Close your eyes for a moment and take a few deep breaths.

If your emotional pot is drained: Let yourself cry for a moment. Crank up a song that shifts your mood. Laugh. Sometimes it’s just sitting there and acknowledging what is, letting it be.

If your mental pot is drained: Breathe deeply. Clear the clutter in your workspace. Stop multitasking and focus on just one thing. Doodle or colour for a few minutes.
​
If your spiritual pot is drained: Pray. Meditate. Listen to music. Head out into nature. Reach out to someone and connect from the heart.

This quick strategy will get you through the next few days. But you also need to plug in longer and get that deep charge.

I’ve got a free webinar that will help: Stress Management for the Busy Nonprofit Leader.
Did you know that stress affects leaders differently from non-leaders? You bet it does! In this webinar, you’ll learn 3 strategies for leaders to renew and recharge.
Watch the FREE Webinar
You deserve to enjoy this season too, not just survive it 

Go make the rest of your day awesome!
Kathy
Do the inner work. It’s worth it.
P.S. If you want the end of 2026 to end differently, get this in your calendar now 

Starting January 9, so you can make next year feel more intentional and grounded.
Tired of starting each year in survival mode?
My 3-week group coaching program, Create Your Nonprofit Leadership Blueprint, will help you

• Set goals that actually stick,
• Build sustainable habits
• Create a personalized roadmap for success.

Join me starting January 9th and make 2026 your most intentional year yet!
Learn more about creating your Blueprint here

Are you exhausted? Most nonprofit leaders I talk to are!. I know you're juggling funding deadlines, staffing shortages, and clients with increasingly complex needs. At times you may feel helpless, hopeless and ready to throw in the towel. Your staff may feel the same way, too.

What you both need is HOPE. And that doesn't seem to be coming from the outside. The world and the sector are in some hard places right now. Which means, it's up to you to create that sense of hopefulness. How do you do that when the tank is empty? You learn what HOPE really is and how to do it.
​
Let's start with why it matters so much. According to recent Gallup research across 52 countries, hope is the number one thing employees need from their leaders.

 Hope matters more than trust, compassion, or stability.
In fact, employees who feel hopeful about their future are 69 times more likely to be engaged at work compared to those who don't. Yes, sixty-nine times.​
​
And employees who are engaged, want to be there, are committed, loyal and work hard. So hope is important.

​HOPE shows up everywhere in nonprofit work.

• It's in waiting to hear if you've passed accreditation.
• It's in the hope that your clients will figure out the new intake system without getting frustrated and walking away.
• It's in believing your team can navigate another technology change or adapt to new contractor expectations, which seems to be a never-ending saga.

Hope is woven through every single day of nonprofit leadership.

No, I'm not about to tell you to plaster on a smile and chant positive affirmations. That's not hope. That's toxic positivity or being Pollyanish. Those do more damage than good. Don't get me wrong, smiles and affirmations are important. It's just that they alone won't do it.
Real HOPE, the kind that your employees are craving, has three specific components, according to psychologist C.R. Snyder's Hope Theory. And you need all three components. If you miss even one, your team won't feel genuinely hopeful. They'll feel manipulated, helpless, or confused instead.

Without vision, it feels like just cheerleading. "Just stay positive!" doesn't cut it when people can't see where you're going.
​
Showing them that tomorrow will be better is about creating a clear picture of where you're heading and why it matters. I'm not talking about a vague "we're making a difference" or the mission statement on the wall. Instead, you need something concrete that your team can actually see in their minds. You need to paint a positive vision in their mind.

​Your team needs to believe they have some power, some voice, or some influence over what happens next. They need to feel included in the process.
​
Without giving your staff a sense of agency or confidence that they can impact the future, even your best strategic plan will fall flat. When you announce "Here's what we're doing" without creating space for people to shape it, you've just told them they don't matter.

​Your pathways are the practical, concrete steps you will take to reach that future vision. Think of it as the roadmap, or the how-we're-going-to-get-there plan.
​
Without pathways, you've got a bunch of frustrated people who want to help but don't know how. All the motivation in the world doesn't help if there's no clear next step. And they need to know that there are multiple pathways. If plan A doesn't work, we'll move to plan B.

Let me give you a couple of examples of how this can work for nonprofit leaders wanting to give their team a feeling of hope.
​
Example 1: The Office Renovation
Imagine your organization is renovating your office space. I've been there and coached teams through this. It can be stressful and infuriating for both you and your employees. So, instead of just announcing the change and hoping people adapt, here's how you could build hope:

• Vision: "When we're done, our clients won't have to struggle with those front steps anymore. And our case management team will finally be situated together, which means better communication and faster problem-solving for the families we serve."
• Agency: "We're creating a working group where anyone can join to help shape how this happens. And we know not everyone can attend meetings, so there's an anonymous online form you can use to drop suggestions anytime. Your input will directly influence the final design."
• Pathways: "Here's our timeline. We'll start planning in January, share the draft design for feedback in March, and the contractors will start in May. Everyone will be included at every step, and we'll have weekly updates so you know exactly where we are."

See the difference? You're not just telling people to deal with change. You're giving them a compelling reason to care, real ways to influence it, and a clear map of how it will unfold.

Example 2: The Tough Client Conversation
One of your staff members comes to you struggling with a difficult client situation. They're feeling stuck and anxious about an upcoming visit with this client. Here's how you build hope in that one-on-one moment:

• Vision: "I know this feels impossible right now, but let me paint a picture for you. I can absolutely see you having this conversation with this client and coming out the other side with a clearer understanding between the two of you. You've navigated tough conversations before. Remember that situation with the Johnson family last year?"
• Agency: "You have the skills and the social savvy for this. You know how to listen. You know how to set boundaries with compassion. You've got what it takes, and I believe in your ability to handle this."
• Pathways: "Let's walk through a couple of different scenarios together. What if the client responds defensively? Let's role-play that. What if they shut down? Here's a script you can fall back on if things don't go as planned. And I'm here afterward if you need to debrief."

​When you intentionally build all three components of HOPE (vision, agency, and pathways), you're not just making people feel better. You're creating the conditions for them to actually perform better, stay longer, and bring their best thinking to the complex problems you're trying to solve. As a nonprofit leader, you're not just managing programs and budgets. You're stewarding hope for your team, and through them, for the communities you serve.

Now that you know what HOPE really is, I hope you are feeling more hopeful about creating hope in your team. Phew, that was a lot of hope!! I think you’ll agree we need it, so here’s what to do. Think about one change initiative, tough situation, or goal your team is facing right now. Ask yourself:

1. Have I painted a clear, compelling vision of where we're going? Not just the what, but the why it matters?
2. Do my people feel they have real influence over how this unfolds? Or did I just announce the plan and expect buy-in?
3. Have I provided clear, concrete steps for how we're getting there? Would someone know what to do on Monday morning?

If you're missing even one of these, you're undermining hope. And in nonprofit work, where the challenges never stop, where we are constantly asked to do more with less, hope is what keeps you at your best and your best people showing up.

Any time you need help, just ask! I'm here for you.
​
Kathy
Do the inner work. It’s worth it!

P.S. If you want the end of 2026 to end differently, get this in your calendar now 
Annual Leadership Blueprint for 2026, starting January 9, so you can make next year feel more intentional and grounded.

​Learn more about creating your Blueprint