The holidays are supposed to be a time of joy and connection, but when you’re navigating career change or business growth, the season takes on a unique weight.

For many of us, the pressure isn’t just the packed social calendar or the endless to-do lists—it’s the quiet hum of professional stress that never turns off. It’s the worry about finances, the question of how to build momentum for the new year, and the constant tension between honoring our goals and staying present with the people who matter most.

The collision of work stress and holiday expectations leaves little room for grace. We end up rushing, snapping, and carrying tension into moments that should feel joyful. And if we’re not careful, the season slips by, leaving behind more regret than connection.

Balancing Professional Growth and Holiday Joy

Here’s the truth: work doesn’t pause for the holidays, especially if you’re navigating change. And the holidays don’t pause for work. 

But with awareness and intention, we can set boundaries that honor both our professional goals and the season’s deeper meaning.

Your Turn to Reflect

Below is a reflection opportunity to help you feel your own clarity this holiday season. Take a moment to settle in and consider the questions below using the audio above to guide you.

• How do you want your holiday to feel this year?
• What boundaries can you set around work and holiday commitments to create space for what matters?
• How can you use your personal values to guide your decisions this season?

True wealth is in how we feel about the life we’ve lived looking back on it.

And when I think back to all the financial challenges we’ve faced, I feel proud. Each one felt insurmountable at the time, but each one taught us to lean harder into our values. To learn, grow, and build something more intentional. To resist the pull of society’s narrative and instead craft our own.

What Do You Want to Remember?
When you’re faced with a tough decision, ask yourself this: What do you want to remember at the end of your life? Is it the hours spent chasing societal success, or the moments that made your heart feel full?


Your Turn to Reflect
Below is a quick reflection opportunity. Take a moment to settle in and consider the questions below using the audio above to guide you.

• What are the “pictures” on your wall that represent your North Star?
• What’s a situation in your life right now that feels uncertain?
• How can you use your own version of the “pictures” to reconnect you with your values and provide clarity in the moment?
• What would it look like to prioritize what truly matters—even if it defies societal expectations?

The most profound changes in life happen with a healthy mix of intention and surrender.

The intention grounds us in a deep understanding of who we are and what we want - independently or with a partner.

Surrender is acceptance that we don’t have control over “how” or “if” something unfolds.

But with a conscious balance of both, we can move forward in more alignment, ease, respect and acceptance, ultimately experiencing more of what we want, and less of what we don’t.


YOUR TURN TO REFLECT

Below is a reflection opportunity to help you get started on your intention(s) for the next week. Take a moment to settle in and consider the questions below using the audio above to guide you.

When you’re finished with the visualization, answer the following questions:

• Identify one thing in your life right now that is expanding your energy.
• Write an intention for how you will do more of that thing or make sure that you regularly prioritize it.
  • I intend to….
• Next, identify one thing in your life right now that is draining your energy.
• Write an intention for how you will de-prioritize, redesign, delegate or delete that thing from your life
  • I intend to….

The most powerful tool I ever use is the question, “If I died tomorrow, would I be proud of the way I lived today?” 

That question has sparked tremendous clarity and change in our lives. 

It has put the power in OUR hands instead of in the world outside of us. 

It has guided us to say yes to what matters and no to what no longer serves us. 

It has provided a path forward when everything has felt dark. 

Most importantly, it has led to the most beautiful moments of our lives. 

PERSONAL REFLECTION

Below is a reflection opportunity for you to get clear on where this exists in your own life. Take a moment to settle in consider the questions below using the audio above to guide you. When you’re finished with the visualization, answer the following questions:

• What is the advice your oldest self would give to the ‘you’ right now.
• How is the moment you’re in an invitation to live the life you want?
• What is draining you day in and day out? 
• What is no longer serving you? 
• Where does your heart want to go? 
• What feels expansive and uplifting? 
• Where are you compromising on your values to appease the people around you?

When you’re ready, start planning your intentional growth for 2025 here. This is the tool we use to consistently do more of what want and less of what we don’t. If you liked this reflection, you'll definitely like Strategic Planning for Life. 

Thanks for tuning in this week, friend. Wishing you clarity and momentum in living the life you want.

With intention and gratitude for your presence here,

Krista

The truth is, having the life we want doesn’t always look clean and easy.

All we can do is lean in. Keep in mind what’s actually important to us through our values and intentions and then just take the steps and action forward when we feel the pull to do so.

Follow the inspiration when it calls, no matter the barrier. 


YOUR TURN TO REFLECT

This is a reflection opportunity for you to get clear on where this exists in your own life. Take a moment to settle in consider the questions below using the audio to guide you.

When you’re finished with the visualization, answer the following questions:

• What is something you really want right now?
• What are the barriers that stand in your way?
• How can those barriers inform your path forward if you lean into them?

Thanks for tuning in this week, friend. Wishing you clarity and momentum in living the life you want.

With intention and gratitude for your presence here,

Krista

How do we make the shift from unconsciously “drowning” to intentionally navigating change?

The truth is, change is inevitable.

We can react using the same unhelpful behaviors we’ve used in the past, ultimately creating more friction, challenge and pain.

OR we can listen and respond with more intention and authentic movement, leading ourselves to more creativity, flexibility and possibility.


PERSONAL REFLECTION

This is a reflection opportunity for you to get clear on where this exists in your own life. Take a moment to settle in consider the questions below using the audio to guide you.

When you’re finished with the visualization, answer the following questions:

• How do you sense when a change or challenge is on the horizon?
• How do you tend to react when facing this change from a place of fear?
• How would you respond if you listened to your natural instincts?

Thanks for tuning in this week, friend. If and when you want to create more clarity and action from a deeper sense of self-awareness, I invite you to check out Strategic Planning for Life. It’s our guided approach to moving through life with more authenticity and confidence. If you love getting to know yourself at deeper levels, you’ll love it. 

With intention and gratitude for your presence here,

Krista

Today, we’re going to talk about the vital exchange of ‘listening’ and ‘feeling heard’ in our relationships. And why it’s an act of love that builds some of the greatest momentum in our lives.


PERSONAL REFLECTION

This is a reflection opportunity for you to get clear on where this exists in your own life. Take a moment to settle in consider the questions below using the audio to guide you.

• Who is not hearing you?
• Who are you not hearing?
• And what is not being said or heard?

And then, if and when you’re ready to take your relationships to the next level of alignment in 2025, grab your copy of Strategic Planning for Life and follow the “Partners & Groups” guidance. This is the tool Phil and I use every December to listen deeply to each other and create a cohesive plan where we can move forward in sync, aligned with a clear vision and practical action steps forward.

With intention and gratitude for your presence here,

Krista Franks