Bridging the season, The New Terrain,

and Three Micro-Resets

Nov 5, 2025

As the year turns colder and the days get shorter, I don’t know about you, but I feel the natural pull to want to retreat and turn inward. This bridge between end of Fall into the Winter season seems to be asking for a quieter kind of energy.

And yet, the end of the calendar year can also feel like a full on sprint to get to that elusive finish line.

So here’s the invitation:

This year, rather than simply focusing on “done” as we move toward December, can you create little windows between now and Jan 1st to think about the insights, habits, and wins that sustained you along the way?

Based on these reflection, how might you design Q1 differently - even if just slightly - with some planning and foresight?

In this months Newsletter, we’re building on this theme:

The New Terrain Series — navigating the changing landscape of performance and wellbeing

The Manager Checklist — ICYMI, a practical and interactive check list to bring clarity and calm before heading into team meetings

#getunburnt — three simple quick-hit ways to pause, even when everything feels urgent

Take a breath, grab a cup of hot water, and a moment for YOU to reflect on what’s working, and maybe… what’s worth redesigning.

Until next time, stay well.

Alison

The New Terrain Series

It’s International Stress Awareness Week, and I can’t think of a better moment to talk about what it really takes to stay steady when everything around us feels urgent.

I’ve been exploring what this means at work and as leaders through a new collaboration with Gather and Grow in a 3-part video series called The New Terrain, focused on Leadership Resilience.

Each short episode digs into one layer of what it means to lead well without losing yourself:

Episode 1: Breaking the Cycle of Reactivity — How to spot and step out of the autopilot of urgency.
Episode 2: The Burnout Trap — Why survival mode works short-term, but eventually breaks the system.
Episode 3: Building Resilient Teams — Practical ways to reset, recharge, and make resilience part of everyday work.

Listen on Spotify

#getunburnt

Remember that even in the midst of a crazy full calendar and with so much to do, not everything is urgent or needs to be dealt with immediately. Sometimes it feels that way, which is why it’s so important to practice the PAUSE.

When you’re starting to feel overwhelmed and reactive try one of these:

Before responding, think, “Is this actually mine to do?”
Hit pause when something new comes in and before scrambling to add it to your to-do list. Is it actually urgent?
Try to have some restorative, power-down ritual every day - whether to end your workday or before bed to quiet the noise.

We all want to be helpful, and we often jump in as a sign of support to every one else but if we run ourselves ragged, we can’t actually be useful to anyone.

Take time to assess. Layer in moments of pause to bring yourself down from an elevated state of constant activity.

Track your energy for a week as you give this a go, and reply anytime to let me know how it’s going.