Hello Reader!​

This week, I'm exploring the right questions to ask to learn the most from 2025. I've been sharing the questions from my Year-End Review on LinkedIn and thought I'd share a few in this week's newsletter.

I also apologize for the email snafu last week! I'm moving websites, and my email got caught in the crossfire. It should be back to normal this week, but if I'm flagged as spam in your email, you may have to mark me as safe again. If you missed last week's email, you can find all of my past emails right here:

​Feel Change Build Newsletters​

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Feel

“What was the best thing about 2025?”

This is the question I love answering with my family the most. They never fail to surprise me in picking their ‘best thing’ about the year. It really makes me think about my choice, and I learn so much about them. It helps me align more with what my family values and let go of some things I thought were important to them but weren’t.

This question also gets us sharing our feelings on why a thing was the best. Sometimes it was a loud emotion like fun, exhilarating, or thrilling! Sometimes it was a quieter emotion like cozy, comforting, or love. But it is always something that provoked an emotion in us big enough to be remembered all year.

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Change

“What was the worst thing about the last year?”

Sometimes this question is easier to answer than others. Sometimes it jumps out at you right away. But other times, after consideration, you can see that maybe it wasn’t the worst thing…

When my daughter broke her leg a few years ago, I immediately thought it was the worst thing. And it was very hard. But then I remembered all the good things that were true when this happened: we had health insurance with good doctors that helped get her back on her feet, we pulled together as a family to take care of her and still have fun, and she now knows she’s a lot stronger than she thought she was.

So when you consider the worst thing that happened to you in the last year, it’s okay to process and grieve, but to also see the people around you who helped and the strength you didn’t know you had. ​​

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Build

“Why weren’t expectations met for 2025?”

This question made me realize that without a detailed plan, I wouldn’t be able to accomplish my goals. Especially if the goals and plans are vague!

I objectively know this, but in filling out my year-end review, I now have to face this. So many gurus say don’t worry about the how, just come up with the dream. Well, eventually we have to get to the how, or it just remains a dream.

This year was the first year I didn’t have exact goals, and it shows. I was supposed to take better care of myself, set more boundaries, and go after what I wanted. But without clear directions, I did none of those.

At least now I know what planning I need to do for the new year! And now I have an excuse to get a new planner…

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Thank you for taking the time to read. I'm taking the next 2 weeks off to enjoy time with friends and family. I hope you and yours have a lovely holiday season!

See you in January! - Kate

PS - Here is my holiday gift to you! It's my "What I Learned" form for New Year's. It's only one page and doesn't take longer than 5 minutes to fill out. I keep them every year and love looking at them. It's almost like a forced diary at the end of the year!

​What I Learned in 2025.pdf​