The Space Between Who You Were and Who You’re Becoming

There’s something sacred about the final days of a year.

Not because January 1st holds any magical power—the sun will rise the same way it did on December 31st. But because we *grant* it power. We decide that this arbitrary marker on the calendar is worth pausing for. Worth creating space around. Worth asking ourselves the hard questions we’ve been too busy to ask all year long.

And honestly? I think we’re onto something.

The year-end isn’t really about the calendar flipping over. It’s about giving ourselves permission to stop, look back at the road we’ve traveled, and make an honest assessment of where we are and where we want to go. It’s about honoring the person we’ve become through all the challenges, wins, losses, and ordinary Tuesdays that made up these past twelve months.

A few weeks ago, I led our Heroic Tucson community through an experience I called “Design Your Best Year Yet.” We spent an evening doing what most people won’t do—we got brutally honest about 2025. Not in a shame-spiral kind of way, but with compassionate awareness. We looked at where we showed up as our best selves, where we fell short, and what we learned along the way.

Then we did something even harder: we envisioned who we’re capable of becoming in 2026.

I’m not talking about vague resolutions that dissolve by February. I’m talking about identifying the actual gap between who you are today and the version of you that’s waiting to emerge—and then building the systems and habits that will close that gap, one day at a time.

Because here’s what I’ve learned through my own journey from “just a mom” to business owner, through countless military moves, and through the beautiful mess of starting over again and again: transformation doesn’t happen in the decision. It happens in the discipline.

It happens when you stop wishing you were different and start building the daily practices that make you different. When you replace “I should” with “I will, starting with this.” When you set both a ceiling (your ideal) and a floor (your minimum baseline), so that even on the hardest days, you keep your streak alive.

The workbook I created for our event walks you through this entire process:

Part One helps you reflect on 2025 with honesty and grace—looking at Energy (your capacity to show up), Work (your meaningful contributions), and Love (your connections). You’ll identify your biggest wins, your hardest lessons, and the person you became through it all.

Part Two guides you through the gap analysis—the space between who you are today and who you’re capable of becoming. This is where the real work begins, because awareness without action is just expensive daydreaming.

Part Three helps you design 2026 with intention—choosing clear goals in each area, identifying the keystone habits that will support them, and defining what success actually looks like for you (not for Instagram, not for your mother-in-law, but for the version of you who’s ready to level up).

The whole thing culminates with choosing your ONE most important goal for 2026—the one that, if achieved, would create the most meaningful transformation in your life.

I won’t lie to you: this work takes time. It takes honesty. It takes the willingness to sit with uncomfortable truths about where you’ve been and bold vulnerability about where you want to go.

But here’s what I know for certain—every next level of your life will demand a different version of you. And that version doesn’t just show up because you want it to. You have to design it. Build it. Become it through small, consistent choices that compound over time.

As John C. Maxwell says, “Small disciplines repeated every day lead to great achievements gained slowly over time.”

That’s not sexy. It’s not viral. But it’s true.

So here’s my invitation to you as we close out 2025:

Give yourself the gift of reflection. Download the workbook. Pour yourself something warm. Find a quiet corner. And spend some real time with the person you’ve been this year—not to judge them, but to learn from them.

Then turn your attention to 2026 and ask yourself: *Who am I capable of becoming? And what am I willing to do differently to get there?*

Your answers to those questions will shape the next twelve months of your life.

Download Design Your Best Year Yet” Workbook

Take your time with this work. Let your #1 goal settle and evolve over the next couple of months. Notice what keeps rising to the top. Pay attention to what feels truly important. You don’t need to have it all figured out today.

In the spring, we’ll be launching the 101-Day Challenge—where we’ll turn these reflections into actionable plans with built-in accountability and community support. By then, you’ll have had time to truly identify what matters most, and we’ll be ready to hit the ground running together.

Because we rise higher together than we ever do alone.

Here’s to honoring how far you’ve come—and to the courage it takes to keep becoming.