Holiday Hangover and the Case for a Soft Reset
A Saturday Reflection with a free one-page guide to help you reflect or rev up.
If you’ve read along over the last few issues, you know that a new year does not always feel new in the way the calendar promises. That may describe how many of you are feeling. Or not. Both belong here.
I want to name something honestly.
As I’ve been thinking about how I want to serve this community in 2026, along with the professional and personal intentions I am carrying into the year, I’ve noticed this truth:
Some of my 2026 goals were already in motion before the clock struck midnight.
Others are still forming, still being reflected on, still revving up.
✨ This year isn’t starting with fireworks, but it is starting with intention. ✨
I don’t believe in resolutions. I believe in intentions built from reflection and followed by a reset. In some areas of my life, that reset began before the new year began. In other areas, I am still listening, still sorting, still allowing the shape of what’s next to emerge.
Both are okay. I think of this season as a soft reset.
Some of that softness, for me, comes from a holiday hangover that lingers even after rest, travel, and time with family. And personally, the next two months hold two significant markers. My mother’s birthday, followed by the anniversary of her passing. That matters. I name it because it shapes how I move, how I plan, and how much I ask of myself.
January has a way of rushing us, especially as the first full work week begins.
New year.
New goals.
New habits.
New you.
But grief does not follow the calendar. And neither does healing, clarity, or readiness.
For some, this season is still for reflection. Looking back before deciding what stays. Naming what the last year asked of you before choosing what comes next. If that is you, there is nothing behind about it.
For others, this season feels like a gentle turning. Not a reinvention. Not a performance of progress. Just a soft reset.
A few areas where you are ready to move forward.
A few areas where you are choosing to move more slowly.
A few things you are no longer carrying the same way.
That is allowed too.
A soft reset honors both truth and tenderness. It lets you move without pretending you are untouched. It lets you reflect without staying stuck.
If you are still feeling the residue of last year, you are not doing January wrong. If you are ready to begin again, you are not rushing your grief.
You are listening.
And in this season, that is more than enough. To meet you here, I wanted to offer something simple. Whether you’re still sitting with what last year left behind or beginning to rev up toward what’s ahead, this is meant to support you without pressure.
A Soft Reset: Your Latest Mourning Memo 📝
This Mourning Memo is a one-page digital PDF download created to support a soft reset. It offers space to reflect, write, and name what this season is asking of you, without forcing clarity or momentum.
📎 Free for all subscribers
The Soft Reset Mourning Memo is available as a printable digital download here.
🎧 For paid subscribers
Paid subscribers also receive a short, private audio reflection of The Soft Reset Mourning Memo, additional questions, and how I am thinking about my word of the year for 2026. You can access it directly here.
Let me know how you are feeling about January now that a full work week is behind most of us by replying to this email or commenting. We value your responses. And if you missed the link to our reader survey from last week, we would love for you to take a few minutes to share your voice here.
Until next time friends,
Carolyn’s Daughter