It’s time to make the critical shift from leading the business by yourself to leading an organization of people. At P2Excellence, we help you navigate the uncharted territories of organizational growth with clarity and confidence.
Leadership is never finished work.
It’s not a mountain you summit once and declare victory. It’s more like a horizon, always moving, always expanding as we grow.
This year, we’ve explored what it takes to lead with heart, wisdom, and impact: Emotional Intelligence, Communication, Strategic Thinking, Decision-Making, Resilience, Accountability, Inspiration, Coaching, Conflict, Innovation, and Wholeness.
And now we come full circle to the quiet power that sits beneath them all: Self-Awareness.
At P2Excellence, we help leaders strengthen that inner lens. Because when you know yourself deeply, you lead others more wisely.
The Leadership Challenge
Experience doesn’t always equal awareness. Many accomplished leaders can describe their business perfectly but stumble when asked to describe themselves.
We move so fast solving problems, inspiring teams, and achieving goals that we forget to notice:
- What’s driving our choices?
- Where emotion colors perception?
- How fatigue shapes tone or impatience?
- When ego, not purpose, is steering the wheel?
Self-awareness is not self-critique. It’s self-honesty spoken kindly. Without it, our leadership becomes reactive. With it, we live and lead from alignment.
Why Self-Awareness Really Matters
It’s more than knowing your DiSC or Kolbe, though those help. It’s noticing who you are in motion:
- How you respond when challenged.
- What energizes or drains you.
- Where your presence creates safety or tension.
- And how your values show up when the pressure rises.
Self-awareness is not about perfection; it’s about congruence. When what we believe, say, and do line up, others experience us as trustworthy and clear.
That congruence (more than charisma, credentials, or control) is what sustains leadership over a lifetime.
The Continuous Journey
Every skill we practiced this year loops back to this one:
- Emotional Intelligence taught us to recognize our own and others’ emotions.
- Communication gave voice to that awareness.
- Strategic Thinking expanded it toward possibility.
- Decision-Making and Problem Solving aligned it with action.
- Resilience and Integrity tested it under pressure.
- Inspiring, Coaching, and Resolving Conflict refined it through relationship.
- Innovation and Self-Care reminded us that awareness fuels creativity and sustainability.
Self-awareness is not the first competency or the last, it’s the thread that weaves them all together.
A Simple Framework: Pause — Percieve — Practice
- Pause: Step out of the noise. Reflection creates room for truth to surface.
- Perceive: Observe yourself with compassion. Notice your patterns, motives, reactions, and desires.
- Practice: Live from awareness, not autopilot. Choose small, daily actions that align with who you want to become.
This rhythm—Pause, Perceive, Practice—turns awareness into wisdom.
Why Now?
December invites stillness.
It’s the pause between what has been and what is yet to come. It is a natural moment to reflect on who we’ve become in the process of leading others.
The world will not slow down. But we can.
When we create space for awareness, we end the year not just accomplished, but awake.
You don’t need a grand plan for next year yet. You just need the courage to see yourself clearly, to honor what you’ve learned, and to ask what’s next.
Why You?
Because your leadership doesn’t stop when the year ends.
You are the constant in every team, every season, every challenge. People don’t follow perfect leaders - they follow present ones.
Your willingness to learn, to reflect, and to grow sets the tone for everyone around you. Your self-awareness is your greatest credibility. And your growth is the most generous gift you give your organization, your family, and yourself.
Challenge:
Before the year closes, take time to reflect:
- What have I learned about myself this year?
- What surprised me about how I lead or how I respond under stress?
- What will I carry forward, and what will I release?
- Who do I want to become next?
There is no finish line in leadership, only another beginning.
Self Reflection:
Ask yourself:
- Where have I grown most this year, and what prompted that growth?
- What pattern or reaction keeps returning for my attention?
- How might greater self-awareness shape my leadership in 2026?
Hack:
- Schedule a Year-End Reflection Day. Look back through your calendar or journal. Where did you thrive? Where did you drift?
- Ask for Insight. Choose three trusted colleagues or friends and ask: “What’s one word that describes my leadership this year?”
- Set a Theme. Identify one guiding word or intention for 2026. Choose something that stretches your awareness and strengthens your joy.
- End Each Week with Reflection. Ask: “What did I notice about myself?”
When to Consider Hiring a Coach:
If you:
- Feel you’ve reached a plateau and want deeper clarity about what’s next.
- Notice patterns you can’t change alone.
- Want greater congruence between how you lead and who you are.
- Desire a season of renewal, feedback, and reflection before your next leap.
A coach helps you see what’s hidden, name what’s next, and builds the awareness to lead with authenticity and grace.
Action Steps:
As we close this year, pause to thank yourself for showing up. For learning. For growing. For staying human while leading hard things.
The work of leadership never truly ends but with self-awareness, it becomes more grounded, more joyful, and more real.
I Believe in You
Start the new year not by adding more goals but by listening more deeply to who you are becoming. That’s the heart of excellence: leadership that begins within.
You are still becoming…stronger, wiser, more whole.
And that ongoing journey is exactly what great leadership looks like.
I believe in you,
P.S. Thank you for spending the year with me! I wrote a book based on my 2024 blog series…The Leadership Journey. Get your ecopy here or ask me for a hard copy! I am thinking of doing the same for this year’s series - let me know what you think!
Join the Conversation
Let’s continue this discussion on LinkedIn. I’d love to hear your insights, experiences, and successes (or stumbles) as you strengthen your Emotional Intelligence.
Please Spread the Word
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Here’s to a month of clear, impactful communication together!