Prefer to Listen?
A QUIETER WAY TO BEGIN THE YEAR
January is loud.
Everyone has a plan.
A program.
A promise that this will finally be the year things fall into place.
And yet many leaders carry a quieter awareness beneath the momentum.
I’ve been here before…
The excitement was real.
The intentions were sincere.
But somewhere between January and March, the heaviness returned.
Not because you lacked discipline.
Not because you lacked faith.
But because effort alone was never the issue.
What Happens to Capable Leaders
You carried it alone.
You worked harder.
You thought longer.
You planned more carefully.
And somehow peace and clarity didn’t increase. They quietly eroded.
If anything, the harder you worked, the more distant they felt.
You can do many things well.
You have done them well.
So you keep doing them.
Even when you no longer have the capacity to do them all.
Not necessarily because you don’t trust others.
But because letting go feels inefficient or risky or irresponsible.
And slowly, almost without noticing, capacity management disappears.
The Subtle Shift That Happens Under Pressure
Most leaders who desire to lead well do pray.
Many are deeply faithful.
But under sustained responsibility, let’s be honest, prayer can quietly shift from listening to managing.
Decisions move quickly.
Plans form fast.
Reflection gets crowded out.
And when input is sought, the people around you often hold back.
Sometimes from fear.
Often from their own exhaustion.
Sometimes because they do not have the capacity or clarity to engage in thoughtful and honest conversations.
So blind spots remain blind.
Why Willpower Stops Working
Willpower is not a strategy.
Isolation is not strength.
Clarity does not come from effort alone.
What sustains growth over time is quieter and far more effective.
A rhythm rather than a resolution.
Accompaniment rather than advice.
Honest reflection offered with kindness and respect.
A place where strategy and the soul are integrated rather than separated.
This is not about doing more.
It is about doing differently.
Three Simple Practices to Begin Now
You don’t need a full plan to start differently this year.
You only need a few intentional shifts.
These are not fixes. They are simple ways to begin listening differently.
- Create space before you decide
Before making a significant decision, pause.
Ask not only What should I do? but What deserves my attention right now?
Even five quiet minutes of reflection changes the quality of decisions. - Name your true capacity
Ask yourself honestly: What am I carrying that no longer belongs solely to me?
Capacity is not about competence.
It is about sustainability. - Invite one honest voice
Choose one person who can speak truth with care.
Not to advise.
To reflect.
Growth accelerates when leadership is no longer isolated.
A Year From Now
You will not wish you had worked harder.
You will not wish you had added more goals.
You will wish you had started walking with someone sooner.
Someone who could see patterns you could not.
Someone who could hold both your leadership and your humanity.
Someone who was not intimidated by your title and genuinely invested in your growth.
If this resonates, you do not need to decide anything today.
Simply notice it.
That quiet recognition is often where real change begins.
