Reflect, Recharge, and Refocus: A Year-End Leadership Exercise

Amber Waugaman, leadership coach, sitting in a white blazer next to a note reading 'Reflect, Recharge, and Refocus: A Year-End Leadership Exercise.'

As the year winds down, take a moment to reflect on your journey as a leader. This exercise helps you evaluate your impact, learn from challenges, and set purposeful goals for the year ahead. Leadership is about more than hitting targets—it’s about growth, relationships, and preparing for what’s next.

Letting go could be your greatest leadership strength

A hand releasing sand at the beach, symbolizing letting go, empowerment, and leadership growth through an outcome-agnostic approach.

Do you find it hard to let go of control as a leader? Embracing an outcome-agnostic approach can be one of your greatest strengths, empowering your team, boosting creativity, and fostering growth. Explore practical ways to build trust, reduce stress, and lead with flexibility in this article.

Great leaders take time to reflect (and you should too)

Leader in office setting focused on decision-making and business planning

When was the last time you truly paused to think—not just about what you’re doing, but about how you’re leading and the impact you’re making? In this article, I’m sharing how reflection can transform your leadership presence and deepen your impact.

Feel your emotions, don’t lead with them

Leader practicing emotional awareness and self-regulation at work

Ever feel like your emotions are running the show? As a leader, moments like these can either strengthen or weaken your impact. Discover how to harness your emotions to build trust, drive results, and lead with steadiness and impact.

Time to review your reviews

Leaders having performance review discussion in workplace setting

Too often, performance reviews feel like a dreaded task—awkward, rushed, and uncomfortable. But they don’t have to be. With the right approach, you can turn these reviews into powerful conversations that inspire growth and connection.

Are you making bad decisions?

Is your decision-making style be sabotaging your success? How do you ensure you’re making the right choices? Read more to explore how your decision-making process could be your biggest asset—or your biggest hurdle.

Self-aware leaders are effective leaders

Self-awareness is foundational to effective leadership. Leaders who are in tune with their own behaviors, emotions, and impact on others are better equipped to lead with empathy, make informed decisions, and foster a positive work environment.

The $227,000 leadership problem

Here’s a typical example of how an organization may be losing $227,000 per year due to ineffective leadership that often goes unnoticed or is overlooked.

How to use empathetic responses to drive employee satisfaction

Curious how you can drive employee satisfaction? We all have a strong inclination to offer unsolicited advice/solutions, solve problems for others, or automatically provide direction. While there are definitely times when this approach is appropriate, it should be used intentionally, as it may not always help someone feel truly heard or valued.

Who should receive leadership coaching?

Who should receive leadership coaching to maximize its impact? Despite the clear benefits, many organizations hesitate to invest in leadership coaching due to budget constraints.

Compliance versus Commitment

As a leader – do you want to focus on cultivating the commitment of your team members or do you want a team that follows your orders and directions and who revere authority? 

How to create a culture of accountability

How to create a culture of accountability

Many organizations struggle at creating a culture of accountability. While it’s definitely something that is more helpful when it’s done at a higher-level, there are certain things you can do to implement this on your team, or across several teams.

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