You can feel it in the hallway. The everyone’s-head-down energy of year-end.
In 2024, 56% of leaders reported experiencing burnout, and 74% of healthcare executives said they were under extreme stress. [source]
And yeah, it’s busy. The pressure to finish strong, close deals, hit the numbers and plan for next year hits high performers like a wave.
But what really drains you isn’t just the work. It’s the way your body has been on edge for weeks. The fact that you haven’t really taken a full breath since October. You’ve been bracing without even realizing it, because you’re under a lot of pressure to stay sharp right through to the finish line.
You’re pushing through, but the pressure is there. It’s in your chest, in your sleep, your posture, and your patience. It’s building in your nervous system like steam in a sealed pot.
And by the time January hits? Most leaders are already cooked… before they’ve even started.
The Deeper Why
Most high performers spend the year stacking pressure without ever really resetting.
Another deadline? Sure.
Expectations? Yours plus mine.
Emotional weight? Let’s just shove that down.
And in Q4, all of that tension converges. The pace picks up. The stakes get higher. But your body is already carrying months of unprocessed wear and tear. You start making quicker decisions… but not better ones. You’re in the room, but not totally present.
A big part of you is just scrambling to get through the work.
What we call burnout is often just misalignment… and that won’t fix itself with a quick vacation. It’ll keep showing up — in the way your back aches after a Zoom call, the way your jaw clenches in traffic, and the way you snap at your team when you didn’t mean to.
This season will speak through your body if you don’t listen.
Signs You’re Near the Boiling Point
Maybe you’re more irritable than usual. Your shoulders live up by your ears. Everything feels urgent, but nothing feels clear.
And your body’s trying to tell you something — you’re waking up tired, even if you’ve had 8 hours of sleep. Your back is sore by mid-afternoon. And you’ve noticed the sniffles in every meeting, coworkers dropping like flies. Everyone’s catching everything right now because no one is taking the time to recover.
Only 19% of rising leaders demonstrate strong delegation skills, even though it’s one of the best safeguards against burnout. [source] Which means that most of us are holding way more than we should be, and we’re paying the price for it. And it’s not because we’re bad at leading; it’s because we’ve been taught that carrying it all = being strong.
This is what it looks like when your nervous system is in overdrive.
“Your body will whisper. Then it will yell. Then it will scream.”
— David Starbuck Smith
Body-Based Resets to Try Right Now
Here are a couple of simple practices I give my clients when they’re in this spot:
- The Desk Reset
- Pause. Put both feet flat on the floor. Let your hands rest on your thighs.
- Drop your shoulders. (Ahh. Doesn’t it already feel better?)
- Take a slow breath in through your nose and feel it reach your ribs.
- Hold it for a beat.
- Then exhale slowly through your mouth like you’re blowing through a straw.
- Do that two more times.
- That’s it. That’s enough, for now. Repeat as needed!
- The Pre-Meeting Grounder
- Before you hop into your next Zoom or step into the boardroom, place one hand on your heart, the other on your belly.
- Close your eyes (or not — I won’t know the difference).
- Take a breath and feel both hands rise, then fall.
- Three breaths just like that.
- You’ll walk into your next meeting more grounded and ready.
- Three Exercises to Reset Your Alignment
Follow this link for three quick exercises to reset your posture, ground you, and immediately create a state of confidence and energy.
What to Carry Into the New Year
Most people will hit January the same way they left December… and a lot of times, that means they’re feeling fried and behind before they even start. They’ll hit the gym, open a new planner, and set some new goals, but they’re doing it from a body that’s still holding last year’s stress.
What if you entered the new year feeling regulated & rested? Maybe even a little more aligned?
You don’t need to overhaul your life before the ball drops. But you can stop piling more on. Listen when your body speaks, instead of waiting till it breaks.
And maybe before you start planning the next twelve months, you ask a better question. What am I still carrying? What’s mine to keep, and what’s ready to go?
That’s how you lead differently in the new year.
Ready to reset before the year resets you?
Book a 1:1 Alignment Session, or share this with a fellow leader who could use this.
