Leadership Lessons for the New Year
Happy New Year to you and yours. As we step into 2026, I find myself feeling grateful for the opportunity to move forward with a renewed sense of purpose.
January is an invitation to take stock, to reset, and to move forward with greater focus. While many of us may be moving into this year with lessons still unfolding or goals left unfinished, that is not a setback. It is a starting point.
The Courage to Begin Again
I have had to start over more than once. One of the first times was while I was in the United States Air Force Academy. I chose the academy in part because it had a solid football program, and I set a goal to become an All-American. Then a knee injury ended my dream of playing on the field.
I had a choice. I could let that loss define me, or I could redirect the same drive toward a new path. I found that next chapter in a mock trial at Duke Law, then eventually served as an Assistant United States Attorney.
Starting over changed the goal but did not diminish it. It taught me that resilience is not about clinging to one path. It is about recommitting to service, even when the journey changes.
Leadership is not defined by perfect continuity. It is defined by the willingness to rebuild, to reimagine, and to return to the work with clarity.
What Starting Again Has Taught Me
Starting over has been one of my greatest teachers. It has taught me to hold strong to my identity and my values.
Here are a few lessons I’m carrying into 2026.
1) Vision Starts With a Clear Why
When you start again, you get a rare gift. You get to ask the foundational questions.
Why does this work matter?
Who is this work for?
What outcome is worth the effort?
For us, The Same House exists to create a future where connection is the foundation of economic mobility and shared opportunity, where communities do not have to choose between growth and belonging.
A new year is the perfect time to return to your why and turn a reset into a runway.
2) Renewal Requires Assessment
Starting over is not only a fresh start, but also a mirror.
What worked last year?
What did not work?
What did you avoid?
What did you learn?
Many leaders keep pushing forward simply because stopping feels risky. But honest assessment is leadership at its very core.
It is possible to be faithful and tired. It is possible to be committed and discouraged. It is possible to be successful and still need renewal. The best leaders can voice these realities without surrendering hope.
3) Resilience Is Built Through Relationships
In times of uncertainty, resilience does not come from sheer willpower. Resilience comes from people.
It comes from the colleague who stays in the fight with you.
It comes from the community that reminds you that you are not alone.
Leadership can feel lonely when you carry such a heavy sense of responsibility. But at The Same House, we believe cross-sector partnerships are not a nice-to-have. They are the pathway forward.
Renewal in a Season of Uncertainty
Many leaders are entering 2026 with real questions about what lies ahead. Economic anxiety is real. Social division is real. Fatigue is real.
Uncertainty has a way of shrinking our imagination. It can narrow our thinking to survival. It can push leaders into isolation. It can tempt us to trade long-term vision for short-term control.
This is exactly when renewal matters most. It’s how you stay connected to the mission and the people you serve.
An Invitation for 2026
If you are starting again this year, know that you are not behind. You are in a moment that can become the beginning of your most meaningful chapter.
At The Same House, we are stepping into 2026 with vision and resolve. We are continuing to build bridges across divides. We are continuing to invest in economic mobility. We are continuing to create spaces where people can work together and act with shared purpose.
If you want to be part of that work, I invite you to stay close and subscribe to The Same House newsletter for new ways to get involved this year.