What a 1,000-Piece Puzzle Taught Me About Resilience

🎧🎧 Listen to Sunday Sunshine HERE 🎧🎧

It’s January 4.

By now, you 'should' have your goals set.
Your resolutions written.
Your vision board complete.
Your word of the year chosen.

That’s what the world tells us.

But for many people, instead of feeling fired up, you feel… flat.

You think you should be ready to spring forward.
But maybe your nervous system hasn’t caught up yet.

If you feel quiet.
Resistant.
Unmotivated.

You’re not behind.

January 4 isn’t actually different from June 4.
We just place a lot of unspoken pressure on it.

Don’t play into the unforced pressure of the beginning of the year.

I’ve done my reflection—because it helps me see what I can’t see and see what’s there more clearly.
Yet clarity is forming for 2026, not even close to finished.

I’m not shaming myself for not having everything mapped out.
I’m still showing up—especially on this first Sunday of the year—intentional, consistent, and deliberate in how I lead myself and my work.

If I can do that just a little better than before, I consider that a win.

This mindset is what brought me back to one of my favorite holiday traditions: Puzzling.

It's a real commitment—usually 1,000 pieces spread across the kitchen island at the start of the holiday family festivities.

I loved this puzzle! Thank you Cathy!

What always fascinates me is how differently people approach the same puzzle.

Some sort by color.
Some start with the edge pieces.
Some look for words, objects, or anything recognizable that gives them traction.

Different strategies. Same goal.

It never fails that everyone reaches that moment. You get stuck.

The pieces begin to blur together.
Nothing fits the way it should.
You start forcing pieces together saying, this has to fit.
You wonder if a piece is missing.
(My husband is always the first to say he’s 100% sure pieces are missing.)

Progress stalls. Frustration rises.

That’s when it hit me: puzzling is a lot like life.

There are many pieces to put together—career, relationships, health, ambition, purpose.
They’re different shapes and sizes, arriving out of order.
None of them are meant to stand alone.

It’s not easy work.
Sometimes nothing seems to fit.
Adversity is part of the process.

Resilience isn’t about avoiding the stuck moments.
It’s about how you respond when they show up.

When I hit that point, my instinct is to pause. I walk away.
When I come back, it’s not to work harder—but to look differently.

I change my vantage point.
I abandon the strategy that got me stuck.
I search for a new route.

That’s resilience in practice.

Not forcing the next move—but finding a better one.

Pressure isn’t the problem.
Pressure is information.
It’s an invitation to rethink how you’re leading.

And like a puzzle, it is always better with support—someone who can see what you can’t when everything blends together, someone who helps you focus on just one piece at a time.

If you’re entering this year quietly, without fireworks or perfectly articulated goals, that’s okay.

You don’t need the whole picture yet.
Instead, stay intentional, deliberate and consistent around what works. And, in the areas where you feel stuck:

Write a long list of all of the things that you believe 'aren't working.' And then, look at the not working list and write down the opposites. You are likely to see something different, less resistance and maybe clarity.

Then ask:

What if this was an invitation to find a new path?

The puzzle doesn’t change.
​You do.

And when you do, the pieces that once felt impossible to place begin to click—one by one—into something stronger than you imagined.

Stay engaged. Stay curious. One piece at a time.

​My son celebrated Christmas on top of the world. The biggest things we can do in life can feel impossible until you make them possible!

📓 Journal Prompts for the Week Ahead inspired by Matt Cooke

• What is one piece I can place this week?

• Where in my life am I being invited to go beyond who I’ve been, even if it feels uncomfortable?

• How will I take aligned action today even though fear may hold me back?

• What dream or vision is quietly asking for my belief again?

If this resonates and you’re navigating what’s next, I support leaders and organizations through high performance coaching and keynote experiences designed to build resilience and turn pressure into power.

Here's to your success!