Motion or Direction? What January Reveals About Leadership

Every January, a familiar pattern repeats itself.

Resolutions are made. Commitments are declared. But beneath it all, a “subtle” pressure emerges. The pressure to regain momentum.

At the end of the year, many leaders do pause. They reflect on what the year brought them, what it taught them, and what it quietly demanded in return. They sense what mattered, and what no longer deserves to be carried forward.

Then January arrives.

Work resumes. Expectations return. And with them, the pull to move fast again. Often before the clarity from the pause has had time to settle.

I noticed this in myself too. How quickly the urge to act returned, even though the pause had offered me insight and perspective that I hadn’t yet fully integrated.

This is a critical moment in leadership. Not because action is wrong, but because motion can easily replace direction.

A resolution focuses on immediate action and outcomes.
An intention does something different. It creates orientation first. It shapes how we lead, decide, and show up. Especially when pressure inevitably returns.

So when leaders move before they’re oriented, teams feel it. Priorities multiply. Focus scatters. People stay busy while quietly wondering how to prioritise, and what really matters.

When leaders take time for intention, however, something very different happens. Direction becomes clearer. Decisions are more consistent. Alignment with and between teams increases, and they can act confidently, with true ownership.

Leadership, to me, is like a river. When obstacles are removed, the flow doesn’t need force. It moves with less resistance and more direction.

This is the real work of early January.

Not acceleration or surge, but inner alignment. Because leadership clarity compounds. It shapes how decisions are made, what becomes possible for teams and, ultimately, for the organisation.

Leadership isn’t measured by activity — it’s measured by impact.

Before asking what needs to be done, it’s worth asking a different question:
How do I want to lead this year — and what will be different because of that leadership?

At year’s end, what will allow you to say: this mattered. For you, your team, and the organisation.

Warmly,

Christel