Home for the Holidays: Connection, Rest, and Career Growth

Finding Rest and Celebration at Home

December is full of celebrations, but the holidays don’t have to involve travel or expense to be meaningful. Across communities worldwide, this month brings opportunities to pause, reflect, and connect right where you are.

Many people celebrate Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, Bodhi Day, or the Winter Solstice, while others look forward to local traditions, community gatherings, or simply time with loved ones. Each of these celebrations reminds us that connection, reflection, and gratitude are universal values, no matter how or where you celebrate.

Even without a vacation or big event, there are ways to find joy and rest close to home:

• Attend a local festival, market, or cultural event

• Volunteer or give back to your community

• Take quiet time for yourself in a park, café, or your own space

• Share meals, stories, or music with friends, family, or neighbours

These small, intentional moments help us recharge and reconnect. Celebration isn’t about distance or extravagance; it’s about the people, experiences, and sense of belonging that make this season meaningful.

This December, I encourage you to look for joy and rest where you are, embrace community, and honour the traditions — big and small — that bring light into your life.

Your Quiet Career Reset for 2026

— and the Wins You Might Have Missed in 2025

As the year winds down, many of us feel pressure to make big plans for January. But before you jump into goal-setting mode, I invite you to pause and take a quiet look at the year behind you.

Not the loud moments but the subtle ones. Because the truth is, some of your biggest career wins this year may not have looked like wins at all.

Did you adapt to change quickly? Did you learn something new on the fly? Did you manage heavier workloads, shifting priorities, or team changes? Did you support others when things were uncertain? Did you stay curious about where your career is heading, even when you weren’t sure what the next step should be?

These are real achievements. They signal resilience, growth, and readiness qualities that matter more than perfect career timelines.

As you reset for 2026, try this gentle year-end reflection:

• What energized you this year?

• What drained you, and what does that tell you?

• What skills grew without you even realizing it?

• What kind of work do you want more (or less) of in the new year?

You don’t need a five-year plan. You need clarity on what you’re moving toward — and what you’re ready to leave behind.

Here’s to a meaningful, grounded start to 2026.Your next step doesn’t have to be dramatic to be important.

Taking Time for Yourself

As we move into the holiday season, I’ve been thinking a lot about how easy it is to put everyone else first and neglect yourself. Many of us wear multiple roles: professional, parent, partner, leader, friend, and we switch between them without pausing to notice the weight of it all. In my own life, this has become especially clear.

Most people know me as a recruitment specialist, someone who supports organizations in sourcing the right talent and helping candidates navigate their careers with confidence. But behind the scenes, I am also a caregiver. My elderly mother lives with me, and like so many caregivers, I’ve learned that the emotional labour often sits quietly in the background while the rest of life keeps moving. All of this can feel overwhelming. And if I’m honest, there are days when I pour into everyone else, clients, candidates, and family, and suddenly realize I’ve left nothing for myself.

But here’s what I’m reminding myself this December: You cannot give from an empty place. And the rest is not indulgent, it’s responsible.  Sometimes, giving yourself more space means simply saying “no" isn’t selfish; it’s a way to reclaim your space and energy and show up fully for what truly matters.

As caregivers, leaders, and human beings, we deserve moments that refill us, not just for the people we care for, but for ourselves.

Wishing you a gentle holiday season,

Elaine