Happy New Year, Reader!
There’s something about the start of a new year that can feel both hopeful and heavy at the same time.
A fresh chapter opens, and almost immediately, there’s an unspoken expectation to know what you want, where you’re going, and how you plan to get there.
New goals. New intentions. New plans.
And if clarity doesn’t arrive right away, it can feel like you’re already behind.
Many of us meet this moment by turning inward and trying to figure it all out on our own. We sit with our journals, our to-do lists, our visions for the year ahead, hoping the answers will suddenly come together.
But what if this beginning isn’t asking you for a perfectly mapped plan?
What if it’s inviting you to slow down and listen in a different way?
There is a special kind of ease that comes from shared space. From being in community with like-hearted people who are also standing at the threshold of something new, wondering what’s next.
Maybe the most supportive way to begin this year isn’t by doing more.
Maybe it’s by remembering you don’t have to do it alone.
What becomes possible when we walk together into a new year?
Then keep on reading. Now let's get ALIGNED...
Inspirational Quote
"If you want to go fast, go alone.
If you want to go far, go together."
- African Proverb
The Story
A few years ago, early in January, I remember sitting at a cafe with a notebook open in front of me. The pages were mostly blank, except for a few half-formed ideas about what I thought I should want for the year ahead.
I had done all the things you’re supposed to do. I had reflected on the past year. I had set aside quiet time. I had my coffee, my pen, and the best of intentions.
And still, something felt heavy.
It wasn’t that I didn’t care about the year ahead. It was that trying to figure it all out by myself felt strangely exhausting. There was a pressure in my chest, a sense that I was missing something, even though I couldn’t name what it was.
Later that week, I found myself in conversation with a small group of people I trust. We weren’t planning or problem-solving. We were simply sharing what was alive for us. Our questions, our hopes, our uncertainties.
As I spoke out loud, something shifted.
The words came more easily. Ideas softened and expanded. What had felt tangled in my head began to make sense in my body. Not because anyone gave me answers, but because I wasn’t holding it alone anymore.
I remember leaving that conversation feeling lighter. Not because I had a clear plan, but because I felt accompanied. Supported. Reminded that clarity doesn’t always arrive in solitude.
Sometimes, it arrives in connection.
The Spiritual Lesson
One of the quiet myths many of us carry is the belief that clarity is something we must arrive at on our own. That if we are truly listening, truly reflective, the answers should come in solitude.
But there is another truth that lives just as deeply.
We are relational beings. We make meaning through connection.
Our inner knowing often wakes up when it is mirrored, named, or gently held by others.
Community doesn’t tell us who to be or what to want.
It creates a container where what is already within us can rise to the surface.
When we sit in shared space with intention, something softens. The nervous system settles. The pressure to perform or decide loosens its grip. In that safety, intuition speaks more clearly.
This is especially true at the beginning of a new year.
So much emphasis is placed on goals, plans, and outcomes. Yet before any of that can be aligned, there must be presence. There must be room to listen. There must be permission to not know.
Visioning, when done in community, becomes less about mapping the future and more about meeting yourself honestly in the present.
You don’t need certainty to begin.
You don’t need a perfect plan.
You only need a willingness to show up and be in the space where clarity can unfold naturally.
As one of my former coaches once shared with me, "Anything worth doing is worth doing in community."
Your Call to Action
As you begin this new year, I invite you to pause for a moment and check in with yourself.
What feels ready to be explored in your life right now, not by pushing or striving, but with support and care?
If you’re feeling a quiet pull to step into the year ahead in a more connected way, I’m holding space this coming Saturday for my Visioning Your Best 2026 workshop.
This is not about rigid goal-setting or having it all figured out. It’s a heart-centered gathering where we create room for what’s calling you forward and do so in community with like-hearted people. A space to listen, reflect, and vision together in a way that feels safe, spacious, and nourishing.
If this resonates, you’re warmly welcome to join us. The details and registration link are below.
And if now isn’t the right time, that’s perfectly okay too.
Here’s something you can take with you today:
Think about one area of your life where you’ve been trying to figure things out on your own.
What might change if you simply shared that question or intention with one trusted person?
As this new year unfolds, may you remember that clarity doesn’t have to be forced and direction doesn’t have to be rushed.
You are allowed to begin without having all the answers.
You are allowed to move forward with curiosity instead of certainty.
And you are allowed to let yourself be supported along the way.
Whatever this year holds for you, may it be shaped not only by your intentions, but by the connections that nourish and sustain you.
May you walk into what’s next with openness, trust, and the comfort of knowing you don’t have to do it alone.
Abundant Blessings and Namaste.
Abundant Good News and Notes
Visioning Your Best 2026: If you’re feeling drawn to explore the year ahead in a way that feels supportive and connected, I’m hosting a virtual mini-retreat called Visioning Your Best 2026 this Saturday, January 10. It’s a gentle, spacious gathering where we’ll create space for what’s calling you forward and do so in community with like-hearted people. You can learn more and register here.
"What's Your Next Chapter?" Coaching: For those who find themselves wanting continued support beyond a single gathering, I offer one-on-one spiritual life coaching as a gentle, ongoing space for listening, reflection, and clarity. It’s for those sensing a new beginning and wanting companionship as they explore what’s calling them forward. If you’re curious, you can learn more about my coaching offering here.
Thanks for reading ALIGNED!
If you have any questions or want to share what you thought about this newsletter, hit reply and let me know.
Abundant Blessings,
Joselito Laudencia
Spiritual Life Coach, Teacher, Speaker
Author, The Creative Impulse: Answering the Highest Calling of Your Heart
www.abundantgood.com
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