I’ve been sitting here thinking about what I want to leave you with in December — not a “year in review,” not a polished recap, but the few things that feel true enough to carry forward. 

When I look back on 2025, I don’t see one clean storyline. I see a year that asked a lot of me. A year that gave a lot back. A year where I stretched as a leader and as a person at the same time. And the older I get (and the more I lead), the more I care about the lessons under the highlights. 

So that’s what this is. The real stuff I’m taking with me from 2025 — 12 lessons that shaped how I lead, how I love, how I build, and how I want to live next year. Not in any fancy order. Just the truth of my year. 

12 lessons I’m taking with me from 2025 

1. Effective decision-making is one of the most important leadership tools there is. 

This was a big one for me this year. I don’t think people talk enough about how much leadership lives or dies in decisions. Not just big decisions — daily ones. The ones that set direction. The ones that create momentum or stall it out. The ones that impact your team’s energy way more than you realize. 

I worked hard on getting better here. I used decision-making frameworks, yes. But honestly the deeper work was emotional: learning how to hold the weight of decisions without spinning, overthinking, or outsourcing my instincts. I learned to notice when I was trying to decide from anxiety instead of clarity. I learned that dragging out a decision usually costs more than making the wrong one. And I learned that a clean decision + ownership beats a “perfect” decision every time. 

This year taught me that decisiveness isn’t a personality trait — it’s a practice. And I’m still practicing. 

2. Experimentation is how you build anything worth building. 

We experimented a lot this year. And I’m so glad we did. We hosted and sold-out Present & Powerful — twice. We ran our first open enrollment in-person Trust Catalyst training. We tried things that worked and things that didn’t…and we learned quickly either way. 

What I learned (again) is that growth requires exposure. You have to let things be real before they can be refined. Some experiments were a clear yes right away, some were a “not yet,” and some were a no — but none of them were a waste. They all moved us forward. 

3. Trust your gut — even when not everyone is ready for what you see coming. 

At the end of 2024 we created the Trust Catalyst System — including our measurement and playbook tool, the Trust Diagnostic + Playbook — because I knew trust was the future of leadership and the future of work. I still know it. 

This year we piloted it with several organizations, and it confirmed everything I felt in my bones. Even when some teams aren’t ready to focus on trust yet… we are. I’m not willing to let it go just because it’s not the easy work. I’ve watched what happens when trust isn’t there — and I’ve seen what becomes possible when it is. 

Sometimes the clearest strategy is the one your gut has been whispering for a while — and your job is to listen, even if the market lags behind your conviction.  

And here’s the other gut instinct I’m following into 2026: we’re going all-in on our regulated industries practice. When we looked at our client base, nearly 85% of the organizations we serve sit in highly regulated spaces — healthcare, energy, utilities. And honestly, that’s not an accident. These are industries where trust isn’t a “nice to have.” It’s the difference between teams functioning or fracturing. Between leadership working or falling apart. The stakes are just higher. 

I’ve avoided choosing an industry for a long time because I believe great leadership applies everywhere. That’s still true. But what’s also true is this: focus matters. Depth matters. And if we want to serve these clients at the level they deserve, we need to build our expertise even more intentionally. 

So in 2026, we’re going ALL IN — building deeper industry knowledge, sharpening our work for the realities leaders face in these environments, and showing up with even more precision and care. It feels clear. It feels right. And I honestly can’t wait. 

4. Stop trying to be ice cream. 

Not everybody is going to like me. Not everybody is going to want what we offer. Not everybody is my people. And that’s fine. This year I got clearer on who I am, what I’m here to say, and how I want to say it — and I let the rest go. Alignment feels better than approval. And it saves so much energy when you stop trying to contort yourself into something universally palatable. 

5. Trust is more important than control (and I needed that reminder this year). 

November was a hard parenting month for me. Like… hard-hard. It triggered my need for control in a way I hadn’t felt in a long time. And what I noticed was how quickly the “control spiral” spreads. I got tight in parenting, then I got tight in work, then in my body, then in relationships. Control doesn’t stay in one lane — it leaks. The reminder for me was simple but humbling: trust is a daily choice. Trusting myself. Trusting the process. Trusting that fear doesn’t get to drive the car. 

6. Presence works when you schedule it — because life is full. 

We can love people so much and still miss them if we don’t protect the time. This year I got back to weekend dates with my teenager and weekly date nights with my husband. I traveled a ton, so it wasn’t perfect or always consistent — but having those times on purpose matters. Presence is not a personality trait either. It’s a decision. It’s making time for what matters before the week fills itself. 

7. Big milestones deserve to be celebrated out loud. 

We renovated our home this year. We finished it. We paid for it. And I’m proud of us. It was one of those long, expensive, emotional mountains — and we did it. I don’t want to rush past those wins anymore. Naming milestones matters because it reminds you that you’re capable, and it marks the season for what it was — not just what’s next. 

8. Solo time isn’t selfish — it’s necessary. 

I took a week-long trip to Mexico by myself this year, and it gave me life. I rested, I got quiet, and I came home with some of the best ideas I’ve had in a long time — especially the seed for my second business. There’s a kind of clarity that only shows up when you are far enough away from noise to hear your own voice again. And I want more of that kind of quiet next year. 

9. Your anchors won’t hold you if you don’t keep grabbing them. 

I’m really proud of my morning routine this year. It’s been grounding for me. But with travel and the pace of everything, I let exercise go more than I want to admit. Not from shame. From awareness. I can feel the difference in my body and in my mind. This is a real-time lesson for me: the things that support you deserve protection — not leftovers. Anchors aren’t “nice to have.” They’re how you keep showing up as yourself. 

10. Space is not a luxury. It’s a need. 

I didn’t have much margin this year. Work was big. Travel was big. Life was big. Some of it was amazing — and some of it was too much. So, space is my word for 2026. Space to think. Space to rest. Space to choose slowly instead of react quickly. Space to live like a human, not a machine. I want to build a life and a business that has room to breathe. 

11. Scaling means the business has to be bigger than me. 

One of the biggest leadership lessons I’m carrying forward is this: if the mission is real, it can’t be held together by one person. In 2025, I felt both the beauty and the strain of being too central to too much. I love the work. I love being in the room. I love delivering for clients. But I also know that if we want to serve people better — with more care, more consistency, more reach — it requires a team that can hold the work without it always needing to run through me. 

That’s why in 2026 we’re leaning harder into our trusted partners. Not as a backup plan — as a strength. They bring deep expertise, different lenses, and serious leadership chops. And when we pair that with our frameworks, our standards, and our way of working, clients get something stronger than what I could deliver alone. 

For me, this is about impact and integrity. It’s about building a company that’s sustainable. It’s about letting other brilliant people lead inside the mission. And honestly? It’s about trust — trusting the people around me to carry the work with excellence, and trusting myself enough to not control every piece of it. That kind of scale feels aligned. And I’m excited about what it makes possible. 

12. A good marriage is an important business tool (and an even more important life tool). 

This year my husband and I went to marriage counseling, and I’m so glad we did. During our home renovation I realized how much pressure seasons like that put on a relationship — even when you love each other deeply. Counseling didn’t mean something was broken. It meant we were committed to keeping it strong. And right now, my marriage is the best it’s ever been. We worked for that. We chose that. And I’m proud of us. 

If I’m honest, this year made me more myself. More grounded. More clear. More willing to trust what I know and stop performing for what I think I’m supposed to be. 

Thank you for being here — for reading these notes, for inviting me into your leadership world, for trusting me with your teams and your stories. I don’t take that lightly. 

I’m heading into 2026 with a full heart, a clear vision, and a deep commitment to space, trust, and presence. 

Let’s keep choosing what matters. Even when it’s messy. Even when it’s brave. 

With so much love and gratitude, 
Vitale