2025 was a bit of a blur...
It wasn’t a year of business growth, workshops, masterminding, or Youtube videos.
It was a year of...
chaos, grief, joy, and surrender
spending time with family and friends
spending time in nature
working on personal projects
highs and lows, challenges of all kinds.
As I've done every year for 13+ years now, I published my annual year in review. These reviews are mostly written for me, as I find them fascinating and helpful to look back on over time, but I publish them in case they are interesting or helpful to other people.
What was the younger version of me stressing about?
What mattered most to me at that time?
What continues to matter, and what has faded away?
What are the patterns at play in my life and work and creativity?
Lately I've been writing the full reviews in Notion, as I find it quicker to publish than on my website. If you're curious you can read the full year in review here.
Highlights
- Designed and renovated my kitchen
- Returned to playing sports again (after my hip injury in 2024)
- Got back into strength training
- Spent more time in nature
- Attended Euchre tournaments and board game nights
- Went alcohol free
- Got Invisalign to correct my crowded teeth / bite
- Grew my backyard garden
- Attended a local Harvest Table dinner by One Straw Society
- Provided chef services (dinners) for two retreats
- Took an Indian cooking class at NWCAV
- Social: Quit Twitter, moved over to BlueSky
- Clients: Partnered with the Stanford d.school
Challenges
- Current state of the political climate in the US
- People in my network getting laid off / struggling with sales
- UGH, the AI fatigue is real
- Got Invisalign, had to change food habits (annoying but worth it)
- Kitchen renovation was chaotic, intense, and $$$
- Death, impending death, and serious health issues of friends + family
"So if you’re in it right now… losing sleep, losing savings, losing the version of yourself that used to feel anchored, listen to me: you’re not weak. You’re not dramatic. You’re not “taking it too personally.” You are living through a medically, psychologically, and financially documented trauma."
– Charlsie Niemiec • Read full post on LinkedIn
Overall, it was a strange mix of emotions this year.
In many ways it was nice to have an exciting, creative, and challenging project like the kitchen renovation to funnel my creative energies while I was also feeling a lot of rage and frustration about global events.
While it sounds cheesy, whenever I feel a sense of rage or despair about world events, I turn to permaculture. I ask myself:
What is the most helpful and loving thing I can do right now?
How can I best use my gifts to create meaningful impact?
For me this usually means: turning my energy toward my local community.
Connecting with people and organizations who are making meaningful change at the local level. Attending long table dinners which fund food-scarcity initiatives on the coast. Feeding groups of people at a wellness retreat. Bringing home-made food to a friend with caretaker burnout. Teaching a friend how to nourish themselves with a cooking lesson. Being a listening ear for someone who needs it.
When global events feel overwhelming, I focus on one small action I can take that can nourish myself and others in whatever small way I can.
If humanity feels like it's missing right now, what can I do to bring it forward within my community and sphere of influence?
That's the impact I know I can have right now.
Ben has also been feeling what he refers to as the “surreality of AI”, as made clear by his experience of existential anxiety in his own year in review.
He’s been writing a lot on his personal blog about the ways he’s been pursuing a more calm productivity, focused on human experience (especially towards our new thinking we’re developing in our Productive by Nature workshops).
Some of his recent writings include:
What's next for 2026?
- 🍃 Collaborating with Ben on our next venture, Productive by Nature, a permaculture-first look at systems thinking and productivity.
- 💻 Shipping a series of workshops including Meta Work, the work of designing how you work.
- 📝 Getting back to writing about my thoughts more freely, and more frequently.
- 🎙️ Doing the next season of our podcast, Grief + Pizza.
- ❤️🩹 Being a supportive person for my friends and family.
- 🌮 Continuing to up my cooking game, and host more dinner parties.
- 👩🌾 Improving my gardening skills and growing more vegetables.
- 🍵 Health, fitness, sports, and strength training.
Read the full Year in Review here:
My 2025 Year in Review