Somewhere on the Road Between Burnout and Better
What last year took from me and what it quietly gave back
4 min read
Last year was hard.
It wasn’t a loud, get down and duck for cover kind of hard, but it was definitely not what I drew up for my 2025. It was a hard that just sort of crept in over time. Work started to feel heavier than it used to. Things that once gave me energy started to drain it. Even the few wins we had felt muted.
I found myself asking questions I hadn’t asked in a long time.
Do I still want to do this?
Is this still worth it?
Or am I just moving forward because I don’t know what else to do?
I’ve been running GoodFolks for close to ten years now, which still feels strange to say. For most of that time, it’s been tied pretty closely to how I see myself. The work, the responsibility, the pressure to keep things moving. It all gets tangled together.
Somewhere along the way, I think I started holding it a little too tightly. Like if I could just keep my hands on everything, I could keep it all steady and headed in the right direction.
Last year didn’t really give me a choice. I hit a point where I couldn’t carry it the same way anymore. Not because of some big moment or realization, just a slow awareness that something had to change. I had to step back and figure out what was actually mine to hold and what wasn’t.
That shift didn’t solve everything, but it gave me some space. Enough to breathe a little. Enough to realize that my worth isn’t tied to how work is going or how much I can keep spinning at once.
And if I’m being honest, I think I needed that more than I realized.
GoodFolks turned eight last week. It came and went pretty quietly. Just a normal Wednesday with all the usual chaos. That night, my girls sang happy birthday to GoodFolks, which was sweet and a little unexpected. It was one of those small moments that slows you down just enough to notice what’s right in front of you.
I found myself thinking back on the early days. Figuring things out as we went. Late nights. Projects that went really well and others that didn’t. Relationships that have lasted and some that haven’t. Seasons where everything felt like it was clicking and others where it felt like we were just trying to keep our heads above water.
It’s been a dusty road. And I mean that in a good way.
Building something over time changes you. It has a way of sanding down your edges and teaching you things you probably wouldn’t choose to learn on your own. Patience, consistency, how to keep showing up when you’re tired or not quite sure what’s next.
I don’t feel the same about the work as I did in year one. It’s not as new or exciting in the same way, but it feels more grounded now. Less about proving something and more about doing good work with people I respect. The people really are the whole thing. I hope I don’t forget that.
I’m not heading into this next season with some big plan or bold declaration. Just a clearer head, a steadier posture, and a lot more gratitude for what GoodFolks actually is instead of what I thought it needed to be.
I’m grateful for the work.
I’m grateful for the people.
I’m grateful that I’ve been able to keep this going, even through the harder seasons.
Year eight feels different, and I’m ready for what’s ahead.
And right now, that feels like enough.