Hey there Reader,
Why follow-through matters more than we think
Have you ever questioned the cost of not following through on the things you have set out to do?
This has become more important to me especially as we move through the Confident Woman workshop and explore how our values shape our vision.
We make commitments to ourselves all the time. We set intentions, create lists, imagine what we want our lives to look like. And yet, many of those things remain unfinished.
Not because we don’t care or lack ability, but because life gets busy, our energy fades, priorities shift, and we move on without ever consciously deciding what stays and what goes.
At the heart of this is values.
We all have them, whether we name them or not. Friendship, integrity, service, health, learning… they guide us quietly or loudly. And they don’t have to sound noble or impressive to count.
Values are simply the things that feel so deeply like you that not having them present would feel off.
For me, being of service has always mattered. It has shaped my work and how I show up in the world. But values aren’t fixed. They change as we age and as our lives evolve. And when they do, we need to stay aware of that shift.
Because when we don’t, we can find ourselves committing to things that once felt aligned, but no longer do. And that’s when life starts to feel heavy, demanding, and out of sync, as though we’re living out an older version of ourselves.
That’s why values matter so much. And it’s also why vision matters more than goals or resolutions.
Goals are pieces. Vision is the whole.
A vision asks: Who am I as a whole person, and how do I want my life to feel, look, and sound?
It’s the rhythm of your days, how you wake up, how you speak to yourself, how you care for your body, the energy you move through the world with.
Recently, I looked back at a journal from 2022. Inside was a long list of goals — practical, meaningful, ambitious.
Almost none of them were completed. ( Does this sound familiar?)
Surprisingly, I did not feel guilt, but I did feel curiosity. So I revisited that list and asked myself three simple questions:
- Why did this matter to me at the time?
- If I had completed it, what value would it have brought into my life?
- Does this still matter now or can I consciously let it go?
That third question was key.
Unfinished things carry weight. A quiet disappointment, lingering self-doubt, the feeling that maybe life delivers to others but not to us. As long as those lists remain unexamined, they sit in the background, draining energy.
There is real freedom in saying, This no longer matters, and I’m letting it go.
And real power in saying, This matters, and I’m choosing to complete it.
As I clarify my vision this year, I’m being more intentional about what I commit to and asking whether it aligns with who I am now, fit the season I’m in, and truly contributes to the life I want to live.
I also revisited my vision board, not to judge it, but to understand it. Was there flow or a sense of connection, or was I simply collecting things that felt exciting at the time? When values, vision, and goals align, momentum builds. Effort feels meaningful instead of draining.
And this brings me to something more personal.
Recently, I found out, on my own, that a dear friend had passed away. We hadn’t been in contact for some time, and it’s likely their family wouldn’t have known how to reach me. There was no direct contact, just the sudden realization that they were gone.
There’s no judgment here. Only sadness. And a clear reminder of how fragile time is.
It brought home something important: it’s not enough to say people matter. Connection isn’t just an intention, it’s an action. The phone call. The note. The effort to stay connected.
This experience made it painfully clear that some forms of non–follow-through have consequences we cannot go back and fix or repair. Some losses are permanent. Some opportunities close without warning.
I was reminded of the idea that in life we juggle rubber balls and glass balls. Work, chores, obligations, those are rubber. When dropped, they bounce. But relationships and connection are glass. When they fall, they can crack or shatter.
That experience changed how I look at my unfinished lists. It made me ask not just what I haven’t completed, but what truly matters. Because when it comes to the glass balls in our lives, waiting comes at a cost.
A few questions to reflect on:
- What unfinished commitments are quietly weighing on you right now?
- Which still align with your values and which no longer do?
- What would feel more freeing: recommitting, or consciously letting go?
- If you imagined an ideal day in your life, what would it look and feel like?
A simple tool:
Set aside 20 quiet minutes this week. Choose one unfinished item. Walk it through the three questions above. Clarity doesn’t come from fixing everything — it comes from honest attention.
If you’d like support clarifying your values, vision, and next steps, this is exactly the work I do with my clients. You don’t have to sort it out alone.
A Wish for You.
February is often thought of as the month of love and romance, but you don’t have to be in a relationship to give or receive love. It isn’t limited to one person or one day. So allow yourself to experience it fully, enjoy it in the ways that feel right to you, let February be a month of love… and yes, buy yourself the flowers. 🌷
With love,
Marianne
Staying Connected
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