Two Values, One Clear Path: How to End the Year with What Matters Most

2 days ago
3 min read

By Ginger Houghton, LMSW

December always feels like both a mirror and a doorway. The lights go up, the world slows down (barely), and we start to take stock — of our work, our relationships, our hearts. We tally what we did, what we didn’t, and the lessons that landed like lightning bolts.

For me, 2025 has been one of those years that brings you to your knees — hard in business, harder personally. In May, my family faced a health crisis with one of my kids, and when your child isn’t okay, nothing else matters. I stepped away from work to focus where it mattered most, and for the first time, my leadership became about letting go.

Here’s the humbling truth: when I stepped back, everything didn’t fall apart — it actually got better. The systems, the trust, the shared leadership we’d been building for years finally had room to breathe. The team stepped up. Our nonprofit partner, Serenity Oaks Equine Sanctuary, flourished. Our impact grew.

It turns out, I wasn’t the lynchpin. I was the bottleneck.

And realizing that? Whew. It’ll shake you. Because once you see it, you can’t unsee it — but fixing it isn’t as simple as saying, “I’ll just do less.” You can’t stop being the bottleneck if you keep leading the same way.

Real change means leading differently, not just working differently.

That realization cracked something open in me. I started asking what actually drives sustainable, soul-level growth — the kind that shows up in calm confidence and culture, not just numbers. And what I found was this: we can’t move toward everything at once.

I used to live by a laundry list of values — service, creativity, courage, connection, family, learning, joy — all noble, all exhausting. Living by twelve values is like trying to lead twelve companies at once. Nobody wins.

Then, through Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), I learned something that stopped me in my tracks: we can really only move toward one or two values at a time. Two. That’s it.

It sounds simple, but it’s harder than you’d think. The moment you choose, you realize how much of your identity is tangled up in trying to be all the things. But the truth is, two values — the right two — change everything. They give you clarity, direction, and peace.

In June, in the quiet of my forced sabbatical, I asked myself: What matters most right now?

The answer came easily — presence and trust.

Presence meant being fully with my family — no divided attention, no half-listening while checking Slack. Trust meant believing my team could not only handle things but handle them beautifully. And they did.

Our business didn’t just survive; it flourished. Staff found new autonomy. Serenity Oaks thrived. Our programs expanded, and our shared mission deepened. All because I stopped trying to do it all and started living from two clear, steady values.

That’s the paradox of reflection and renewal: when you let go of what’s extra, what’s essential grows stronger.

So as you close this year, I invite you to do the same. Write down ten values that matter to you — the ones that tug at your heart — then circle two. The two that feel most alive for this season of your life.

Ask yourself: If I led, loved, and decided from just these two, what might change?

Because reflection alone doesn’t create growth — alignment does. Gratitude gives us perspective, but clarity gives us freedom.

I’m walking into the new year with those same two values — presence and trust — tattooed invisibly on my heart. They’re my compass for leading my company, my family, and myself.

We don’t become unstoppable by doing more.

We become unstoppable by doing what matters — on purpose, with heart wide open.

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