Stop Treating Joy Like a Luxury: A New Year Reset

What if the most powerful New Year reset isn’t about doing more—but about finally letting yourself matter again?

In this short solo episode, Penny shares a surprising insight from a recent workshop that revealed just how many women are quietly carrying too much—while putting their own joy on hold.

If you’re the strong one, the caregiver, the helper, or the woman everyone depends on, this conversation is a gentle reminder that service doesn’t require self-sacrifice—and that joy isn’t a luxury.

This episode explores:

• Why so many women slip into survival mode without realizing it
• The difference between being selfless and being depleted
• How joy actually expands your capacity to serve
• Why support doesn’t have to feel heavy or serious

Journal Prompts Mentioned in the Episode

Take a few quiet moments with these questions:

• On a scale of 1–10, how important would it be for you to feel joy again?
• What would feeling more joy change for you right now?
• When was the last time you felt truly lit up—not productive or needed, just joyful?
• What were you doing, who were you with, and how did your body feel?
• What’s one small way you could invite a spark of that feeling back into your life this month?

As we step into a new year, this episode is your permission slip to stop waiting, stop carrying it all alone, and remember—gently—that you matter too.

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Transcript

Stop Treating Joy Like a Luxury: A New Year Reset

[00:00:33] Penny Fitzgerald: Happy New Year, my friend. I wanted to share something that surprised me this last week. It was in the very best possible way when I hosted a workshop called The Golden Week Reset. I had the content prepared, I had the plan, and then something happened. The women who showed up didn't need a workshop. They needed coaching.

They needed to talk. They needed to feel seen and heard. They needed someone to help them [00:01:00] untangle what they've been quietly carrying for a very long time. Here's what I noticed. Every single woman who showed up has a huge heart. She's dependable. She's the one people lean on. She's the caregiver, the helper, the fixer.

Strong one. And when something or someone important needs her, she steps right up without hesitation, which is beautiful, but also exhausting. And what broke my heart just a little, is this, so many women have gotten so used to putting themselves last, that it feels normal now. Their joy, it's optional. Their dreams, they'll get to them later, their business.

When 

Things calm down maybe. And over time, that turns into survival mode. One foot in front of the other, doing all the things, getting through the days. They're not miserable, but not lit up either. Somewhere [00:02:00] along the way, many of us learned that being good meant being selfless. But here's the thing, and I say this with so much love, martyrdom is not the same as service when you're depleted.

Exhausted and disconnected from yourself. Everything costs more energy and when you're joyful, when you're supported, when something lights you up again. You actually have more to give. You're more patient, you're more creative, you're more present. And guess what? You're also more fun to be around. 

I wanna offer you some simple journal prompts that might help. You can pause me, grab a notebook, or come back to this later, or grab these questions from the show notes. I first want you to jot down, On a scale of one to 10, how important would it be for you to feel joy again? What would that mean for you? When was the last time you felt truly lit up? Not [00:03:00] productive, not needed, but joyful? What were you doing? Who were you with, and how did your body feel? Then ask yourself, what's one small way you could invite a bit of that back into your life this month?

Not a huge overhaul, not a resolution, just a spark. If you're listening to this and you're realizing you've been doing it all alone, I want you to hear this. Clearly. You don't have to. Support, can look like fun and connection. It can look like a monthly check-in. It can look like community. It can look like coaching.

Sometimes the bravest thing we do is let ourselves be supported, and as we step into a new year, my wish for you is this. That you stop treating your joy like a luxury that you stop waiting until everyone else is okay, that you [00:04:00] remember gently, that you matter too. You are allowed to want more. You're allowed to feel good again, and you don't have to figure it out alone.

Cheers, my friend. Here's to finding your spark again.