Happy New Year: This Is Enough to Start!

The beginning of a new year often comes with pressure to change everything at once. In this solo episode of She Shines, we pause instead.

This conversation is a gentle reset. No resolutions. No rush. Just an honest reflection on what the last year held, what you’re ready to leave behind, and how you want to show up moving forward.

If you’ve been feeling behind, overwhelmed, or unsure of your next step, this episode is a reminder that you don’t need to reinvent yourself to begin again. You are allowed to start where you are, take steady steps, and let this year unfold with intention.

Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:21

Well, hello there. Welcome back to She Shines. Happy New Year. And yes, this is the second week of January. And but this is the first time that I have been with you in the new year. Yes, it is. I'm solo today. And for those of you that are listening for the very first time, I'm Karen, Coach KG Gilliam, host of She Shines with Coach KG. And I'm so glad you're here. Hopefully, whether you found it on your own or whether you were referred to the program by a friend, family member, whoever, thank them because this is where you are going to get some empowerment, some encouragement. You are going to be maximized to be the very best of yourself. Be authentically you. And I'm coming on here today just because I just I just need to talk to you. So I've got the rest of my coffee right here in front of me. You go ahead and grab your favorite beverage. And you don't have to worry about taking notes. You don't have to worry about taking notes today unless you want to. You and I, before everything really gets going for 2026. My mantra for this year is get it fixed in 2026. So, and let me introduce myself for those of you that do not know me. I am Karen Coach KG Gilliam. I am a transformational coach. I am a published author of a book called Queen Warrior Crown Bound, where I share the story of being my husband's caregiver during his illness, and uh he passed away in July of 2021. I am also a mother of three adult children and mom to 12 grand sugars and one and a half, even more than half, one and three-quarters. Great grandsugars, and I have one that will be here in March. So yeah, we're three-quarters of the way. What do what does Coach KG like to do? Well, I I really do like a lot of things. I love to cook, and with the cooking, you know, comes eating. So I can be a foodie. I love to travel. I love trivia. I love playing games. Um, I love sports. Oh yes, oh yes, I'm all into the playoffs for football. I'm into basketball. Uh my I have grandsons that play basketball currently, one overseas on an Air Force team, one in a college down in uh Southern Oregon, and one in high school that will graduate come this June. So I am not the quiet spectator of sports. No, I'm not. No, I'm not. And I don't apologize for it. So, but you know, that's that's just a little bit about me. I love the shop. As a matter of fact, let's go back to what I said about travel. I was supposed to be in Arizona, it was colder in Arizona than it is here in the Pacific Northwest. So I said, why should I go? So I cancel my trip for later this year. And um I just I need some warmth. And you know that let me tell you, I thought about why I was taking that trip. I needed a reset. How about you? Do you need a reset? So that's what we're gonna talk about today is a sort of a reset. I I don't really have a specific agenda, but let's just keep in mind that with this new year, it is a time to reset. So there is hope in resetting, yes, it is, but there's also pressure, pressure to be different, pressure to be better, clearer, and that reset should get you further along than where you are right now. So for today, I don't want to talk about resolutions, I don't believe in them, to be honest with you, and I don't have a five-step plan of becoming a whole new version of yourself. I just want this to be a reset. And the latter part of today's episode, I'm gonna share some good news with you so you want to stand by, okay? Take a breath. Deep breath in and then out. This is a reminder that you don't need to sprint into this year to make it meaningful. I just want you, whether you're driving, walking, working out, folding laundry, let this be a background for the moment. You don't have to take notes, I said that before, and you don't have to figure anything out right now. Just be here. Just be here with me. All right? As this year's starting to turn with each day, we know how fast it can go. I always notice how quickly we're expected to move on. And we closed that door on 2025 a few days ago, and immediately we ask, okay, what's next? What's next? What am I doing now? What should I be doing? Who am I becoming? All you know, all the questions. But before we even do that, okay, I think that it matters to look back gently, not to relive everything and not to judge ourselves, not to be very hard on ourselves. I just want to acknowledge. I just want to acknowledge that we lived a whole year. Yes, we did. There were some moments in 2025, I'm sure you want to forget. But there were some moments that stretched us. I know I was stretched. I mean, look look at what I did. I started a podcast, I also increased my client base. So I stretched in 2025. And just as I do with my clients, I'm doing with you right now. Every time I meet with a client, the first thing we talk about is what was your win? W-I-N, what was your win since the last time we spoke? Now, I get varied answers on that. And sometimes I I don't I don't think I had a win. And I just stayed quiet because I don't care how small it is, it's a win. And if you say, Oh, I just da da da da da da da, it's a win. So let's think about those small wins that we had in twenty twenty five. We had quiet growth. Times we showed up even when no one noticed. And if you can, think of just one thing that last year taught you. You had to have some teaching moments in 2025. Because you those teaching moments you're going to carry into 2026. I didn't ask for ten. I didn't ask for five. I said one thing that taught choose something in 2025. Now, remember, you can take notes if you want to, but you know, this is just you and I. You and I together today to talk about some things and to get reset. All right, now let's go back to what might you have learned or you were taught in twenty twenty five. Maybe it was patience. Hmm. Or boundaries. How about letting go and letting God? How strong you actually are. And maybe it taught you something you didn't want to learn, but you need it to. Whatever it is, my friends, you don't need to label it good or bad. Did you hear me? You don't need to label it good or bad. Just let it be true. Let it be true. See, if we if we put a label on it, if it's good, I know where our minds go. Oh, it was good last year. Oh, that means I'm gonna have to keep it up this year. Or if we put bad on it, oh, am I glad that's over, but what's gonna happen this year? See, I don't want you to put a label on it. I just want whatever you were taught in 2025 to be true. And then I want you to think of one thing you're ready to leave behind in 2025. You you didn't even bring it over in 2026. Just one. Don't get mad about it. Don't get embarrassed about it. It was something that you just needed to leave behind. You don't even have to explain it. Stop doubting yourself. You know what? I would say, and I believe, you are better off than everyone else that is over-explaining what happened, blaming other people, other things, and you just simply say this happened, and it will stay in 2025. You don't even have to announce it. Don't, don't, don't go tell anybody. It's between you and God. You know, and I think I may have shared this with you on another solo episode. Um, I do know I have shared this with a few of my clients because it was shared with me by my coach. And I'm gonna share it again because I think it's very appropriate for today with the reset thing. Okay. So my coach, she had a way of saying, work as if it all depends on you, because it does, but pray because it all depends on God, and it does too, and whatever you feel that you need to leave in 2025 or you need to reset, she had me create what's called the God can. And she told me just to get a can, any kind of can, where I could put a small slit in it, but you're not going to take out what you put in it. And I even labeled it God can. And on post-it notes, whenever I felt like I needed to let go of some things, I would write it down. And I'd fold it up and put it in the God can. And then I continued to go on working as if it depended on me, but praying as if it all depended on God. In both ways, it does. So I encourage you, if this would help you, once you put it in the God can, you cannot take it back. That's why you only have a small slit just to get that post-it note down in there. Because you can't take it back, you leave it in there because God can. All right, okay, now also don't make any dramatic promises. Especially if it's promises you can't keep. You know, when you give your word, your word is your bond. So you don't have to make any announcements, you don't have to make promises. Just decide very quietly. I don't need to carry this with me anymore. And I put it in the God can. See, the the truth is, a new year doesn't require a new you. Let me let me say that again because I want this to sink in, okay? A new year doesn't require a new you. I know it sounds, you know, I've I've I've participated in, you know, new year, new you, you know, you you know what I'm talking about. I I don't have to drum up all those little sayings. But I know it's the idea sounds exciting, but it also can be exhausting. Coach KG What? Oh, you know, positivity is one of my superpowers, and I'm being positive right now. This is a reset. See, when we think we have to become a new you, I got news for you. The you that you're looking for is already there. And if you're not 100% happy with the you that you are, it might be that you haven't discovered what I'm calling in 2026 a new project. And that you'll hear more about because I this is not what today is for, but I'll just mention it to put a little bug in your ear. It's called Essence Excellence. See, you you you heard me talk about strength finders and discovering your strengths and all of that. But in my time of working to see how I can be a better facilitator in what I do as a coach, I realized before people can discover their strengths, they have to discover who they are. And I'm not talking a personality test. But I'm gonna leave that right there. Essence, excellence, it will be a prerequisite to strength finder. And you'll hear more about that later. Essence, of course, is a synonym for spirit. Excellence is who we are to be. Now don't misunderstand that excellence means perfection. We're not perfect, we never will be. But excellence is top-level performance. Okay? All right. I'm sorry. I know. I got I I started to go down that rabbit hole. So let me come on out. Let me come on out. All right. The you that you are right now is what and who you begin with. But I truly believe you are already equipped with everything that you need in this reset. You might need a little help in the discovery area, but I can promise you the you that you are, the authentic you, is already there. All right. Now, I believe most of us don't need reinvention. We need trust. We need steadiness. We need permission to move forward without tearing ourselves apart first. I used to do this little activity with my clients where I would ask them, what do you like about yourself? And on several occasions, they would hem and haw about trying to come up with an answer. Basically trying to come up with an answer. And then I said, okay, let me ask you this. What do you not like about yourself? Oh my goodness, the pen and the paper were just going. And you know what? I was the same way. Because that same, those same questions were posed to me. And I couldn't come up at first with nothing I liked about myself. But I named everything that I did. And what you focus on magnifies. But again, we're not talking about reinvention. We're talking about trust, trusting in yourself, changing the focus. This year doesn't have to be about becoming someone else. Even if you worked with me, you're not going to become someone else. We're going to discover the authentic you. The you that is already there is just buried right now. It can be about showing up as yourself more fully, more honestly, more consistently. Even on days when motivation is low, even when clarity hasn't arrived yet. You really, especially those times. And we all have those times. So one thing I'm choosing this year is intention over speed. Intention over speed is not how fast I can get it done. It is that I am aligned and intentionally doing what I want to do. So, do you want to join me? It's not about doing everything all at once. It is not about you chasing every opportunity. I call that SOLS Shiny Object Syndrome. You know, something looks better than what you already have or what you are currently doing. So you jump ship and go over to another and then find out, hmm, this is one, this wasn't what I thought it was. So this is about taking the next step when it shows up, and taking the next one after that. It is about intention, and you are enough. This is about reset, everybody. Instead of resolutions, I like intentions. With intentions, there's a checklist. And you know how we like to check things off and have that sense of accomplishment. It's a way of being. So you have a couple of ways how you can do that. You could send your word to me at coachk five seven at gmail dot com. Or you could join the She Shines Group on Facebook and share it there. Either one of those two ways. The She Shines Group, and you could just do a post, Coach KG, I listened to your solo episode for the new year, and here's my word for 2026. Or coachkg57 at gmail dot com. You can email it to me. All right. Okay. Now with what you want to achieve, how do you want to feel as you live it? Would you like to be calm? Would you like to have courage? Clarity? How about ease or truth? There's no right answer. The answer you have is right for you. Did you hear what I said? There is no right answer. But the answer you have and you desire is right for you. And if it stops fitting you, you have permission, even though you don't need it, but you have permission to change it. Change the word. It's no longer suiting you. Change it. This also isn't a contract with a whole bunch of legalese and this is a compass. It's direction. And just like a compass that points us to the north, the south, the east, and the west, you can make up the parameters of the direction you want to go in. How about that? Oh my gosh. Well, I'm I'm I'm I'm gonna say a few more things and then I'm gonna get into the fun stuff because I didn't really want this to be too long. I just want to spend a little time with you in the new year before we get into some new interviews coming up and some new um projects that I'm working on. I already told you about Essence Excellence, and there's some other things that are coming up. Okay, so let me just wrap this up and then get into the fun stuff. How about that? I hope you're with me. If you're you're with me, I I can't see you, but I'm raising my hand, and I encourage you to raise your hand. Raise your hand. Now, let me tell you about raising your hand. I remember when I talked to high school students, and I would ask a question and they would raise their hand, and someone would do it like this. And if you can't see me, I've got it right here, level with my face. Like barely I want to raise my hand. And then you had some that might go a little above their head, but then you had those that were sold out, so they raised their hand to the fullest extent of their arm. How are you raising your hand? Are you sold out? Are you ready for this reset? Are you, I need to think about it. See, the thinking is good, but thinking also can be um negative because you can get into what I call analysis paralysis.

SPEAKER_01 33:57

Mm-hmm.

SPEAKER_00 34:00

And then if your hand is a little above your head, that means, okay, coach, I I hear you. I hear you. I've got my word. I'm ready for this reset. Are you all sold out and you know you're going to get it fixed in 2026? So if you're listening to this and feeling behind already, coach, it's March. If you're listening to this in March, I want you to hear this clearly. You are not late. January doesn't decide the entire year. You start from where you are. You don't need everything figured out right now. You just need to start. After the reset, just start. Some of the most impactful growth happens quietly. Long before it's visible to anyone else. Small steps count, small wins count, rest counts, starting again counts, and choosing yourself, even in small ways, counts more than you think. So as we move forward with She Shines with Coach K G this year, my hope is that this space continues to feel honest and grounding. A place where we talk about growth without pretending it's always pretty. Guests who share their stories so you can see that even though you see them in a different space now, were they always there? No. Where shining doesn't mean burning yourself out, but allowing your light to be steady and real, do not dim your light for anyone. And I thank you for being here at the beginning of this year with me. And if you take nothing else from this episode, let it be this. You don't have to rush, you don't have to prove anything. You are allowed to begin gently at your own pace. You are allowed to take the time into your day. Everything that you've heard, take it with you into your day. And watch what happens when we come back here next year in January 2027. All right, that's enough. That's enough of the reset. Uh, I the title of this episode is This Is Enough to Start. But now I want to get into some recognition and wow. You know, we started this July 3rd, my birthday of 2025, and I got, if you're in the group, the playback from one of the platforms I use, Buzz Sprout, to share the episode on different platforms. It gave me a playback. So I'm gonna share some things with you, and I'm also going to recognize some people. And wow, I'm just so excited. If we did this in six months' time, this year is going to be epic. All right, so let me share with you some things. First of all, three hundred and eight episodes were downloaded since we started in July. The top episodes was the trailer that I did on my birthday welcoming you to She Shines with Coach KG, and that has had thirty four downloads to date. The second top running episode was with my dear friend Maria Williams. Maria Elena Williams. That was recently from Guatemala. Guatemala, Guatemala to greatness. Maria Elena's American Path to date has 24 downloads. And the third is my associate producer sharing her story from survivor to thriver. A cancer survivor has 18 downloads. So let's give it up. Yeah. Thank you, thank you, thank you for downloading and sharing with others. I so appreciate that. And let's see, what else did I want to share with you? Uh we are we had 25 episodes in 2025. We are heard all over the world in 19 countries. The most popular country is the United States. We have reached ninety-nine cities in the United States. Vancouver, Washington, probably because I live here and I talk about it a lot, is the most popular city. Second is Stockholm, South Dakota. So shout out to my client and friend, Crisha Letty. She lives there, and Crisha is sharing it with a lot of people, but it is the second city in the United States that is the most popular. And then Dallas, Texas. And so I shout out all the people in Dallas, Texas. I have a few people in mine, and uh one is PD and Mary Gully, who is a uh guest on one of the episodes, and I'm sure so many more people that I don't know who you are, but I just shout out everybody in Dallas, Texas to be the third most popular city. Okay, what else? The top country? Brazil. Brazil, top country. I mean, United States is the most popular, but the top foreign country is Brazil. And that that's just a few of the stats um from the playback from Buzz Sprout. And as I mentioned, I I'm constantly talking about the podcast wherever I go. And last week I had a couple of doctors' appointments, and I had to do some lab work. So um there was a wonderful lady who um is a phlebotomist and she drew my blood, and she asked me what did I do, and I told her I was a transformational coach and that I hosted a podcast, and she wanted to know the name of the podcast, and I gave it to her. And because she was so excellent in drawing my blood, I barely felt the needle. I want to shout out Melissa at the Vancouver Clinic. Uh, I told her I would uh here in Vancouver, Washington, and give her a shout out. Welcome, Melissa. Stay with us, join us on the Facebook group, and so many others. Uh and I'm gonna start naming people, giving them a shout out. A big shout out to my associate producer, Tiffany Staten, who does an excellent job editing the podcast. She does the creative work, you know, the tiles that appear for each episode, and then tiles that I can share on social media. You already know the theme song. She wrote the lyrics and put it to the music that you hear before and after each episode. And if you ever want the full episode, um there is an episode where I introduced uh Essence, which is the name of our theme song, and you can get the whole um the whole song. Um so just so uh grateful. I am totally grateful to the guests who have appeared, shared their story, and uh everyone else who has listened in, referred, subscribed to She Shines, and we want to continue. We're gonna be bigger, better than we were in 2025, and I'm so excited. This this isn't work, even though there's a lot to be done. This isn't work because it's truly what I believe God called me to do. So I'm gonna wrap up now. Thank you for spending some time with me as we reset for 2026. This is enough to start. So you don't have to think about it anymore. Just get started. So this is Coach KG, Karen Gilliam, signing off, and we'll see you on the next episode. Take care.

SPEAKER_02 46:42

Will you do your light or let your spirit break free? You got power inside you, more than you can see. Time to realign, reclaim what's meant to be. Living just to