Work, Care, and Wellbeing in 2025: A Better Boundaries Brief Year-End Reflection
I don’t know about you, but as the year winds down, I’m craving a little breathing room...more magic and celebration, with a little less work.
This final edition of 2025 is our annual Better Boundaries Brief wrap-up: the posts that sparked the most conversation, the quotes that resonated with me, the graphics that help tell the story, and the reader reflections that remind me why this work matters. I hope it feels less like a recap and more like a collective pause and moment for reflection.
As I close out Year 2 of the Better Boundaries Brief, I’m deeply grateful. Writing this newsletter continues to be a way to share what I’m learning and to imagine healthier, more human workplaces alongside you. To everyone who read, commented, shared, or replied this year: thank you. This community has truly filled my cup.
🧠 Top Editions
These are the top 5 editions of the Better Boundaries Brief this year, based on comments and interactions. All of this year's top editions are related to collective change and topics that are heavily affecting our families, communities, and our democracy.
Time is a Boundary: Autonomy, Flexibility, and the Future of Work Reclaiming time as power and protection
Boundaries, Democracy, and Well-Being: How Local News Shapes Civic Engagement and Health Why information access shapes collective health
What We Fund, We Normalize: On Boundaries, Boycotts, and Buying Power Economic choices as moral boundaries
Quiet Promotions: When More Work Benefits Them, Not You Invisible labor and unequal expectations
The Lines We Draw: Staying Safe, Informed, and Engaged in a Time of Resistance Navigating safety, truth, and civic responsibility
It's hard to say which edition was my absolute favorite this year - I've loved writing them all - but if I had to pick one, it would be Time is a Boundary: Autonomy, Flexibility, and the Future of Work. My personal runner-up would be What We Carry: Creating Trauma-Informed Workplaces that Care.
📊Favorite Graphics
Some of the insights this year were carried just as powerfully through visuals as through words. These are a few of the graphics that stopped me mid-scroll and helped tell the story.
McKinsey & Company, Psychological safety and the critical role of leadership development, in What We Carry: Creating Trauma-Informed Workplaces that Care.
Harvard Business Review, The Different Words We Use to Describe Male and Female Leaders, in Promoted Beyond Your Skillset? Why Leadership Training Is a Workplace Boundary Issue
Academy to Innovate HR, Job Dissatisfaction: A How-To-Prevent-It Guide for HR, in Why Organizational Audits Matter: Building Better Work from the Inside Out
Gallup, The Exit Journey: What Did the Organization Do to Intervene?, in Why I Built This: The Real Story Behind RESET, Rebellion, and Boundaries at Work
APA, Stress in America 2023, in Breaks, Boundaries, and a Good Laugh: What We Need More of at Work
💬Favorite Quotes
I can honestly say that I did not start 2025 thinking that grief, trauma, and caregiving would be such big themes, but they are. From the weight we carry as individuals to the challenges we are navigating as a collective, we are confronted with the ways that we grieve, heal, and care for each other. That's why I love the following quotes from the Better Boundaries Brief this year:
“There are only four kinds of people in the world–those who have been caregivers, those who are currently caregivers, those who will be caregivers, and those who will need caregivers.” Rosalynn Carter
“We bereaved are not alone. We belong to the largest company in all the world – the company of those who have known suffering.” Helen Keller, We Bereaved
“In 2025, the imperative for employers in the United States that seek to improve psychological well-being in the workplace is clear: to move beyond simply reacting to change and instead proactively cultivate work environments that prioritize well-being, embrace flexibility, champion inclusivity, and foster genuine alignment between leadership and the workforce.” Work in America 2025 (APA)
“A boycott is directed against a policy and the institutions which support that policy either actively or tacitly. Its aim is not to reject, but to bring about change.” John Berger
📚Favorite Resources
📃 The Joyful Rebellion Newsletter, The Dawn Lab
🧠How Leaders can Build Psychological Safety at Work, Center for Creative Leadership
🧰TOOLKIT: Trauma-Informed Workplaces, Campaign for Trauma-Informed Policy and Practice
🏢 Toxic Workplace Cultures Hurt Workers and Company Profits, SHRM
🗣️Reader Comments (edition in parentheses)
"This is excellent! I'm lucky enough to have local news, and I stay away from cable news almost entirely and highly recommend. You gave so much terrific information here!" Coreen Tossona (Boundaries, Democracy, and Well-Being: How Local News Shapes Civic Engagement and Health)
"A very important topic that deserves more conversations. Great piece!" Tanya Jules, DrPH, MPH (When Grief Comes to Work: The Limits of Bereavement Leave and Why Boundaries Matter)
"Such an important point. We ask so many managers to lead without ever giving them the tools to do it well, and then wonder why trust or morale start to break down. It’s not about bad intent; it’s about missing support. Leadership is a skill, and when we invest in helping people build it, everyone benefits: the manager, their team, and the culture." Ashley Fina (Promoted Beyond Your Skillset? Why Leadership Training Is a Workplace Boundary Issue)
"I experienced severe trauma in the workplace … people hear bits and pieces of the story and truly cannot believe what they are hearing. I would love to share my story in hopes that it could help even one person…" Kelley Wynn (What We Carry: Creating Trauma-Informed Workplaces that Care)
"The lack of protections for outdoor workers due to both claims of deferring to local control while also being preempted and denying climate change is such a policy fail. Thanks for tying all these issues together." Christie Bruner (Hot Weather, Health Equity, and the Boundaries We Need)
💭Closing Thoughts
I’ll be spending the next few weeks reflecting, resting, and dreaming into what 2026 might hold, all while practicing the same boundaries I write about here.
If there’s a theme, question, or workplace challenge you’d love to explore together next year, I’d love to hear from you. Send me a message or comment below.
Until then: say yes to yourself. And if you’d like to stay connected, you can learn more about my work in workplace wellbeing, training, and technical assistance below.