The Reflect-’mas Calendar: 24 Small Pauses That Make You a Better Leader this Christmas

A science-backed Christmas reflection calendar for real leadership insight 

December is famous for two things: exhaustion and evaluation. Leaders are wrapping up the year, teams are racing toward deadlines, and HR is deep in calibration, reviews and planning for the year ahead. Unsurprisingly, the season creates a strange paradox: we need our clearest thinking right at the moment when our brains are the most overloaded. 

That’s exactly why reflection matters,  not as a soft luxury, but as a hard strategic tool. 

For years, our original reflection article has been one of our most widely read pieces. But as leadership realities evolve, so does the science. This year, we’re building on that foundation and giving it a festive twist: a 24-day Reflect-’mas Calendar grounded in psychological and neurological research. 

Before we get to the activities, here’s how reflection really works

How Reflection Works, the Missing Piece Most Leaders Overlook

In our action-driven world, where back-to-back meetings are praised and relentless activity is mistaken for progress, the art of reflection is often undervalued. Yet reflection is not passive. It is an active cognitive process that helps the brain:

• encode experiences

• organise information

• surface insights

• strengthen future decision-making

Reflection works because it helps your mind shift from doing to meaning-making. But here’s the challenge: despite its benefits, reflection is surprisingly hard to integrate.

The Challenge: Why We Struggle to Reflect

Many leaders struggle to make reflection a habit because:

• Daily schedules are overloaded, leaving little time for quiet thought

• Pausing feels “unproductive”, even though science says otherwise

• It requires honesty, which can feel uncomfortable

• It isn’t habitual yet, so it’s easy to forget

• People don’t know how to reflect effectively, so early attempts feel unrewarding

• Reflection can stir emotions, causing avoidance

Overcoming these hurdles doesn’t require big life changes. It requires small, deliberate pauses, woven into existing routines, exactly what the Reflect-’mas Calendar provides.

Why Reflection Matters: Three Evidence-Backed Pathways to Clearer Thinking

Reflection is not about slowing down for the sake of slowing down. It’s about creating the mental conditions your brain needs to process, integrate and generate insight.

Below are three well-established psychological and neurological pathways that demonstrate why reflection is so powerful. Our 24-day Reflect-’mas Calendar is based on these.

1. Lightly Occupying the Brain Helps Solve Complex Problems

When you step away from a high-load task and engage in something simple, cooking, gardening, walking, your subconscious continues working. Research on incubation shows that low-demand activities improve problem-solving and creativity [1]. Walking, in particular, has been shown to boost divergent thinking by up to 60% [2].

Why this matters for leaders: many leadership challenges are “ill-structured” ,ambiguous, relational, multi-layered. They benefit from mental distance, not relentless effort.

2. Reflection Can Improve Performance More Than Extra Practice

A well-known study on the learning-by-thinking effect found that workers who spent just 15 minutes reflecting at the end of each day improved performance by 23% compared to those who continued practising without reflection [3].

Reflection strengthens learning, deepens insight and accelerates growth.

Why this matters for leaders: skill development isn’t just about exposure, it’s about absorption.

Why this matters for leaders: skill development isn’t just about exposure — it’s about absorption. 

3. Green Spaces Restore Cognitive Resources

Spending time in nature reduces stress, restores attention, and improves mental clarity. Studies show that natural environments lower cortisol and activate the parasympathetic nervous system [4]. One study found that a 90-minute walk in nature significantly reduced rumination and decreased neural activity in regions linked to negative thought loops [5].

Why this matters for leaders: your ability to make wise, long-term decisions depends on mental clarity, not cognitive overload.

The 24-Day Reflect-’mas Calendar

These three pathways: green-space restoration, learning-by-thinking, and cognitive incubation, all point to the same truth:

You think better when you stop trying so hard to think.

That’s the essence of the Reflect-’mas Calendar: 24 small practices designed not to add pressure to your December, but to gently lift it, creating the mental space needed for insight, clarity and better leadership decisions.

Each day pairs a simple activity with the research that underpins why it works. Some are thoughtful, some practical, and a few intentionally humorous, because the science supports laughter too [6].

Day 1 — Green(ery) Commute 

Walk through a park or leafy street on your way to work.  

→ Linked to: Stress reduction & attentional restoration  

Day 2 — Two-Minute Wrap-Up 

Write: What happened today? What did I learn? What’s next?  

→ Linked to: Learning-by-thinking effect  

Day 3 — Stir & Solve 

Cook something simple and let a difficult problem “simmer” in the background.  

→ Linked to: Cognitive incubation  

Day 4 — Tread & Trend 

Take a 10–15 minute walk and voice-note ideas.  

→ Linked to: Walking-induced creativity 

Day 5 — Forest-Bathing Lite 

Take a slow walk through a wooded spot — no phone.  

→ Linked to: Parasympathetic activation & stress recovery  

Day 6 — Quiet-Time Recall 

After reading something important, sit quietly for 10 minutes.  

→ Linked to: Wakeful rest & memory consolidation  

Day 7 — Craft & Calm 

Build something small with Lego or simple building blocks.

→ Linked to: Low-load absorption & incubation  

Day 8 — Desk Declutter Reset 

Tidy your workspace for 10 minutes, then return to a stuck project. 

→ Linked to: Environmental clarity improves cognitive clarity 

Day 9 — Green 1:1 Walk 

Have a walking catch-up with a colleague.  

→ Linked to: Nature + social connection boosts wellbeing

Day 10 — Micro-Break Bingo 

Take three 90-second resets throughout the day.  

→ Linked to: Micro-break research on fatigue reduction  

Day 11 — Shared Meal & Chat 

Eat with a friend, partner or colleague.  

→ Linked to: Shared meals increase wellbeing + social bonding

Day 12 — The “One Thing” Reflection 

Pick one leadership behaviour to dial up in 2026 and take 5min to reflect on it today.  

→ Linked to: Reflection → performance improvement  

Day 13 — Rumination Reducer Walk 

Go for an evening walk when overthinking strikes.  

→ Linked to: Nature reduces rumination  

Day 14 — Pre-Brainstorm Walk 

A 15-minute walk before a creative meeting.  

→ Linked to: Creativity boost from walking  

Day 15 — Silent Commute 

No podcasts, no calls — allow the mind to wander.  

→ Linked to: Default mode network activation for insight  

Day 16 — Cook & Connect 

Cook with someone and reflect together on a win from this year.  

→ Linked to: Social connection + light mental activity

Day 17 — Festive “Stop-Doing” List 

Choose one draining habit to pause next year.  

→ Linked to: Cognitive load reduction improves performance

Day 18 — Tree-Side Journalling 

Sit near a plant or tree and write for 10 minutes.  

→ Linked to: Nature-induced calm + journalling clarity  

Day 19 — Inbox Walk-Off 

Stuck on an email? Walk one block and try again.  

→ Linked to: Incubation during brief movement

Day 20 — Craft + Draft 

Do something with your hands, then return to your work with fresh eyes.  

→ Linked to: Subconscious problem-solving  

Day 21 — Wakeful Rest Window 

Reflect after a meeting or training before diving into tasks.  

→ Linked to: Memory consolidation  

Day 22 — Green Gratitude 

In a green space, list three people who helped you grow this year.  

→ Linked to: Gratitude + nature = wellbeing boost  

Day 23 — “Elf on the Shelf” Laugh Break 

Watch a funny clip with your team.  

→ Linked to: Laughter reduces stress & promotes bonding  

Day 24 — Candle-Lit Year-End Reflection 

Ask: “What will future-me thank me for in 12 months?”  

→ Linked to: Intentional reflection drives behaviour change  

A Better Ending to the Year and a Better Start to the Next 

As the year winds down, the temptation is always to squeeze in one more task, one more meeting, one more plan. But the real magic of December isn’t found in productivity, it’s found in perspective. 

These 24 small pauses are not distractions from leadership. They’re part of it. They help you see more clearly, decide more wisely, and show up more fully for the people who depend on you. 

So let this month be less about rushing to the finish line and more about arriving with intention.  Less noise. More noticing.  Less pressure. More presence.  Less doing. More being. 

Here’s to a December that restores you, and a new year that benefits from the leader you become when you take the time to think. 

Read our popular blog: https://www.esendia.com/post/3-reasons-why-reflection-is-the-secret-to-greater-success

References

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[2] Oppezzo, M. & Schwartz, D.L. (2014). Give your ideas some legs: The positive effect of walking on creative thinking. Journal of Experimental Psychology: Learning, Memory, and Cognition, 40(4), 1142–1152.https://doi.org/10.1037/a0036577

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