2025 - Wrapping Up the Year: (Just) 14 Lessons Learned, Leadership, & Gratitude

Just like any well‑seasoned Project practitioner, I always try to start with lessons learned. But the truth is, you can only apply lessons learned at the end of any good project initiative if you’ve taken the time to capture them. So as I close out 2025, I’m giving myself the same discipline I expect from any project team: a structured reflection on what I discovered about myself, my practice, and the environments I worked in. This becomes the frame I’ll carry into 2026.

One of the more unexpected lessons this year was realising that people you hold in high professional regard will not always extend the same professional courtesy you would naturally offer them. It’s disappointing, but it’s also clarifying. In many ways, it becomes the silver bullet you’ve perhaps dodged — saving both time and emotional‑energy units.

A few years ago, a fabulous GM, whom I deeply respect, taught me how to measure frustration (of process) by mapping emotional‑energy units to a tangible commercial outcome. I think of that often. It’s a powerful reminder that unnecessary effort spent on something that doesn’t serve the work, the team, or the outcome is effort wasted. That lesson translates directly into how we deliver projects and how we continue to improve user experiences for our customers, for whom we are delivering: invest energy where it matters, where it moves the needle, and where it creates value.

As the year comes to a close, I’ve had the privilege of working across several diverse and challenging client engagements. From an online meal‑delivery e‑commerce business undergoing a Salesforce implementation and website transformation, to a major telco operating under an ACCC enforceable undertaking with inordinate scrutiny, and most recently, a higher‑education institution embarking on a major four‑year strategic transformation centred on students and the people who support their journey and related ambitious goals.

Different industries, different pressures, different cultures — yet a consistent steel thread has run through every engagement. These are the lessons that shaped my year, strengthened my practice, and reminded me why I love the work I do, and what I will carry forward into 2026.

What This Year Reinforced

1. Use the Expertise You’ve Engaged

When organisations bring in project professionals, the value comes from listening to their advice, adopting the guardrails, and trusting the expertise you’ve invested in. If someone isn’t listening, the first step is self‑reflection — assessing how the message is being delivered and how it may be interpreted. But if you adjust your approach and there is still no traction, no behavioural shift, and no alignment, then a decision point arrives. You either persevere with clear boundaries, and where possible escalate for executive support, or you recognise it’s time to step away so someone ready to listen can take up your efforts.

2. Right Seat, Right Role - after reading Traction by Gino Wickman and reviewing the EOS theory, so many of the concepts, theories and frameworks made sense.

This year made it abundantly clear:

• Right person, right role

• Wrong person, right role

• Wrong person, wrong role

Capability alignment is everything. Delivery depends on it.

3. Know When You’re Backed — And When You’re Not

A strong sponsor changes the trajectory of a project. Knowing when you’re supported — and when you’re not — helps you decide when to lean in, when to escalate, and when to step out.

4. Governance Only Works If It’s Enforced

A framework alone means nothing. Governance must be implemented, mandated, and supported by clear accountability and consequences.

5. Integrity in Naming What Isn’t Working

When something isn’t right, you feel it. Integrity is calling it out early — even when it’s uncomfortable.

6. Courage to Call Out Major Risks

Sometimes raising a risk makes you unpopular. Sometimes it accelerates your exit. But it is always the right thing to do.

7. Making Uncomfortable Decisions

Leadership is not about avoiding discomfort. It’s about guiding people through the “why,” even when the journey is difficult.

8. Small Contributions Add Up

Even the smallest actions matter. In project delivery, the sum of all parts creates the whole — and every contribution moves the needle.

9. Ethics Above Everything

Every engagement, every task, every decision must be grounded in an ethical position. It’s the anchor that keeps delivery honest.

10. A Sponsor and Business Owner Cannot Be the Same Person

Triangulation matters. At minimum: Sponsor + Business Owner + Project Manager. Without this, objectivity and governance erode.

11. Don’t Take On Too Much at Once

Many organisations want to shift the dial quickly — before their foundational processes and capabilities are ready . You can’t think about renovating a house without first cleaning the backyard. Otherwise, you’ll spend all your time fixing the lights that should be BAU.

12. Decision Points Matter

Projects must regularly ask:

• Why are we doing this?

• Are we still aligned with the original objective?

• Do we continue, or do we put the tools down?

Stopping is sometimes the most strategic decision.

13. New Strengths Through New Opportunities

This year brought unexpected opportunities to provide deeper advisory services — including recommendations to an Executive Chairman. A reminder that people are always watching, and support often comes from the most humble and unexpected places.

13. The People Make the Work Worthwhile

The work I get to do — and love to do — is directly attributed to the people I’ve been privileged to work with. And yes, the occasional perfectly timed WhatsApp meme absolutely helps.

14. The Gratitude for Those Who Stay Connected

To those who check in, send a message, share a thought, or cheer me on across engagements — thank you. Your support matters more than you know.

And to the clever people who recognise when change is needed, who see problems worth solving, and who commit to uplift and transformation — I am consistently thankful.

A Personal Note - While this wrap‑up is professionally heavy, none of it is possible without my family. My husband, Matthew, and my two amazing daughters, Isabelle and Ava, are my grounding force. Their honesty, humour, and unwavering support give me the energy, reflection, and courage I need to do what I do.

Here’s to wrapping up 2025 with gratitude, a much‑needed break, and excitement for new opportunities to work with good people. A quick recharge now for an ambitious start to 2026 — and a 2 February implementation already on my release list.

All the Best for the Year Ahead - Let's Keep Talking.

If You’re Planning to Uplift, Transform, or Innovate

If you’re considering project management or business advisory support for your next idea or transformation, feel free to reach out:

• Send me a note via email - sarah@sarahverity.me

• Visit my website - sarahverity.com

• Engage me via - Two In The Hand Consulting — Business & Technology Advisory Services