What I'm Giving Away This Year (And Why)
It has been on my heart for many years to write, but for one reason or another I felt stuck. I couldn’t bring myself to simply sit down at the computer and pour out my thoughts. I would write down ideas and topics that I could write about, but then they would get lost and fall to the bottom of my notes app.
But this year is different.
For the last few years, inspired by my friend Paul, I have chosen a word of the year. At first, I didn’t place much emphasis on the meaning behind the word. But often, the word I chose would show up in text or media. Maybe it was because I was searching for it, or really wanting this word to be real in my life. But it never truly was. That is, until 2025.
In 2025, I didn’t choose my word right away. The word came to me and was affirmed while I was in my first therapy session in five years. My therapist asked, “What do you hoped to get out of therapy?” I started to cry and said, “I just want to feel joy.” Joy became my word of 2025. This time, the word held an immense amount of meaning to me. The word came to me; I didn’t go to it.
Throughout the remainder of the year, I worked on myself. Before finally opening up, I hadn’t realized I had been suffering from depression (possibly postpartum depression) and, most importantly, that I had been suffering from anxiety nearly my entire life. With the tools given to me by my therapist and the work I put into it, I did it. It didn’t take long before I finally felt joy. My depression and anxiety levels decreased, and my therapist graduated me from therapy.
(For those reading this, I don’t want to imply that I’m “cured,” because these are conditions that require maintenance and evolve with life circumstances.)
But this is not about how I overcame that chapter of my life or why I experienced depression and anxiety in the first place. This is about the work of this year—2026. This is a brief introduction to who I am, and the chapters ahead of me, not behind me.
Hi! My name is Ashleigh. I am an educator, counselor, and coach—also a mother, a wife, and a friend. I have worked at colleges and universities for over 15 years now. (I cannot believe I can actually say that. You know us millennials—always in denial about our age.) I earned a Master of Arts in Education with a specialization in Counseling and Guidance and an emphasis in Higher Education and Student Affairs.
I’m not going to share my entire résumé here. We don’t have time for that. But I would like to take the time to shout out a dear friend of mine, Ashleigh. (No, that’s not a typo—we share the same name.) Ashleigh is the owner of What She’s Worth and my personal career coach. Yes, counselors and coaches have their own counselors and coaches. I love all her products and services, but one of my favorites is her “you should see my resume” sticker.
The point of sharing my years of experience and my credentials is to highlight that I am more than qualified to offer something to you. Yes, you. I have spent a significant part of my career teaching college students how to be successful academically, guiding students and career-changing professional clients through their career journeys, and—perhaps the biggest, most magical thing I have done—helping students and clients find their purpose. Now I want to share my knowledge, my experiences, my voice, and my presence with you.
So this is the beginning of this chapter. And the word of this year…
Give.
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Book recommendations and resources:
The Book of Joy: Lasting Happiness in a Changing World by Dalai Lama, Desmond Tutu, and Douglas Carlton Abrams