The things I have seen…
I think we would all concur that this has been a heck of a year. A year that has tested every fibre of what it means to run a business in New Zealand. A year that has stretched leadership teams, challenged assumptions, and asked more of people than they thought they had to give.
This year I have seen tears shed from those sitting across from me at meeting room tables. Not weakness, but the kind of tears that come when the load has been carried for far too long and the pressure needs to find a release. Tears that come from caring deeply.
I have seen people pushed to absolute breaking point.
I have seen pain, genuine moments of compassion and moments where it all felt too big, too relentless.
I have heard voices of despair and frustration. The quiet kind and the loud kind. I have watched overwhelm roll through organisations like a tide, pulling even the strongest into it.
Robert H. Schuller once said, “Tough times never last, but tough people do.” This year has been a masterclass in building tough people; in discovering strength that you just don’t find in a good year.
And while this year brought all of this, it also brought glimmers of gold.
This year I have seen teams step up like never before. I have watched people band together with a shared determination, choosing grit over giving up. I have seen the hustle - the real kind, the kind that’s about survival, pride, and refusing to let the wheels fall off.
I have seen extreme ownership and an absolute commitment togetting out the other side alive, intact, and better.
This year I have seen sacrifice. The kind that isn’t talked about publicly, the late nights, the personal money tipped into the business to keep people employed, the quiet decisions made to ensure others could keep going.
I have seen a depth of grit and personal resilience that most people never get pushed far enough to even discover. Depths that no one thought existed until they had no choice but to dig that deep.
I have seen absolute humanity and vulnerability in leadership teams. Real conversations. Real honesty. Walls down. I never take for granted that I get to be a sounding board, a shoulder, a safe place. The raw and honest conversations that have taken place this year have strengthened teams in ways that normal conditions never could. These bonds will serve as a competitive advantage as we look ahead.
I have seen innovation. Businesses stepping into tough times with a mindset of “we must get smarter.” Rather than relying on how things have always been done, I have watched leaders build new systems, new approaches, and new competitive advantages. Hard times force better thinking, and I’ve seen alot of better thinking.
I have seen courage. Courage to take on new opportunities even when the market felt shaky. Courage to invest, to develop, to keep moving. Courage to believe there is something worth pushing towards.
And now, as the year comes to a close, and as the economists cautiously suggest that recovery is here (albeit rocky, uneven, and still demanding), I see something else emerging.
I see gratefulness.
Gratefulness for the lessons.
For the people who stood shoulder-to-shoulder.
For the grit that was built.
For the resilience that now exists where it didn’t before.
It’s been a heck of a year.
But we are still here.
And there is strength in that.
Nikita Tomlinson
