Stop. Breathe. Read This Before You Step Into the New Year.

Domenic Nesci
Dec 29, 2025
3 min read

If you’re reading this, I hope you’re somewhere comfortable.

Maybe you’re still in scrubs.

Maybe you’re finally on annual leave.

Maybe you’re just tired in that deep way only healthcare workers understand.

Before we talk goals, money, property, or plans for the year ahead, I want to offer something different.

Permission to stop.

To breathe.And to actually receive the rest you’ve earned.

The work you do matters.

The people you care for could not do life without you.

Australia’s healthcare system would not function without you.

This quiet space between one year closing and another beginning is rare. It is not meant for hustle or pressure. It is meant for clarity.

Not planning.

Not optimisation.

Just space.

Just you.

Why Rest Matters (Especially for Financial Decisions)

Every credible study on decision-making points to the same conclusion.

We think more clearly when we are rested.

When the nervous system is regulated, the brain shifts out of survival mode. That is when it becomes capable of long-term thinking. This includes decisions about money, career direction, property, and wealth building.

Research in behavioural psychology shows that fatigue narrows perspective, while rest improves judgment and future planning.

This is why rest is not indulgent. It is functional.

Rest sharpens clarity.

Clarity shapes direction.

Direction supports better financial choices.

So if you feel the urge to plan everything right now, pause. Give yourself permission to recharge first. Strategy works better when energy returns.

A Light Reflection Exercise for Your Reset

Reflection is not a soft habit. It is a proven one.

Structured reflection is widely used in healthcare education, therapy, coaching, and leadership because it helps people integrate experience rather than carry it forward unfinished. Studies show that reflective practices improve emotional regulation, learning, and decision-making.

This exercise is not about analysing your year. It is about closing it with intention.

You do not need to journal perfectly.

You do not need to find the right words.

You only need a few quiet minutes.

Sit with these four questions slowly.

✨ 1. What is one thing you feel genuinely grateful for this year?

It can be small or significant. A moment, a person, or a sense of relief. Gratitude grounds the mind and signals safety to the body.

✨ 2. What is one thing you are proud of yourself for?

Even if no one else noticed, especially if no one else noticed, pride builds self-trust.

✨ 3. What is one lesson this year that has taught you?

About yourself, money, boundaries, resilience, or what truly matters. Learning turns experience into insight.

✨ 4. What is the one meaningful change you want to create next year?

Not a list. One clear direction. Focus creates momentum.

You can write your answers down, hold them quietly, or share them. Reflection works because it gives your inner world structure, not because it demands performance.

If you feel comfortable, you are welcome to email your reflections. Reading them helps us stay connected beyond finance.

Mailto: Domenic@healthcarehomeloans.com.au

A Message From Me to You

To every nurse, doctor, midwife, paramedic, carer, therapist, pharmacist, receptionist, cleaner, admin team member, and everyone who keeps the healthcare system moving:

Thank you.

Thank you for the care you give, even when you’re tired.

Thank you for the compassion you hold, even when people are difficult.

Thank you for showing up on days most people wouldn’t.

Your work doesn’t go unnoticed.

Not by me.

Not by our team.

Not by the people whose lives you touch every single day.

Take this moment.

Rest.

Reset.

Let your nervous system catch up to everything you carried this year.