FEBRUARY 2026 Newsletter - SELF-DISCOVERY: Reflecting on Our Journeys

FEBRUARY THEME: Self-Discovery

“Finding oneself is a journey, not a destination.” — Unknown

In January, we discussed the power of setting intentions for who we want to be. Now at the end of February, we are well into our personal journeys of self-discovery. Some of us may be finding our paths as straightforward as we had hoped while others of us may be feeling challenged by the unexpected directions our roads are taking us. Wherever you may be on your journey, now is a great moment to pause and reflect.

As the quote states above, self-discovery is about the journey, not the destination. How have you grown in the last two months? Where do you hope to improve? Who has supported you? By taking a break to reflect, we can recognize our own inner strengths and treat ourselves with the self-compassion we need.

TOOLS FOR SELF-DISCOVERY

Be Compassionate Toward Yourself. While this is often easier said than done, remember that there are MANY ways to be compassionate toward yourself. Check out this toolkit for some suggestions!
Look for Joy in Your Life. Acknowledging joy in your life does not mean ignoring your pain or sadness. Rather, finding joy can mean recognizing the small and big things that boost your soul and encourage you to keep going even during challenging times.
Identify Your Strengths. We all have strengths that motivate us and help us through difficult dilemmas, but identifying them can be tricky. Sometimes just starting with the activities you enjoy or what others have complimented you on can be a good start.

Remember, you got this! Best wishes as you journey on! 💙

Check out the complete February 2026 Newsletter focused on Self-Discovery here.

Strength with a Purpose

“When you know your strengths, you know where you can be strong on purpose.”

— Marcus Buckingham

Caregiving is hard, but none of us comes to this journey empty-handed. We bring skills, values, and inner resources that help us navigate our challenges and achieve our goals. Identifying those strengths is part of self-discovery. When we slow down enough to understand who we are beneath our responsibilities, we gain clarity about what sustains us and what drains us. This knowledge helps us shift from surviving each day to caring with intention.

Choose Strength

"When we are no longer able to change a situation, we are challenged to change ourselves."

~ Viktor E. Frankl

You have a power within you—to focus on challenges not as obstacles but as opportunities—to rise, to learn, and to find resilience. Caregivers can use this power to discover strength and wisdom through adversity, leaning into the hard moments to find new ways to adapt and overcome.

Although the weight of our responsibilities may feel overwhelming in those moments, we always have a choice to either let the stress hold us back or let the challenge make us stronger. Here's an affirmation to use when faced with such a choice:

🌟 “Each challenge I face is a chance to grow stronger.

I have the courage, wisdom, and resilience to keep moving forward.” 🌟

CourageKristi HornerOctober 9, 2025Strength Amidst Adversity, Strength, Strengths

What Would You Say in a Valentine to You?

“I was always looking outside myself for strength and confidence but it comes from within. It is there all the time.” ~ Anna Freud

I probably don’t have to remind you that tomorrow is Valentine’s Day. No matter where I go, I am reminded by big displays of pink and red that it is a day to celebrate love. There’s no doubt a lot of cards and candy are sold for Valentine’s Day to help us express our love for others. But for our purposes, I want to encourage you to take some time to focus on self-love, too.

Self-DiscoveryKristi HornerFebruary 13, 2025Strengths, Identifying Your Strengths, Self-Love

FEBRUARY 2024 NEWSLETTER: The Journey of Self-Discovery

I think of self-discovery as being my most authentic true self - living my most authentic true life. AND, if you don't know what that looks like - that's OK. You're a perfectly imperfect work in progress - learning and growing every day.

As I work to find ME again, our February curriculum topics offer the perfect 3 tools for discovering your true self. Maybe they'll help you in your journey of self-discovery, too?

WHAT BRINGS YOU JOY? Feeling joy is a boost to your soul, connects you to others, and can be contagious. You are worthy of experiencing joy, from small moments to major life events. Show the world you can be joyful.
IDENTIFY YOUR STRENGTHS. You are a unique person with many strengths, some of which you may not have even discovered yet. Cultivate your interests and abilities because they help you to be resilient, well-rounded, interesting and an interested individual. Be confident in who you are and what you can do. It makes you different and special!
HOLD SPACE FOR SELF-COMPASSION. You are as deserving of compassion and love as those to whom you give your compassion and love. We grow and improve ourselves by making mistakes. So instead of beating yourself up, just figure out what lesson can be learned and move on. By showing yourself compassion, you increase your capacity to give compassion to others, so everyone wins!

Check out our entire February newsletter focused on SELF-DISCOVERY here!

Kristi HornerFebruary 29, 2024Self-Compassion, Strengths, What Brings You Joy?, Finding Joy, Identifying Your Strengths

A Position of Strength

“The good life is using your signature strengths every day to produce authentic happiness and abundant gratification.” – Martin Seligman

As we focus on the theme of self-discovery this month, a key element in truly knowing ourselves is to identify our strengths. This is so important for caregivers because we often fail to recognize all of the strengths that we must draw upon as we focus on helping others. As a result, we can lose sight of ourselves, including all of our unique capabilities and strengths that lie at the core of who we are.

Self-DiscoveryKristi HornerFebruary 15, 2024Strength, Strengths, Identifying Your Strengths

Strengths, Trust, and Confidence

Our strengths are a big part of our character. They can develop from the way we were raised, the way we respond to challenges, the values we hold dear, and the things that interest us the most. They represent the areas where we excel, and they are building blocks for our self-esteem.

Your strengths are a big part of what makes you special. Be confident in who YOU are and what your strengths can help YOU do!

Self-DiscoveryKristi HornerFebruary 9, 2023Self-Confidence, Strengths, Identifying Your Strengths

February Newsletter: Finding Yourself Again ... The Journey of Self-Discovery

In my most active caregiving days, I felt as if I had lost myself - who I was at my very core. Throughout February, as we explored our theme of Self-Discovery, we dug deep to identify our strengths and opportunities for growth, developed our understanding of self-confidence and worked hard on our self-love.

When I think about who has helped me with my own journey of self-discovery, that's right, you guessed it, the work of Brené Brown has been like having a personal life coach. She's taught me to cultivate courage and live my most authentic self. This is HARD!

Check out our February Newsletter focused on SELF-DISCOVERY here.

Self-Discovery, NewslettersKristi HornerFebruary 24, 2022Strengths, Self-Confidence, Opportunity, Self-Love

A Growth Mindset Is a Strength Mindset

This month, we’ll be exploring the theme of self-discovery, and a great place to start is by focusing on our strengths as opportunities. Strengths go hand-in-hand with a growth mindset. Identifying areas where you are strongest allows you not only to work on the things you need to improve but also to cultivate your strengths and make them even stronger.

Self-DiscoveryKristi HornerFebruary 3, 2022Strengths, Opportunity

Acknowledging Your Strengths Is a Sign of … Strength!

As caregivers, we spend a lot of our time meeting the needs of others. Unfortunately, that can mean losing touch with our own needs … and even ourselves … while we focus on caring for a loved one.

Self-DiscoveryKristi HornerFebruary 4, 2021Strengths