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Welcome to Ascend with Claire Oliveros. I’m Dr. Claire Oliveros, Filipina American Founder and CEO of Claire Oliveros Consulting, LLC and the NARRA Leadership Institute. I am a women’s executive coach, educator, mother, and spouse. As a former community college president, I created this podcast to amplify and uplift real stories and bold leadership of Filipina and Women of Color leaders, change makers, and visionaries navigating transitions, shedding old expectations, and rising into leadership that is bold, rooted, and healing. Each episode is an invitation for reflection, creativity, and liberated leadership in action.
Welcome to the Ascend with Clara Loveros podcast. Hi, I'm Claire, Filipino American leader, a former community college president, mother, spouse, and now full time solopreneur building what leadership can be when we choose wholeness over hustle. This is a special episode as we close out the year 2025 and prepare for something new in January 2026. Today, I'm encouraging us for more time to pause, reflect, and set our intentions not from pressure, but from presence. If you've been running all year, and I know you have, this episode is your permission to pause, breathe, and ask what has this year taught me and what am I ready to create next?
Claire Oliveros:Let's begin. Before we start, I want to acknowledge the land where I'm recording this podcast. I'm on the ancestral and unceded territories of the Nisenan and Miwok peoples. I honor their stewardship of this land, past, present, and future. As we reflect on this year, I'm reminded that reflection itself is an indigenous way of knowing, a practice, a wisdom of pause, observe, and learn from what has been and prepare for what may be coming.
Claire Oliveros:May we all practice this kind of grounded wisdom as we close out the calendar year. You know, when I look back at 2025, I see a year of profound transformation, both for me personally and for so many leaders I've spoken with. And for me, this was the year I went all in. After thirty years in higher education and exactly seven ten days as a community college president and after a termination that could have broken me, 2025 was the year I chose community over climbing. It's the year I said, I'm not going back to an institution.
Claire Oliveros:I'm building something new. And let me tell you, it was terrifying and liberating and, of course, harder than I expected, but much more deeply aligned than anything I've ever done and also allowed me to center time with my family and my son. Some of you have been with me since the beginning of this podcast journey. You heard me work through the rise up method, those daily practices that kept us grounded and it kept me grounded while I was rebuilding. The rise up method includes the pillars of reclaim, ignite, sustain, excavate, uplift, and progress.
Claire Oliveros:And those practices, well, they worked good enough. They got me through. But here's what I'm learning as the year closes. There's a difference between surviving and thriving, between getting through and transforming. The rise up method helped me survive and thrive.
Claire Oliveros:It gave me tools to keep going when everything felt uncertain. A transformation that requires going much deeper, that requires a different framework I developed called the NARA method, inspired by the NARA tree of The Philippines as a metaphor for transformation and growth. We'll explore this together in season two. What 2025 taught me are a reminder of these three things. We cannot heal what we won't name.
Claire Oliveros:For so long, I carried the story that my termination was somehow my fault, that if I had just worked harder, been more strategic, navigated politics better, I could have stayed longer. But 2025 was the year I named the truth. The truth is I was on a glass cliff. I was set up to fail. I was hired into an impossible situation, given limited support, and when things didn't turn around fast enough, I became expendable.
Claire Oliveros:That's not personal failure. That's systemic reality for so many of us as women of color leaders. And naming that truth, that freed me. Rest is not reward. It's requirement.
Claire Oliveros:I used to think rest was something I earned after I proved myself, after I accomplished enough, after I could finally slow down. This year taught me that rest is the foundation, not the finish line. When I stopped treating rest as a luxury and started treating it as a leadership practice, everything changed. My clarity returned. My creativity returned.
Claire Oliveros:My capacity to make good decisions returned. We cannot lead from depletion. Full stop. When I left institutional leadership, part of me felt like I was stepping down, like I was choosing the lesser path. But this year showed me and community is not the consolation prize.
Claire Oliveros:It's the prize. What this year might have taught you, now I don't know what 2025 held for you, but I can only imagine maybe a year of triumph and promotions, recognition and achievements that you're most proud of, or maybe a year of struggle, setbacks, loss, moments where you questioned everything. And maybe like me, you had both, the kind of year that broke you open and also rebuilt you at the same time. Whatever this year held, here's what I want you to know. You survived it and that matters.
Claire Oliveros:You're here listening, reading, learning, still showing up. That's not nothing. That's everything. And as we close this year, I want to invite us into a practice that can lead to transformation. Think of reflecting without judgment.
Claire Oliveros:Not what did I fail at this year, but what did this year teach? Not not what should I have done differently, but what do I know now that I didn't know a year ago? This isn't about fixing because you're not broken. This is about honoring the journey, learning from the path and deciding with full agency what we want to carry forward and what we're ready to release. I'll walk us through a reflection practice that honors where we've been and clarifies where we're going.
Claire Oliveros:Think about 2025. What did we carry? What did you carry? I don't mean just in your responsibilities. Those count too, though.
Claire Oliveros:But beyond your job title, your projects, your deadlines, what else? Were you carrying grief, uncertainty, hope, fear, ambition, and maybe some exhaustion? Did you carry the weight of being the first or the only in your space? Did you carry dreams that maybe scared you a little or old stories that no longer fit? Take a moment and reflect.
Claire Oliveros:What did you carry this year? Now, here's an important question to consider. What are we ready to put down? What are you ready to put down? Not everything we carried this year needs to come with us into 2026.
Claire Oliveros:Some burdens aren't ours to carry anymore. Some stories are no longer ours to fix. Some expectations were never realistic in the first place. What can you release? Write it down if you need to.
Claire Oliveros:Name it, honor that you carried it this far, and then with intention, let's set it down. This year taught you something, maybe many things. What did you learn about yourself, about your leadership style, about what you're capable of, what you're no longer willing to tolerate? For me, I learned that I can build something from nothing, that my voice matters, that I don't need institutional validation to create greater impact. I learned that I'm stronger than I thought and also more tender, that I can hold both at the same time.
Claire Oliveros:What did you learn about yourself this year? And here's a follow-up to consider. What do you want to remember? Because we learn things and then we forget. We have breakthroughs and then we slip back into old patterns.
Claire Oliveros:So what wisdom from this year do you want to hold on to? What truth do you want to carry forward? Let's name it now and claim it. Reflection question three to consider. What did I create?
Claire Oliveros:Even in hard years, in fact, especially in hard years, we create things. Maybe you created something tangible, a project, a program, or a body of work. Maybe you created something intangible, like you set an important personal boundary. You developed a new belief, a different way of showing up. Maybe you created space for yourself, for others, for possibility.
Claire Oliveros:What did you create this year? And listen, if you're sitting there thinking, well, didn't create anything. I just barely got through it. Survival is creation. You created another day, another chance, another breath.
Claire Oliveros:In fact, you created resilience, endurance. You created proof that you can get through hard things and that counts. That matters. So let's not diminish what we've built this year, even if it doesn't look quite like what you thought it would. I'm saying this for myself too.
Claire Oliveros:We created something. You created something. Let's acknowledge it. As we look toward the new year, I want to offer a different framework than typical goal setting. Instead of asking, what do I want to achieve?
Claire Oliveros:Which can feel heavy and sometimes set up for failure or a self fulfilling prophecy. I want to invite us into something more powerful and more truthful. For those of us who identify as Filipino American and or women of color leaders, many of us have been climbing ladders that really honestly were never built for us, but we learned and performed and perfected. I'd like us to think even a little bit more deeply. We don't just need better goals.
Claire Oliveros:We need a liberated mindset. So I'm inviting us to set a liberation centered intention for 2026. We could think of it in three parts. Your liberation. What are you freeing yourself from?
Claire Oliveros:It's not about accomplishment, but it's about what do you want to be free from? What system, belief, or expectation, or pattern are you ready to release? My work is deeply influenced by black feminist scholars like Audre Lorde, who writes from Sister Outsider. We can't free ourselves using the same frameworks that have historically oppressed us. So what are we liberating ourselves from?
Claire Oliveros:An example might be I'm freeing myself from the belief that rest is something I have to earn. I'm liberating myself from the model minority myth that I have to be perfect to be worthy and be in proximity to whiteness to be right or valued. I'm releasing the expectation that I need institutional validation to create impact. Or another example might be I'm freeing myself from proving my worth through constant productivity. So what's your liberation for 2026?
Claire Oliveros:Take a moment to name it or write it down or say it out loud. This is for your liberated leadership, for your sense of freedom. Claim it. The second is your boundary. What is worth protecting?
Claire Oliveros:What do you want to protect? Now that you've named what you're freeing yourself from, what are you protecting? Your boundary isn't just saying no. It's actually saying yes to what matters most. Some examples might be, I'm protecting my voice.
Claire Oliveros:I will speak my truth when it's uncomfortable, or I'll protect my energy. I will not take on others issues or crises as my own. What is your boundary that you wanna set for 2026? Again, write it down, make it specific, and claim it as non negotiable. This is your protection.
Claire Oliveros:It's what makes liberation sustainable. And lastly, the third is your ritual. The practice that makes this real. Liberation and boundaries without a regular practice or ritual could just be wishes. So let's actualize it.
Claire Oliveros:What's the ritual, the sacred, the repeated practice that can help make this real beyond an action or habit, but a ritual? Because our ancestors knew rituals hold power. Rituals create transformation, and it's important to honor the sacred work we're doing. So think about a ritual for 2026. Try to be as specific or sustainable and sacred as possible.
Claire Oliveros:So for example, every morning, maybe I'll spend three to five minutes doing an Inaka, take care of yourself, micro meditation before I check my email. Another example might be on the first Monday of each month, I'll review my calendar and cancel one commitment that doesn't align with my values. Or maybe every evening at six p. M. I'll close my laptop and won't open it again until the next morning.
Claire Oliveros:No exceptions. And another example, one that I also like to practice and make time for is once a month, have a meal with someone who I trust and love, who I know will see me and celebrate all that I'm experiencing. And in turn I will also honor and celebrate and see them for their fullness. That type of friendship is hard to find. These are examples that I practice as part of my ritual to implement liberation and boundaries.
Claire Oliveros:The morning Inatka micro meditation before checking email, reviewing my calendar and canceling one commitment that doesn't quite align with my core values, and making a commitment to myself and to my family, closing my laptop at 6PM and not opening it again until the next morning. No exceptions. Nonnegotiable. What's your ritual for twenty twenty six? Again, write it down, put it in your calendar, or tell someone who will help hold you accountable with love and non judgment.
Claire Oliveros:This is the practice. This is your practice. This is how liberation becomes real. So now you have your liberation, what you're freeing yourself from, your boundary, what you're protecting, your ritual, the sacred practice that makes it real. Not a resolution, not performance, not another achievement, but grounded alignment that's sustainable for a way forward.
Claire Oliveros:And know this, you get to adjust this as you go. It's not a contract. Think of it as a compass points you in the direction of who you're becoming. And if things change, if you learn something new, when life throws a pot, when life throws a pot twist, you can revisit this, revise it, and realign it. That's not failure.
Claire Oliveros:That's wisdom. Liberation is not a destination. It's a practice, a ritual, a daily choosing of freedom. Before we close this episode, let's take a moment together for our final year end Ying Atka micro meditation. And as a reminder, Ying Atka means take good care of yourself in Tagalog.
Claire Oliveros:It's how we say goodbye in our culture, not just see you later, but take care of yourself. Has deep meaning and care. And as we close this year and prepare for the next, that's my invitation to you. Take care of yourself, of what matters, of the precious life you're building. So wherever you are right now, Find a comfortable position.
Claire Oliveros:And if it's safe for you wherever you are, you may close your eyes or stay present. Take a deep breath in through your nose. Count for three seconds. Again, breathe in all the way in. Hail three seconds and exhale and let it go.
Claire Oliveros:Feel in your body where you may have been holding tension. Notice, is it your shoulders, your jaw, your belly, and just softly, gently let it soften. Now bring to mind everything you carried this year. See it, feel it, acknowledge it, and say to yourself, I carried this and it was enough. Now imagine setting it down, not abandoning it, not pretending it didn't matter, but setting it down, releasing the weight.
Claire Oliveros:And as you release what you carried, make space for what's coming, your liberation, your boundary, your ritual. See yourself in 2026 living into this intention, not perfectly, but aligned, present, whole, and say to yourself, I am ready. I am worthy. I am enough. One more deep breath in and release.
Claire Oliveros:And when you're ready, open your eyes if they were closed. Inotka, take good care of yourself. You are worthy of the care you give to others. So as season one closed and we offer this bridge episode today and coming in early January I'm launching season two of Ascend with Clara Loveros. I'm introducing the NARA method, a transformative framework for healing centered leadership.
Claire Oliveros:We'll have solo episodes where I teach each component and interviews with Filipina and women of color leaders sharing their unspoken truths. If you're looking for more transformational leadership and learning, the Filipina Leadership Breakthrough System is a 12 module online course opening for enrollment in January. Spots are limited but the waitlist is live now. Visit the website at wwwdrclairoliveros.com. Thank you for being here, for showing up, for doing the hard, beautiful work of leading while healing.
Claire Oliveros:2025 was a year of growth, of transformation, of choosing ourselves. And 2026, who knows? I do know we are ascending, together and whole. Ingat ka, take good care.