2025 Challenge ends, and 2026 begins.

At the start of 2025, I did what I have done for a number of years know. I asked social media to help decide my next “stupid challenge”.

The result was a 50/50 split.

Half voted for Te Reo Māori every day. Half voted for dancing every day.

So, naturally... I did both.

Fifteen minutes of Te Reo. Fifteen minutes of dance. Every day, for a year.

On paper, it did not sound like much. Thirty minutes total. In reality, it became one of the most instructive years I’ve had when it comes to habit building and joy.

Here are the biggest lessons from each challenge:

Challenge One: Te Reo Māori, Every Day

1. Consistency Beats Intensity

Fifteen minutes a day does not feel impressive. There were days I wanted to “make up” for missed energy with a longer session, and days where I barely felt present at all.

What mattered was showing up anyway. What actually happened was once I started the energy built and I would often find myself late to the gym as I got deep into something I didn't want to put down.

Overall, language learning is humbling. I do not have a language brain. What I realised over the course of this year is, seems I barely speak English... Progress is slow, messy, and often invisible day to day. But over time, repetition compounds. The lesson here translates directly to leadership and culture change. You do not need grand gestures. You need reliable ones.

Small, consistent actions build capability far faster than bursts of enthusiasm.

2. Discomfort Is a Necessary Teacher

There were plenty of moments where I felt awkward, self conscious, and frustrated. Pronunciation mistakes. Forgetting words I thought I knew. Feeling like I should be “better by now”. There was a whole kaupapa in the Open Polytechnic syllabus that wanted to make me throw my computer out the window.

That discomfort was the work.

In leadership, we often avoid spaces where we feel clumsy or exposed. Language learning does not allow that avoidance. You either practice imperfectly or you do not practice at all.

Growth does not come from confidence first. Confidence follows action.

3. Identity Shifts Before Fluency

Something interesting happened before my language skills noticeably improved. My identity shifted.

I stopped seeing myself as someone “trying to learn Te Reo” and started seeing myself as someone who practices Te Reo. Like Yoga, we practice. Everyday is a lesson. That subtle shift changed how I showed up, what I noticed, and what I paid attention to.

In organisations, this is the difference between saying “we are working on trust” and “we are a team that practices trust”. Identity often precedes outcomes.

Challenge Two: Dancing, Every Day

1. Energy Is a Practice, Not a Personality

Some days I danced with joy. Some days I dragged myself through fifteen minutes with zero enthusiasm.

What surprised me was this. Even on the flat days, I finished with more energy than I started with.

We often treat energy as something we either have or do not have. This year reinforced that energy is something you can generate through movement. I have always believed that there is no such thing as motivation. Either action or inaction. And this challenge cemented that belief. You do not need motivation first. Motion creates momentum.

2. You Do Not Need an Audience

No one was watching. No one was judging. And yet, there were still days where my internal critic showed up loudly.

Dancing daily reminded me how often we self censor even when there is no audience at all. By the end of the year, I didn't care who was watching around or involved. This challenge was a daily reminder that confidence is built privately, not publicly.

3. Play Is Not Optional

Dancing reintroduced play into my days, even when work was heavy and schedules were full.

Play is often the first thing to go in high performing environments. And yet, playfulness is strongly linked to creativity, resilience, and adaptability.

Made me think about some of the teams I work with that cope best with pressure are often the ones that have not squeezed the joy out of their days.

Overarchingly my 2025 reflection

My Te Reo and Dance my mindset changed far more than I expected, they reinforced that learning happens in layers, not leaps.

Most importantly, they reminded me that the real value of these challenges is not the challenge itself, but the reflection that comes after.

Looking Ahead to 2026: Writing the Book

Which brings me to the next challenge.

In 2026, I will be writing a book.

This book will focus the last ten years of these annual challenges. What worked. What failed. What surprised me. And how these experiments have shaped the way I think about leadership, habits, growth, and being a decent human.

As this year is year 10 of #stupidchallenges, this year’s challenge will also part of that story. Writing every day, reflecting every month, and turning lived experience into something useful for others.

If the last decade has taught me anything, it is this.

Big change rarely comes from big decisions. It comes from small commitments kept over time.

Ten Minutes, Fifteen minutes, Thirty Minutes.

Every day.

Done imperfectly.

Done anyway.

More to come.

Blue Mercury Leadership is a thought-leadership company focused on navigating modern business challenges. Each post is intended to provide practical insight, encourage critical thinking, and support growth in dynamic professional environments.