This article is part of Finding the Words, a newsletter that delivers practical insights on the day’s issues.

On January 1, 2022, I set out on a little writing project to explore the role of everyday communication in life. In my 150-or-so columns to date, I've shared perspectives on the impact of language choices and how to spot AI communications. I shared the most significant life lesson I learned after my dad's death and explored how to know when it's time to move on from work. I challenged you to ditch DEI speak and showed you how to decode body language. 

Writing this column each week requires that I wake up before the world every Tuesday morning to explore a topic I'm wrestling with and prepare it for publication. It requires diligence, focus, and hours that could have been spent otherwise.

So why do I keep at it?  Because this column, week after week, has given me reason to remain in touch with you—and with me, too.

Over the years, each time one of you has reached out to share a column's impact on you, I've answered consistently: I write what I most need to hear. And I'm touched that you needed to hear it, too.

It turns out that many of us need to hear the same message. We're looking for comfort, care, and maybe a little context to make sense of otherwise complicated times. We're looking for bright spots. And that's comforting in itself—knowing that we're not alone in our feelings.

Speaking of feelings, paying attention to what we're feeling is especially important these days.

Statistically speaking, most people touch their phone screens significantly more times per day than they will reach out and touch each other. We feel for our phones first thing in the morning; just as they are often the last touch before our heads hit the pillow.  

We've become so accustomed to experiencing life through the feeling of our phones that we often forget about real life right before us. So, in this very last column of 2024, here's the message I want to tell myself, and I hope you'll find it valuable too:

• Take a break.

• Get some rest.

• Unplug from technology in the coming days and savor life.

None of this is inevitable or given or forever. Hold on to what matters and put the phone down.

Bottom Line: Your to-do list isn't going anywhere. But people might.  So, connect with the ones you hold most dear.

I'll see you when we get back.

This post is part of the Finding The Words column, a series published every Wednesday that delivers a dose of communication insights direct to your inbox. If you like what you read, we hope you’ll subscribe to ensure you receive this each week.