If you build in GovTech, there is a good chance you are physically present this week and mentally somewhere else.
You are at the table, but part of your brain is still running scenarios. Renewals. Budgets. A deal that slipped. A customer who might churn. A product decision that could have real consequences for people you have never met.
That tension is not accidental. It comes with the territory.
You did not choose the easiest version of software. You chose one where outcomes matter, where timelines are long, and where failure is rarely abstract. When something breaks, it doesn’t just hit a dashboard. It hits agencies, responders, communities, and real people.
That weight shows up in ways most people never see.
It shows up when you are carrying renewal risk through an election year. When you know your buyer believes in the product, but procurement does not move. When a customer is happy, but funding is fragile. When a decision you make in a conference room could affect how someone experiences their worst day.
GovTech growth is not linear, and it never has been. There are long stretches that look like stagnation from the outside. Then sudden wins that feel more relieving than celebratory. Quiet progress. Loud pressure. Delayed validation.
If you are feeling behind, uncertain, or tired right now, that does not mean you are failing. It usually means you are paying attention.
But here is the part most of us founders don’t hear enough.
You don’t need to solve next year this week.
You don’t need to prove momentum at Christmas.
You don’t need to carry every outcome alone to justify the role you are in.
Rest is not quitting. Presence is not complacency. Taking a pause does not mean you are losing your edge.
At the same time, do not confuse exhaustion with heroism. Running yourself into the ground does not make the product better, the company stronger, or the mission more credible. Clarity beats grind, especially in a space where patience and judgment matter more than speed.
Before January hits, there is one practical thing worth doing.
A 15-Minute Reset Before January
Sometime this week, take a blank page and answer these five lines. No formatting. No sharing. No overthinking.
The single thing that actually scared me this year
The constraint I can no longer ignore going into January
The bet I need to protect, even if it’s unpopular
The distraction I need to stop funding with time or attention
The outcome that would make next year feel like progress, even if growth is slower
If you cannot answer these clearly, no roadmap, forecast, or strategy off-site will fix that.
You don’t need to act on all of this immediately. You don’t need to announce it. This is not for your board or your team. It is for you.
This work is important. That is exactly why it needs you to be clear, grounded, and honest with yourself.
The fact that this work follows you home is not a flaw. It is a signal of responsibility.
But responsibility does not mean carrying everything, all the time. It means knowing when to slow down, when to reflect, and when to come back with intent.
Take the pause. Write the page. Be present with the people who matter to you.
Then return in January, grounded and clear. This space needs leaders who can hold weight without letting it harden them.
January will demand clarity, judgment, and restraint. Come back with all three. Your work, your company, and your mission will be better for it.
