The Space We Skip: Why Transitions Matter More Than We Think

You check your diary.

Back-to-back meetings.

No space in between.

And you realise… you’ve just moved through an entire week without pausing once.

We’re good at moving. From one task to the next. One role to another. One season into something new.

But we’re not so good at transitioning.

When something ends – a project, a chapter, a season of life – we acknowledge it briefly.

Then we move on.

• No pause to reflect.
• No space to integrate.
• No moment to ask what it meant.

 

We do the same when something new begins.

• We step in quickly,
• expecting clarity,
• confidence,
• direction.

But transitions don’t work like that.

They are not empty spaces to rush through.

They are where meaning is made.

And yet, this is the part we skip.

• Because pausing can feel uncomfortable.
• Like standing still when everything around you rewards momentum.
• Like facing questions you don’t yet have answers to.

 

So we fill the space instead.

• With noise.
• With action.
• With the next thing.

But without that space, something is lost.

• We carry experiences forward without learning from them.
• We repeat patterns without noticing them.
• We miss the opportunity to turn experience into insight.

In my work, I often see this.

A leader finishes a demanding project and moves straight into the next one – without asking what actually worked.

A parent navigates a big family transition and keeps going – without noticing what it required of them.

A professional steps into a new role or a new location – without taking a moment to consider who they are becoming in it.

 

What’s missing isn’t time.

It’s attention.

One of the simplest ways to create that space is through a short 3-step reflection:

1. What 2. So what. 3. Now what.

Not complicated.

But powerful.

 

1. What

What actually happened? Not the story. Not the judgement. Just the experience as it was.

2. So what

Why does it matter? What did you learn? What felt significant? What surprised you?

This is where experience becomes insight.

3. Now what

What do you want to do with it? What will you carry forward? What needs to shift? What feels true now?

This is where intention begins.

This doesn’t require hours of journaling or time away.

It might look like:

• Five minutes between meetings
• A walk after a meaningful conversation
• A pause before stepping into something new
• Small spaces. But intentional ones.

This is the work of coaching your wild.

Not forcing clarity.

Not rushing resolution.

But learning to trust what surfaces when you stop moving long enough to notice.

So the next time something ends, or begins: before you move on, pause.

• What just happened?
• So what does it mean for you?
• Now what feels right, from here?

Because the most meaningful shifts don’t happen in the doing. They happen in the space we usually skip.

I’m Sarah Cretegny, an Accredited Transitions Coach. I help individuals, groups and teams to navigate real life transitions without losing themselves.

I’m particularly effective when time is limited and the stakes are high. I draw on evidence-based coaching approaches, strengths expertise, and my lived experience of balancing leadership, family life, and international living. I’m deeply passionate about partnering with people to coach their wild, because the world needs more radically authentic leaders now more than ever.

I am based in Lausanne, Switzerland and coach virtually globally. Find my links here.