The Lesson That Keeps Repeating: Why 2025 Was My Hardest Year

The Hard Choice with Brad Draper · Feb 19, 2026 · 16m

Journaling on December 31st, Brad Draper uncovered something unsettling: the same trial had been haunting him since 2022. Why? He hadn't learned the lesson it was trying to teach. (Unresolved lessons, he realized, just keep coming back.)

When Brad and his wife Michaela moved into a house they couldn't afford in 2021, they understood something crucial about growth—concentrated pain accelerates transformation. After leaving a six-figure job, Brad faced four failed businesses, mortgage struggles, and multiple job losses during 2024 and 2025, his hardest years yet. Through severe financial…