Setting Up Your Year the Right Way

Less pressure. More intention. Better habits.

It's that odd time of the year just after New Year's, previously, we would have been a few days into our resolution and already giving ourselves excuses to justify breaking it, but now, as the years pass I feel like the year doesn't really start until February. Yes people are back at work but the suns out, we're busy catching up with friends and no body is really thinking of doing deals or having big planning meetings right now. Right now, January is the perfect time, I think, to start to think about what you actually want your 2026 to look like and, more importantly, feel like.

Like most people right now, I am obsessing over Timothee Chalatmet and Kylie Jenner's relationship, so I went on a TikTok deepdive the other day and might have come across one of my favourite quotes from the Marty Supreme actor - "You can be the master of your fate, you can be the captain of your soul. But you have to realise life is coming from you, not at you." Watch here. 

This was a nice little reminder for me that your perspective is your life, and you can change it at any time. Change your thoughts, change your life. So, before I go into how I am going to set up my 2026, I first need to be aware of what I am actually thinking and be honest - what do I want to change? What didn't work last year, why? But really being honest.

So before the goals, the planners, the workouts, and the “new year, new me” energy…
Pause.

Because clarity always comes before momentum.

This is what I will be doing in January.

My Step One: Create Space to Visualise

One of my favourite ways to begin the year is by creating a mood board on Pinterest.

Not a productivity board.
Not a “who you think you should be” board.

A truth board.

Images that reflect:

How I want life to feel

What inspires me

What I'm craving more of

The energy I want to move through the year with

It's intuitive. It's going to be messy. But patterns appear, and they’ll tell you more than any to-do list ever could.

Step Two: Ask the Real Questions

Reflection isn’t about judgment, it’s about awareness.

1. Why didn’t my 2025 goals come true?

Not to criticise myself, but to understand.

Were the goals unrealistic?

Were they aligned with what I actually wanted?

Did my habits support them?

Awareness here is power.

2. What three things do I wish I had done more of last year?

Think:

Joy
Presence
Things that aligned with your purpose

What made me feel most like you?

3. What am I avoiding?

This one’s uncomfortable but important.

What scares me?

What feels embarrassing to say out loud?

What do I keep pushing aside?

Avoidance is often a sign of growth waiting to happen.

4. What do I want to learn in the year ahead?

New skills. New knowledge. New ways of thinking.
Learning keeps you evolving, and evolution keeps life interesting.

5. What habits do I want to create?

Forget perfection. Think consistency.
Small, repeatable actions that support the life you want.

6. What boundaries do I need to establish?

Boundaries protect your energy.
They define what you say yes to and what you no longer tolerate.

7. What gives?

What are you willing to release to make space for what’s next?

Some of my favourite quotes for 2026:

“New goals don't deliver new results. New lifestyles do. And a lifestyle is a process, not an outcome.”

When you stop obsessing over the result and start committing to the process, everything changes.

This year, pour your energy into building better habits, not chasing quick wins.

The goal isn’t:

• To read a book → it’s to become a reader
  
  

• To run a marathon → it’s to become a runner
  
  

• To learn an instrument → it’s to become a musician
  
  

Every action you take is a vote for the person you want to become.

No single moment defines you, but repeated actions do.

Confidence isn’t built in big leaps.
It’s built through small promises kept over and over again.

Tiny wins create belief. Belief creates momentum.

Move your body.
Protect your energy.
Build habits that support your life, not exhaust it.

 

That’s how I am looking back to move forward in 2026. SP x