CREATIVITY

Lower the Stakes

PERFECTION KILLS PROGRESS. Writer Anne Lamott, in her book “Bird By Bird”, calls the fix “shitty first drafts” — start messy, suspend the demand for brilliance, and just get moving. By lowering the mental stakes, you sidestep the fear of failing and finally get started. Later, refine. For now, act.

PRODUCTIVITY

To-Do or Not to-Do

Most to-do lists are fairy tales. Mark Forster, time-management expert and author of “Secrets of Productive People”, says to keep just five tasks, no more. Do them in order. When one drops off, add another. Repeat. The list forces you to stare down what matters instead of hiding in busywork. Fewer boxes. More real work.

PLANNING

January Sets the Year

You know how every January you’re like “THIS is gonna be the year!” and then by February you’ve accomplished nothing? That’s because resolutions without systems are just wishes in fancy clothes. David Brown, profit specialist, offers four questions: Start? Stop? More? Less? Apply them to seven areas: staff, inventory, cash flow, sales, vendors, customers, systems. Twenty-eight decisions. Get each one onto a calendar with a deadline for implementation. That’s it — that’s your plan for 2026 right there.

MOTIVATION

Write Down Your Goals

Okay so here’s the thing about goals. Your brain is basically a golden retriever — it means well but gets distracted by literally everything. Writing down your goals is like giving that golden retriever a map. Suddenly it knows where it’s going. Keep your goals vague enough to start but specific enough that you can’t just keep “thinking about it.” You’re not trying to become a grinding robot. You’re trying to grow like a normal human. When creating your 2026 goals, write the big stuff down. Five minutes. One page. Done.

TIME MANAGEMENT

Wait Before You Commit

Nobel Prize-winning psychologist Daniel Kahneman refuses to say yes immediately to requests, invitations, or commitments. His line: “Thanks for the invite. I don’t say yes on the spot, but I’ll let you know.” Which is polite but firm. Derek Sivers takes it further: if it’s not “Hell yeah!” it’s automatically no. Start doing this and future-you will be less stressed, less overbooked, and significantly less cranky about commitments past-you made.

LEADERSHIP

Lead From the Front

Culture is set at the top. Tom Peters, business author, advises: “Give a lot, expect a lot, and if you don’t get it, prune.” It sounds blunt, but it’s about clarity — establish standards, communicate them, and support your team so they can deliver. Or, as Gandhi put it more elegantly: “Be the change you wish to see in the world.”

BENCH

Don’t Ghost Your Waiting Clients

If your customer is texting you “any updates?” you’ve already screwed up. Consultant Kathleen Cutler says every job needs one shepherd — a point of contact who shares updates on pricing, deposits, updates, everything. “Be proactive, not reactive,” she says. Silence equals panic. Your default policy should be to over-communicate with your customers until they beg you to stop.

STRATEGY

Doing Nothing Is an Option

Not every “quick tweak” improves your business. Jason Fried, co-founder of Basecamp and author of It Doesn’t Have to Be Crazy at Work, says, “Nothing should always be on the table.” His team lets every new idea sit a few weeks. Weak ones die on their own. Strong ones keep bugging you until you act. Sometimes the smartest move is to wait.

SALES

Even a Bad Joke Can Lift Your Close Rate

Stanford’s Naomi Bagdonas found customers will pay nearly 20% more if you drop a playful line at the end. “The bar is so low,” she laughs. Try it: quote the price, then grin and say, “And I’ll throw in my pet frog.” If they laugh, they buy.