Start 2026 With Intention
Hello ingagehr community,
Welcome to January 2026.
Nothing feels better than the blank canvas and optimism of a brand new year. For many of us, that means setting resolutions, goals, routines and, after the holidays, sometimes just physically moving away from the cheese ball feels like a solid first win.
Some of you may know I’m a podcast junkie. The Director of Happiness & Goofiness get their daily walks while I get my daily dose of very smart people talking in my ears. Over the holidays, I absorbed as much as possible about intention, goal setting, motivation, habit forming, and planning… you get the drift.
As the podcasts piled up, one theme came through loud and clear when it comes to starting a year strong:
Success isn’t about willpower or finding motivation. It’s about intention, systems, and follow-through. That of course isn’t groundbreaking news, but there were a few real gold nuggets I found especially helpful and wanted to share.
1) Make a plan (not a wish).
We’ve all said, “This is the year I’m going to…”
And we’ve all seen how that usually plays out. Roughly 80% of New Year’s resolutions fail within the first six weeks. If you’ve ever been a gymrat, you’ve seen this firsthand in January/February. Achievement isn’t about motivation or willpower, it’s about intentional planning and habit formation.
If something truly matters, it needs to be:
organized
mapped
written down
and supported by systems that make follow-through easier
There is a significant amount of science-backed research showing that the physical act of writing something down, posting it visibly, and revisiting it regularly helps move intentions from short-term thinking into long-term action.
In short:
Hope is not a strategy. Planning is. Or, as the old saying goes: fail to plan, plan to fail.
2) Subtract for success.
This one I found uncomfortable but truly essential.
If you want to add something new, something else has to come off your plate. After all, you can’t binge-watch Stranger Things until 1:00 a.m. and still expect to be bright-eyed for a 5:00 a.m. alarm.
Overloading (or stacking) priorities inevitably leads to dropped balls and quiet frustration. Frustration leads to giving up and once that happens, motivation disappears entirely.
This isn’t about discipline or willpower; it’s prioritizing and giving yourself the best possible chance to succeed. Make space for the things that matter most.
3) What REALLY Matters?
One of the most powerful prompts I heard was this:
Think about your 85-year-old self. What could you start or stop doing now that would make them happiest? What would make them miserable?
These are real goals. They cut through noise quickly and help surface what actually matters; not just this year, but over a lifetime. This perspective has a way of clarifying priorities and helping us let go of the things that don’t truly deserve our energy.
4) Consistency beats motivation.
Everything we do consistently becomes a habit. Habits turn into routines, and routines remove the need for constant motivation and decision-making. Think autopilot, like brushing your teeth or
watching Netflix without a snack (note the theme here?) Consistency is what turns good intentions into real outcomes. When setting goals, focus less on big end results and more on the consistent actions that will get you there. Small actions, done regularly, are what actually move the needle.
5) Commit to 100 days with a “Sh*t Happens” plan.
New routines need time to stick. One missed day will happen, life is life. Two missed days is how new habits of avoidance quietly form. A simple rule I love:
Never miss twice.
Give yourself permission for the occasional “Sh*t Happens” day, but don’t let it a new pattern creep in. Commit to the first 100 days of 2026 : Now until April 15th. Then pause. Reflect on what’s working, regroup where needed, and either rebuild the plan or recalibrate the goal: with intention rather than guilt. Progress doesn’t require perfection, but sometimes self-compassion.
Relating this to your People & Leadership goals in 2026
In my experience, most organizations don’t avoid people practices because they don’t care, they delay them because they feel hard, awkward, or time-consuming and in short, they haven’t taken the time to plan. The result:
· Regular check-ins slip.
· Feedback gets postponed.
· Notes don’t get written down.
· Training gets deferred.
· ‘Thinking time’ disappears under competing priorities.
· Good intentions get swallowed by busy.
That’s why January is the moment to “set it and forget it.” It’s easy to delay and defer until something is on fire, but those feelings can be turned into practical processes that remove friction and hack the delay response altogether.
Set it and forget it in 2026: practical HR moves that stick
1) Create 2026 folders for each team member.
Whether it’s OneNote or another simple system, create a place for each person where you can quickly capture:
feedback notes
positive emails
coaching observations
moments worth remembering
Great interactions fade if there’s nowhere to hold onto them. (Think Writing it Down)
2) Build one clear priority per team member.
Ask yourself: If this person could improve one thing in 2026, what would it be? That clarity helps you focus your coaching and feedback, and gives employees direction instead of vague expectations.
(Think planning, not wishing.)
3) Block time to maintain records and connect.
This might be time to:
update notes
meet regularly
or send a short weekly “your week in review” message highlighting progress and wins
If it’s not in the calendar, it won’t happen. Short, regular time blocks make this sustainable and prevent year-end scrambling.
(Think consistency.)
4) Commit - visibly.
Nothing says “you’re not a priority” louder than:
repeatedly rescheduled meetings
missed deadlines
or rushed, lacklustre performance conversations
If you want commitment from your team, it has to start with visible commitment from you.
(Think intention and positive modelling.)
5) Build a 2026 HR roadmap.
This is the golden ticket.
Imagine knowing:
when you’ll hire
when performance conversations will happen (and what you’ll say!)
when policies will be reviewed or rolled out
when training should occur
A clear HR roadmap removes guesswork, reduces stress, and ensures people practices don’t get pushed aside by urgency. Ask yourself: what would your future leadership self want to see working smoothly and routinely?
This is where we often support clients, especially in the first few months of the year: helping define the what and the how of their HR functions and priorities so the year runs with intention, not reaction.
2026 doesn’t need to be louder, faster, or harder. It needs to be clearer.
My word for the year: INTENTION.
If January feels like the right moment to bring more intention and structure to your people practices, this is often where a 2026 HR roadmap or a performance reset can make a meaningful difference. Whether you’re looking to map key HR priorities, refresh performance practices, or create clearer systems to support your team and leadership, we’re always happy to help you think it through in a practical, grounded way.
Let’s Go 2026!
