Why Most 2026 Plans Will Fall Short - Assalamu Alaikum

Assalamu Alaikum - Do this before you repeat 2025. You’re right to feel stuck. Goal-setting advice is broken. Not an insult - a fact. You write goals in January, feel motivated for a couple of weeks, then quietly abandon them by March. You tell yourself next year will be different. It rarely is. That cycle isn’t your fault. The method is. The real problem isn’t lack of discipline. Goals fail when they don’t match who you are. You pick goals that look impressive, ignore your real skills, your family and time commitments, and what truly matters to you. Then you wonder why you can’t stick to them. You’re not lazy. You’re misaligned. Most people set outcome goals in a system that actually requires an identity change. They chase results and numbers and skip building standards and everyday behaviour. What I learned the hard way In 2021 I planned to move from Learning and Development into HR. I had the vision, timeline and motivation - then COVID hit. Hiring froze and my plan became irrelevant overnight. I spent months frustrated, watching a goal I couldn’t control slip away. That taught me a key lesson I now build every goal around: don’t plan around things you can’t control. Plan around yourself - your skills, experience, interests, and capacity. Markets shift, pandemics happen, organisations change. If your goal depends only on outside factors, it will break when circumstances change. Goals built around who you’re becoming survive disruption; goals built around what you want to have don’t. Two levels of goals Most people only work on one. Surface goals sound impressive: earn more, get promoted, lose weight, change jobs. They focus on outcomes but don’t change how you operate. First-order goals feel boring but work: how you make decisions under pressure, what standards you refuse to break, what you do when motivation’s gone, the daily behaviours you repeat, and what you stop allowing in your life. First-order goals focus on who you become. Identity drives behaviour. Behaviour creates results. Why 2026 will look like 2025 You’ll repeat the same year if you keep the same standards: same reactions, same excuses, same habits. New goals don’t create a new year. New rules do. If you don’t decide your standards in advance, your environment decides for you. What makes me upset is seeing capable people set goals they were never going to keep, then blame themselves. Goals that had no link to their skills, no flexibility for life, or were copied from someone else’s highlight reel. You didn’t fail yourself; your goals failed you. The question isn’t “What do I want in 2026?” The question is “What must I stop doing to deserve a different year?” Test your goal - answer yes or no: 1. Is this goal based on your real skills and experience? 2. Can you make progress even if external circumstances change? 3. Does it connect to something you genuinely care about? 4. Have you defined what “good enough” looks like? 5. Do you have a weekly behaviour tied to this goal? 6. Can you measure progress without waiting for the final outcome? 7. Have you identified what you need to stop doing? 8. Does this goal fit your current life, not an ideal life? 9. Are you willing to keep going when motivation disappears? If you answered “no” to five or more, this isn’t a motivation problem - it’s a goal design problem. A one-day goal reset (do this in one day - it helps) Step 1: Write your anti-vision. What are you tired of repeating? What behaviour embarrasses you? What problems did you tolerate too long? If nothing changes, what does December 2026 look like? This is the future you want to avoid. Step 2: Choose one identity shift. Not five. One. From reactive to deliberate. From people-pleasing to clear. From busy to effective. From inconsistent to consistent. Make this your north star, and tie it to your faith and values - e.g., becoming someone who keeps promises, manages time for prayer, family and work, or acts with patience and integrity. Step 3: Define your standards. Write five rules you will not break in 2026. Examples: I will not delay important conversations, I will review my week every Sunday, I will not accept unclear expectations, I will stop working when focus drops, I will choose steady progress over perfection. Rules shape behaviour; behaviour shapes results. Step 4: Set one 12-month outcome. Now pick one meaningful outcome tied to your identity shift - not ten. Keep it realistic for your responsibilities to family, community and worship. Step 5: Design a 30-day project. Forget the year. Win the month. What action proves your new identity? What can you measure weekly? What will be uncomfortable but doable? Step 6: Create daily levers. Small, non-negotiable actions: one focused work block, one uncomfortable action, one reflection question after Asr or before sleep. Consistency beats intensity. Step 7: Install a weekly reset. Every week ask: What worked? What didn’t? What standard slipped? What needs adjusting? Stick to the data, not feelings. You don’t need “better” goals for 2026. You need goals built around who you actually are - and who you want to become in a way that fits your faith, family and life. Goals inspire. Standards transform. What is one behaviour you must stop in 2025 to earn a better 2026? JazakAllahu khairan for reflecting.