Behind the Scenes: A Plan for Life & Business (How to Make 2026 Make Sense)
Picture this: It's December 21st, and I'm simultaneously wrapping gifts, mentally planning a family outing to see Christmas lights, trying to remember if I exchange gifts with that one friend, AND staring at my calendar wondering how I managed to schedule seventeen things for Tuesday. Sound familiar?
The Problem: This is the wild time of year where regular life obligations keep rolling along, but we've also wedged in 18 extra things per day. We're thoughtfully considering everyone in our life (gift? coffee date? both?), trying to grab those magical holiday moments with family, and somewhere in there, attempting to relax with tea and a Christmas movie with our teenagers. I actually LOVE this hustle-bustle vibe most of the time. The energy, the sparkle, the connection—it's nostalgic and reminds me of the child-like excitement of the holidays. But I ALWAYS push it (and myself) too far. Eventually, I end up staring blankly out the window, unable to form one more cohesive thought, barely able to scrounge dinner together.
The Solution: Today, we're talking about knowing when to cut our losses with the current year—to stop, put down the list, and just reflect. Give ourselves enough time and energy to set up for the weeks ahead. We need to build enthusiasm for 2026, but not let enthusiasm go it alone—let's bring along some left-brain rationality, please!
Action Plan: By the end of this post, you'll have four powerful questions to shape your 2026, plus I'm sharing my own word of the year that's already helping me get back in sync.
Here we go!
Either way, the new year is approaching. Let’s let it in gently, and on purpose.
Why This Planning Matters Now
This is my 40th week of blogs, and I'm pretty proud of that! It'll be the last one for 2025, and what better topic than creating an overview plan for 2026?
Here's the thing: January 1st is going to arrive whether we're ready or not. We can either slide into it exhausted, overwhelmed, and hoping for the best, OR we can take this liminal space between years to get intentional. Not rigid, not perfectionistic, but intentional. There's a difference between having a plan and being controlled by one. We want the former—a framework that supports us rather than constrains us.
The brain science nerd in me knows that our brains actually crave this kind of structure. When we have a clear framework, we free up cognitive resources for creativity and spontaneity. It's counterintuitive, but structure creates freedom.
Your Four Big Questions for 2026
Let's dive into the questions that will help you shape your year. Grab your favorite beverage, find a cozy spot, and let's do this together.
Question 1: What big things are already on the calendar for 2026?
Start with the immovables—trips, conferences, art exhibition deadlines or market dates, work obligations, community roles. Get real about what you've already committed to. This isn't about judgment; it's about acknowledgment.
Now here's the kicker: Do you need to politely remove any of these obligations? I know, I know, it feels uncomfortable. But earlier is better. Don't work like crazy trying to do it all and then kind of not do any of it well. Make the choice NOW about what's most important (for now). This doesn't mean you can't do it in the future! Time is a finite resource, and so is your energy. Choose wisely.
Question 2: In your perfect world, what would next year FEEL like?
Not what would you accomplish, not what would you check off your list, but how would it FEEL? Peaceful? Smooth? Full? Wild? Comfortable? Easy? Full of life?
Get that vibe and energy in your mind. Be brutally honest about what you need. Maybe you need more friends and social activities to keep your mood up. Maybe you need more quiet and less commitment to hold space for yourself. There's no right answer except the one that feels good to you when you picture it.
For me, I'm craving rhythm—not the constant sprint-rest-sprint-crash cycle I've been doing, but an actual sustainable pace. Like a good song that makes you want to move, not a jarring alarm that has you darting from one thing to the next.
Question 3: What will an ideal weekly schedule include?
This is where we get practical. Respecting your current commitments and the energy you want for your year, what does a typical week look like?
Don't create a fantasy schedule for some other version of you who needs four hours less sleep and has unlimited energy. Create a schedule for actual you—the one who gets cranky without coffee, needs transition time between activities, and occasionally wants to stare out the window without guilt. Write it down in as much imagined detail as you want. Coffee on the porch from 7-7:30…or just one word themes for each day. Monday = Making, Tuesday = Desk work…whatever helps you picture how you'd like your days to go this year.
Question 4: If you could achieve ONE thing this year, what would it be?
ONE. Like only ONE. Obviously your year will include much more, but what's the big one? This time next year, what would make you say, "I actually did it!"?
Here's the crucial part: You don't get to worry about the outcome. Not how many people showed up, how much money it made, or what people said about it. Just that YOU controlled YOUR controllables and did what you wanted to do.
For me? It's launching an online class on ceramics. That's it. Not "launch a wildly successful class that changes the world." Just launch it. Get it out there. Share what I know. Learn the technical ins and outs of digital course creating.
But your one thing doesn't have to be a work goal. Maybe it's having coffee with your Dad once a week (aw, that does sound nice—can I add that too?). Maybe it's playing a piece on the piano by memory. Something that would make you proud of yourself.
Making It All Work Together
Now look back at your ideal week schedule. Do your daily activities match up to that ONE thing? Do they support the feeling you want for your year?
This is where the magic happens—or where the reality check hits. If your ONE thing is launching a course but your ideal week has zero time blocked for course creation, something's gotta give. If your desired feeling is "peaceful" but you've scheduled every minute of every day, we need to talk.
I'm doing this exercise myself because I've filled up my life with a lot of stuff, and it's time to sort through it. I feel so much better when I have adequate time to reflect and process—shocking revelation for someone who consistently overschedules herself, right?
Living life your way takes a little reflection -
What will you unwrap for 2026?
Wrapping It Up - With a Bow
We've covered a lot of ground here—from acknowledging what's already on our plate to imagining how we want our year to feel, from creating realistic schedules to choosing our ONE big thing. This isn't about perfection; it's about intention.
My word for 2026 is RHYTHM. I want to find a rhythm that keeps me moving but has a pattern to it—an ease and a comfort. Not the herky-jerky stop-start energy I've been running on, but something more sustainable, more musical, more... me.
Your Call to Action:
Quick Win: Right now, pull out your phone and put a reminder in for December 28th to spend one hour answering these four questions. That's it. One hour to set the trajectory for your entire year.
Solid Solution: Block out a half-day before New Year's to really dig into this planning. Use the questions as a framework, but let yourself dream a little too. What would make 2026 feel successful to you?
Treat Yourself: Download my Artist Quarterly Review Workbook (you've got it in your resources!) and use it to close out 2025 properly before planning 2026. Give yourself the gift of reflection before projection.
Peace out, 2025! Let's take these next couple of weeks to be with ourselves and our people, to gather energy for what's ahead. And please, let me know how your 2026 planning is going—what's YOUR word for the year? What's your ONE thing? Hit reply or find me on Instagram @heidisenseart. I genuinely want to know!
With Enthusiasm for Life + Art,
Heidi
P.S. – If you're reading this while simultaneously trying to wrap presents, plan a holiday meal, and figure out if you need to buy a gift for your mail carrier...I get it. Take a breath. You can pause, let it go this time, and it'll be okay. And 2026? It's going to have such a sweet rhythm.