It’s New Year’s Day. Most resolutions fail by February. Not because people lack willpower, but because they skip the most important step: looking backward before moving forward (New to 1%? Join 523k readers who get a little better every day).

YEARLY REVIEW

How to Make 2026 Your Best Year Yet

This review system combines Jesse Itzler's "Big Rocks" approach with Tim Ferriss's data-driven Past Year Review. A few focused hours now will save you hundreds of wasted hours in 2025.

Step 1: The Honest Audit

Start by listing your milestones by month. Open your calendar, photos, and notes. Write down the inflection points where chapters of your life began or ended.

Then organize your year into five areas: Health, Wealth, Relationships, Experiences, and Business.

For each area, answer two questions:

  1. What were my wins? (Be specific. "Lost 15 pounds" beats "got healthier")

  2. What were my mistakes? (No shame, just data)

Score each area 1-10 based on where you actually ended up, not where you hoped to be. This is your baseline.

Step 2: The 80/20 Analysis

Here's where most people get it wrong. They try to fix everything. You're going to find the few things driving most of your results.

For each life area, list:

  • Positive drivers: The people, habits, environments, and activities that created your best moments.

  • Negative drivers: What drained your energy, caused stress, or held you back.

Now circle the top 1-3 from each list. These are your leverage points. Ask yourself: "How can I double down on what's working and ruthlessly eliminate what's not?"

Step 3: Extract the Lessons

Answer these questions:

  • What gave you the most joy?

  • What caused the most stress?

  • Which challenge led to the most growth?

  • Which relationships had the biggest impact (positive and negative)?

  • What's one new thing you learned about yourself?

Convert your answers into portable frameworks. Example: "I do my best creative work in the first 90 minutes after waking up" becomes a system you can use every day.

Step 4: Start, Keep, Stop

For each life area, identify:

  • Start: One new habit, relationship, or system you need to implement

  • Keep: One thing that's working that you want to protect and strengthen

  • Stop: One thing you need to cut immediately (even if it's hard)

Limit yourself to 3-5 total items per category. More than that and you'll do nothing.

Step 5: Lock It In

The biggest mistake is treating this review as a thought exercise. Turn insights into calendar blocks.

Schedule your "Big Rocks" first:

  • Your one audacious goal (Itzler calls this your "Misogi")

  • Quarterly experiences that matter

  • Weekly recurring blocks for high-ROI activities

  • Monthly check-ins to review progress

Create a "Not-To-Do" list and put it somewhere visible. This is your permission slip to say no to everything that doesn't align with your top priorities.

The Weekly System

Reviews without follow-up are just journaling. Use this simple weekly tracker:

  • 3 wins for the week

  • 3 mistakes and lessons learned

  • Shiny objects that tempted you (add to "Later List" instead of acting on them)

Do this for 52 weeks and you'll never struggle with a yearly review again.

The Simple Truth

You can't improve what you don't measure. You can't prioritize what you don't understand. And you can't make next year your best year yet without honestly assessing this year.

Block the time. Do the work. Build the system. Your future self will thank you.

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TODAY’S LIFE ADVICE

Your Vivid Vision for 2026

Cameron Herold built 1-800-GOT-JUNK from $2M to $106M in six years. His secret? Writing the future in present tense. He called it Vivid Vision: a detailed newspaper article about his company three years ahead. Not goals. Journalism.

The book’s concept is simple: Describe your 2028 reality as if a reporter interviewed you yesterday. Every sensory detail. Every metric. Every emotion.

  • Write 3-5 pages as a magazine profile of your business in 2028

  • Use present tense exclusively: "We earn $504,000 annually" not "We will earn"

  • Include vivid details: office atmosphere, client testimonials, team energy, typical Tuesday

  • Record yourself reading it with emotion and conviction

  • Listen daily—workouts, commutes, before sleep

Your subconscious can't distinguish imagination from reality. Daily immersion rewires your brain to spot opportunities and make decisions aligned with your vision.

Real estate mogul Brandon Turner, business expert Dan Martell, and fitness expert Dan Go all credit this practice for transforming their businesses. Write yours this week.

BEST BOOKS

Ryan Holiday’s Top Books of 2025

Every month, author Ryan Holiday shares his top reads of the month (he reads a lot). Here are his top reads of 2025:

Holiday also has a remarkable book store in Texas.

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Priyanka Chopra talks work-life balance [Video]

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