How to Make 2026 Your Best Year Yet

How to Make 2026 Your Best Year Yet: The 6-Step Framework That Works

Lachlan Stuart running one of 58 consecutive marathons for mental health awareness in Oklahoma.png

What if I told you that setting goals is actually sabotaging your success?

Here's why the 92% who fail aren't doing it wrong, they're doing the wrong thing entirely.

Research from the University of Scranton shows that only 8% of people achieve their New Year's resolutions. The problem isn't a lack of willpower or ambition. It's that most people are using a broken system that was never designed to work in the real world.

I learned this the hard way. In 2014, I was a carpenter with big dreams and zero framework to achieve them. Fast forward to today: I've built a multiple six-figure coaching business, ran 58 marathons in 58 consecutive days (raising $161,000 for mental health), and I'm about to become a father, all while maintaining the freedom to pursue what matters most.

The difference? A repeatable framework I've refined over 12 years that's helped hundreds of high-performing men turn their potential into results.

Take Tim, a 39-year-old commercial real estate agent. He had a million-dollar year in his first year out on his own, all while dropping 8kg, spending more time with family and friends. We did this in 12 weeks using the exact system I'm about to share with you.

Here's the truth most productivity gurus won't tell you: setting goals isn't enough. You need a system that accounts for reality, the sacrifices, the environment, the identity shift required to actually achieve what you want.

Let me walk you through the six steps that will make 2026 your breakthrough year.

Step 1: Set Your North Star Goal

Your North Star isn't just any goal, it's the one thing that, if achieved, would fundamentally change your life across multiple domains.

Why does this matter? Because when you commit to growth, you're signing a contract with adversity. Challenges aren't anomalies; they're guarantees. Without a compelling North Star, those inevitable obstacles feel like roadblocks instead of stepping stones.

Think of your North Star like a lighthouse. When the storm hits and it will… you need something fixed on the horizon that tells you which way to row. Without it, you're just burning energy in circles.

My 2025 North Star was running 58 marathons in 58 days. It wasn't just about running, it was about proving to myself (and showing others) what's possible when you commit fully to something meaningful.

Research published in Psychological Bulletin found that people who monitor their progress are substantially more likely to achieve their goals, with some studies showing completion rates improving by 40% or more.

Your North Star should excite and terrify you in equal measure. If it doesn't make you question whether you're capable, it's not big enough.

Ask yourself: What's the one goal that, if I achieved it this year, would make me look back and say, "That changed everything"?

Make It SMART, Then Break It Down

Once you've identified your North Star, make it SMART: Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-bound. Vague goals create vague results.

Here's how I structure mine:

I set my annual North Star goal, then review it quarterly to assess progress and adjust strategy. From there, I break it down into:

• Monthly milestones (what needs to happen this month to stay on track?)

• Weekly targets (what are my 3-5 key priorities this week?)

• Daily tasks (what's the one thing I must complete today?)

This cascading system transforms a massive goal into manageable daily actions. It's the difference between "I want to run 58 marathons" and "Today, I run 20km before 8 AM."

The key? Your daily tasks should always ladder up to your North Star. If they don't, you're just busy, not productive.

Step 2: Define Your Anti-Goals

This is where most goal-setting frameworks fall apart. Everyone talks about what you want. Nobody talks about what you're not willing to sacrifice to get there.

I call these Anti-Goals, the non-negotiables that keep you from achieving success at the expense of what actually matters. The concept draws from Charlie Munger's inversion principle: sometimes the best way to solve a problem is to think about what you want to avoid, not just what you want to achieve.

When I committed to 58 marathons, my primary Anti-Goal was clear: I will not lose my marriage. That single statement shaped every decision, how I trained, how I communicated with my wife Amy, how I structured my days.

This year, as I prepare for fatherhood, my Anti-Goals are crystal clear:

• I will not be broke

• I will not work more than 40 hours per week

• I will not be constantly stressed and run down

Anti-Goals aren't limitations. They're guardrails that ensure your success is sustainable. They force you to get creative about how you achieve your goals, not just if you achieve them.

Think of Anti-Goals like riverbanks. Without them, the water spreads thin and evaporates. With them, the same amount of water becomes a powerful current that carves through mountains.

Write down 3-5 Anti-Goals right now. What are you absolutely unwilling to sacrifice this year?

Step 3: Create Supporting Goals

Your North Star doesn't exist in isolation. It requires a foundation of smaller wins that compound over time.

Supporting Goals are the 5-10 mini-milestones that, when achieved, make your big goal inevitable. Your North Star is the summit. Supporting goals are the base camps. Nobody summits Everest in one push from sea level, you need acclimatization stations. Rush past them, and you don't make it home.

For me, these always include:

• Health goals (because energy determines execution)

• Relationship goals (because success means nothing if you're alone)

• Financial goals (because resources create options)

• Recovery goals (sleep, rest, play, the things that keep you sharp)

This is where my Core 4 framework comes in: Strong Body, Calm Mind, Clear Purpose, Confident Life. Every supporting goal should feed into at least one of these pillars.

In my 30-Day Life Performance Reset program, we build your Strong Body Dashboard to track these metrics. In the Life Performance Accelerator, we optimize them relentlessly.

The principle is simple: you can't sustain peak performance in one area if the others are collapsing.

Step 4: Engineer Your Environment

Your environment will either elevate you or erode you. There's no neutral ground.

The people you spend time with, the spaces you occupy, the content you consume, all of it either raises your floor or lowers your ceiling.

Here's a hard truth backed by 32 years of data: The Framingham Heart Study tracked 12,000 people and found that if your friend becomes obese, your chances increase by 57%. The environment isn't just influential, it's predictive.

You won't lose weight hanging around obese people. Not because they're bad people, but because their habits, mindset, and standards become your default.

Conversely, spend time around millionaires, and your likelihood of becoming one skyrockets. You'll observe their decision-making, adopt their frameworks, and normalize what once seemed impossible.

When I first decided I wanted to build a million-dollar business, I knew I needed to be around people who'd already done it. The problem? I wasn't someone millionaires wanted to spend time with, unless I paid them.

So I had two choices: accept my current circle, or become so valuable that high-performers wanted me in their world.

I chose the latter. That decision changed everything.

Audit your environment this week. Are the five people you spend the most time with pulling you toward your North Star or anchoring you to mediocrity?

Step 5: Focus on Who You're Becoming

Here's the secret nobody tells you: the goal isn't really about the goal.

When people ask how I ran 58 marathons, built a lifestyle business, and maintained a thriving marriage, they're asking the wrong question. The real question is: Who did I need to become to make those things possible?

Every big goal is an identity upgrade disguised as an achievement. Goals are the crucible; identity is the steel. The heat isn't meant to destroy you, it's meant to forge you into something harder to break.

After finishing the 58 marathons, people expected me to crash. They assumed my identity was wrapped up in that accomplishment. But I didn't have a comedown, because the run was never about the destination. It was about who I became in the process: more disciplined, more resilient, more capable of handling adversity.

That version of me didn't disappear when the run ended. He's the one building my business, preparing for fatherhood, and setting even bigger goals for 2026.

This year, don't just chase outcomes. Ask yourself: Who do I need to become to make this goal inevitable?

Step 6: Master Your Time Allocation

Show me your calendar, and I'll show you your priorities and predict your results.

Time is like water in a bucket with holes. You can keep pouring more in (working harder), or you can plug the leaks (saying no). Most people are exhausted because they're trying to out-pour the holes.

Consider this: the average person checks their phone 96 times per day, once every 10 minutes. That's not time management; that's time hemorrhaging.

I've used a calendar religiously for years (still love a handwritten diary), but here's what most people get wrong: scheduling isn't about doing more. It's about saying no to the right things.

The more capable you become, the more people want your time. Without a clear framework, you'll drown in opportunities that don't move you closer to your North Star.

Before saying yes to anything, ask: Does this move me closer to or further from what I want?

If it's not a clear yes, it's a no.

The 3-Week Window

Here's something most people don't realize: you have a 3-week window to get this right.

Research shows that 80% of New Year's resolutions fail by February, which is why taking action in the first three weeks of January is critical for building momentum.

Don't waste it.

Your Next Step: Take the Life Performance Scorecard

You can't improve what you don't measure.

If you're serious about making 2026 your best year yet, start with clarity. Take the Life Performance Scorecard now, it takes 4 minutes and shows you exactly where you are across the Core 4 pillars and what to prioritize first.

Over 400 men have used it to clarify their next move. Don't let 2026 become another "what if" year.

From there, if you want a structured system to reset your baseline and build momentum, the 30-Day Life Performance Reset gives you the framework, tools, and accountability to start strong.

2026 can be the year everything changes. But only if you stop treating goal-setting like a New Year's ritual and start treating it like the strategic process it actually is.

The framework is here. The question is: are you ready to use it?