5 Questions to Ask Yourself Before 2026 Begins

“I used to say, ‘I sure hope things will change, ' then I learned that the only way things are going to change for me is when I change."

That’s a quote from the wonderful Jim Rohn. A strong proponent of developing a plan for your life, and a part of that is creating a strong plan for the new year. 

In this special episode, I’ll walk you through the steps for the Annual Planning Season, which began on October 1st. 

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Script | 388

Hello, and welcome to episode 388 of the Your Time, Your Way Podcast. A podcast to answer all your questions about productivity, time management, self-development, and goal planning. My name is Carl Pullein, and I am your host of this show. 

A mistake I used to make was to come up with some ideas about what I would like to change in the new year in that gap between Christmas and the New Year. 

The only reason I ever did that was because my friends were asking, “What are your New Year’s resolutions?” I never really had any, so I used to quickly think up some cool-sounding ideas and say that was what I was going to do. 

And yet, it wasn’t always like that. 

When I was a competitive athlete in my teens, each year in December, I would sit down with my coach and plan what we would achieve the following year. 

What times we were going for and which races were to be the “big ones”. 

I still remember the year I broke 2 minutes for the 800 metres and 4 minutes for the 1,500 metres. We knew I was close, having ended the previous year at 2 minutes 3 seconds for the 800 and 4 minutes 6 seconds for the 1,500. 

All that was needed was a good, strong winter and pre-season training. I remember going into 1986 in one of the most positive frames of mind ever. 

Then, when I stopped running competitively—one of my biggest regrets—I stopped planning the year. And that coincided with my not achieving very much. 

I drifted from one job to another. Had no idea what I wanted to do, and I remember feeling unfulfilled and lost. 

Fortunately, I rediscovered annual planning. The sitting down and thinking about what I wanted to accomplish. It was that restart that resulted in me coming to Korea, and discovering my passion—teaching. 

Everything I have achieved over the last 23 years can be traced back to following my annual planning method. 

From finding a career I loved, to getting married and moving to the East Coast of Korea—one of the most beautiful places in the world—and starting the company I run today, now employing four people. 

All of these ideas began with the annual planning method.

So, what is the annual planning method? Well, it’s five simple questions you ask yourself and give some thought to over two months—October and November. 

Those five questions are:

• What would you like to change about yourself?
• What would you like to change about your lifestyle?
• What would you like to change about the way you work?
• What could you do to challenge yourself?
• What goals would you like to achieve? 

Let me explain the kind of things you can think about.

What would you like to change about yourself? This is about you. Your current habits and routines. Are these delivering the results you want? 

When I sat down to write Your Time, Your Way, I knew I had to sacrifice some exercise time in order to write. I was okay with that, and I also knew a consequence of reducing my exercise time would be a gain in weight.

Two years later, I had gained eight kilograms (about 17 ½ pounds)!

Not good. If my weight exceeds 83 kilograms, I feel sluggish and quickly become tired. 

So, in my planning last year, I made it a non-negotiable to get my weight back to my regular weight of 80 kilograms (about 176 pounds or 12 ½ stone) 

Today, as I write this, my weight is 80.5 kgs. Well within my weight window. 

That all started with asking myself, “What do I want to change about myself?” The answer was to get back into my regular exercise routine. 

So, what would you like to change about yourself? Are you doing things that are not contributing to the results you want? Are you not consistently planning your days or weeks? 

Are you not moving enough? Are you spending too much time sitting down in front of a screen and not enough time in nature? 

Another one is how you dress. The pandemic saw a collapse in the way people dressed. This may not interest you, but perhaps you’d like to dress better when you go out. What could you do to improve your dress sense? 

Maybe you’d like to begin journaling or meditation. Write anything you consider down. You’re not committing to anything yet; you’re brainstorming ideas. The commitments you make come in December. October and November are all about developing ideas and going deep. 

The next question, “What do I want to change about my lifestyle?” Is about how you live your life every day. Is your house a mess? Do you leave your bed unmade when you get up in the morning? What about your car? Is it a garbage can on wheels? 

Perhaps you’d like to come home to a clean home at the end of the day? If so, what could you do to change things?

One idea that my wife and I had at the end of 2019 was to move to the East Coast of Korea. To do that, we knew we’d have to finally get a car. Living in Seoul, the capital city, with its superb public transport system, meant that having a car was not a high priority for us. 

Yet, for us to get out of Seoul and live in a cleaner, quieter city, we needed to explore Korea. So, that became the plan: to buy a car and begin exploring possible places to live. 

By the end of 2020, we had a car and moved to the East Coast. 

That change brought some tremendously positive changes in our lives. 

Yet, I know that had we not sat down to talk about our future plans, we’d still be living in a crowded, noisy, polluted city. Seoul is a great city, don’t get me wrong, but with 11 million people sharing it, you can imagine how noisy and crowded it can be. 

Is there anything you’ve always wanted to do relating to your lifestyle that you’ve never considered what you need to do to make happen? Write that down. 

What would you like to change about the way you work? A great question if you’ve found yourself stuck in a job or career that leaves you feeling dead inside. 

Some people I know have decided to completely change their careers when answering this question, while others have started their own businesses. 

It doesn’t have to be as dramatic as that, though. Perhaps you don’t like the structure you have in place to do your work. It could be a tools thing, too. Do you need to upgrade the way you manage your tasks and projects?

What about your workspace? Does it need an overhaul? I’ve done that a few times. Does your current workspace feel sterile and cold? Could you change your desk or your chair? 

If you work from home, can you do anything to make your workspace more stimulating? Perhaps move your desk nearer a window or change the lighting? 

All these ideas can lead to some fantastic changes. However, you do need time to think things through, and that’s what October and November are for. 

The fourth question is What can you do to challenge yourself?

This question is there because often we get stuck in our comfort zones. We become afraid to change anything because we fear what those changes may bring. Yet, if you’re not challenging yourself, you soon find yourself trapped in stagnation.

Physical challenges are a great place to start. If you feel you’ve become a little too sedentary, perhaps you could challenge yourself to do a park run in March. 

Or for those of you who are more ambitious, perhaps you could challenge yourself to do a triathlon or a full marathon in 2026. 

What about going back to school and getting a degree? One such challenge that comes up each year on my list is to do a master’s in contemporary British history. I’m sure it will be on my list this year, too. 

Think of the things that frighten you. Is there anything you could do to overcome that fear? 

The final question is What goals would you like to achieve in 2026? 

There’s a reason this is the final question. That’s because after you’ve thought about the previous four questions, you’re more likely to think about how you can measure success in the changes you want to make. 

One such goal my wife and I have already added is to have a big savings goal in 2026. This will affect both our spending habits—no more fountain pen purchases for me (oh no!) We haven’t settled on an amount yet, but we’re thinking about it. 

Perhaps you want to set the goal of getting a promotion next year or finally starting that business you’ve been thinking about for years. 

Or it could simply be a bad habit that you want to stop. Doom scrolling, the new smoking bad habit, or going to bed earlier. What about reading books? How many would you like to read in 2026? 

The purpose of these questions is to get you to think. Think about what you want out of life. 

You are amazing, and there’s so much you could do. Yet, you will only be able to do those incredible things if you externalise them and begin to think about how you could make them happen. 

The best place to keep this list of questions is in a paper notebook. I used to do this digitally, but found I was too easily distracted when trying to write them out on my iPad or phone. 

When I switched to writing these questions out in my Planning Book—an A4 notebook where I keep all my initial project plans, weekly planning sessions, and YouTube video plans—I found I thought more deeply and better. 

But, if you prefer digital notes, then by all means use that. 

Remember, now is not the time to make any firm commitments or even to think about how you will accomplish any of these things. Now is about idea generation. 

Many of the things you write down may not be practical or realistic next year, but they may begin a chain of thought that leads you towards achieving them in future years. 

That’s why it’s important to write your thoughts down in a place to return to next year. It’s a starting block. I’m always amazed at what I accomplished when I review my previous years’ notes on 1st October. And yes, occasionally disappointed that I didn’t follow through with something. 

The focus, though, is ultimately on 2026. What do you want to accomplish?

Now, for those of you who have taken my Time And Life Mastery programme, October’s a great time to retake it. 

When I developed that course, my purpose was to create something you could return to each year to help stimulate ideas and remind you of what you want to do in your life. 

I must confess, even though it’s a course I created and wrote, I use October to go through it myself. It reminds me of my long-term vision of the life I want to live and refocuses me on my objectives. 

If you haven’t joined the programme yet, you can do so today. And if you use the coupon code “codingreat,” you’ll get 50% off your purchase. 

I’ll leave the details in the show notes for you. 

And there you go. That’s how to plan out a fruitful, exciting year. Start now and begin thinking about what you want to change. Don’t hold back either. Be as wild as you can be. You do not have to commit to anything right now. That’s for December. All you are doing now is preparing the land, if you like. You can choose what to sow later. 

And, one more thing… Have fun with this and talk with your partner and loved ones. I involve my wife because the lifestyle question involves both of us, and the things I want to change about myself can often be stimulated by asking her what she thinks. My wife can be brutally honest, frequently leading to some excellent changes. 

Thank you for listening, and it just remains for me now to wish you all a very, very productive week.