No Regrets

Happy New Year! It’s time to get crackin’!

Cast your vision, set your goals, make your lists, and keep your eyes on the prize as you start shoveling in to new exciting projects. 2026 is going to be your best year yet!

Or….

Take one more day to linger a while longer in the last little bit of the holiday season.

I have a choice to make.

I actually hosted a livestream earlier this week during which I pushed the importance of building and maintaining momentum through the end of the holidays and into the New Year. Outrun the bed like the woman in the Apple Watch commercial, and push through the proclivity to just slug around this season. You don’t have to necessarily do any crazy heavy lifting. But make sure you’re checking a few things off your list each day, keep your work muscles toned, and set yourself up for a strong start to 2026.

And now here we are.

But my kids are still off from school, and my wife is taking them into the city to see a stage adaptation of A Wrinkle in Time at the Arden Theater (the same place that put on the cool Hobbit performance last year).

I have some work to do today. Honestly, it’s not much, but it’s more than I’d be able to complete before I’d have to leave if I’m going to join my family for the show in a couple hours. I’d have to put a few things off until later. Not exactly a “momentum-maintaining” move. You could argue it would be downright irresponsible, or unprofessional, or immature, or showing lack of discipline for me to choose a children’s play over business obligations.

And it would be all of those things if I believed my family’s financial stability was on the line, or if I would risk doing damage to my reputation and relationship with my clients.

But it won’t.

The biggest thing at stake is a little bit of momentum. And that’s not unimportant. But my wife asked me a question last night as I was trying to make up my mind about whether or not to join them for the show or put in a full day of work: ”What would you regret not doing?”

Boom.

I’m going. In 45 minutes to be precise.

A new filter.

I could fill this sleepy Friday-after-New-Year’s with plenty of good, productive work. I’ve been spending a lot of quality time with my wife and kids, and joining them on all sorts of fun Christmas adventures all month long. Nobody would accuse me of prioritizing my business over my family, or not being present if I chose to stay in the office today.

But I know my boys would love if I went along. And there’s really no pressing reason I shouldn’t. Ultimately, I would regret not going.

I would not regret losing a few extra hours in the office, taking care of a few simple administrative tasks that I could probably bang out before bed tonight or sometime tomorrow.

So I humbly offer this as a decision making filter you may want to adopt.

This is not to say I’ll be closing down my business in order to spend time with my kids 24/7. My work is one of the primary ways I fulfill my responsibility as a husband and father. And if circumstances were different today - if I had a major project deadline attached to a big paycheck we’re counting on - then I would ultimately regret not putting in the work necessary to provide for them financially.

The “right choice” all depends on the specific situation.

As you start your run this year, keep your head up and remember where your heading. Work hard. Maintain momentum. But be careful that you don’t run past opportunities to nurture important relationships, invest in your own personal health and growth, and enjoy your loved ones.