Let's Think About It Podcast

Episode 73 Still Goal-Stuck? The 2026 Reset Every Leader Needs

• Morice Mabry • Season 3 • Episode 73

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Episode Summary 

As the year closes, most leaders wait for January to “get serious” about goals. In this episode, Coach Mo and Coach A-Mo flip that script and show you how to use December as your momentum month for 2026. They walk through a four-part goal-setting process rooted in the S.W.A.G. framework: decide who you’re becoming, reconnect with your deeper why, visualize the future you already living the result, and build the grit to keep moving when the old you tries to pull you back. Whether you’re chasing a promotion, a new role, or a different way of leading, this conversation helps you stop replaying 2025 disappointments and start building a 2026 mindset. If you’re a high-achieving leader tired of stalled goals, this is your reset.

Key Takeaways 

  • Decide: Stop dragging 2025 into 2026
    Why most leaders stay stuck replaying last year’s failures, and how one clear decision about who you’re becoming flips you out of hesitation and into motion.
  • Purpose > Pressure: Build “why power” instead of chasing titles
    How digging into the real reason you want the promotion, pivot, or pay raise creates staying power when rejection, silence, or setbacks hit.
  • Visualize the future you with receipts, not fantasy
    Practical ways to use vision boards, model “walk-throughs,” and conversations with people already in the role to normalize your next level and quiet the inner critic.
  • Aligned action in micro-reps
    Why momentum is built in small, repeatable moves (systems, rituals, outreach) instead of huge, unsustainable pushes that burn you out by February.
  • Grit against the old you
    How to recognize when your old patterns are trying to drag you back, and use S.W.A.G. (Self-awareness, Why power, Aligned action, Grit) to stay loyal to your future self.
SPEAKER_03:

Welcome to the Let's Pick of Model Podcast, where high achievers stop performing and start transforming. I'm coaching out, Sonopy, core energy leadership coach, founder of the inner arena, and creator of the Swan World. Stop a limit, my power, mind action, and risk. And when I'm here, retrain your mindset, challenge your limits, and turn culture into purpose. Subscribe now and join me on YouTube at Swan Coaching. So let's get your reps in it. Welcome to another episode of the Let's Think About It podcast. I'm your host, Coach Mo. And I'm here with my co-host, Algie Mosley, aka Coach A Mo. What's good, my brother?

SPEAKER_01:

Good morning, Coach Mo. It's Coach Amo. Hey, brother, it's a beautiful day today, although the weather's kind of a little shady outside, but the spirit is good on the inside. So, what do you got on the topic today?

SPEAKER_03:

Man, I'm really trying to level up leaders and high achievers on this episode because we're closing down the end of the year. And I think now is the time to start planning our goals for 2026. We always show up, right? We're always showing up in a mindset that I want to achieve XYZ for 2026. Where we're in December 2025. And what I would like to do today is start to create momentum going into 2026 and setting our goals. That's what I would like to talk about, to help leaders, high achievers, set the direction of where they're planning to go for 2026.

SPEAKER_01:

That's right around my momentum, is something I always talk about because that's how you have to be. You have to get momentum in order to be it forward, right? So what you're talking about in 2026 is a forward movement. Momentum to me, Mo, is when you're focused and not scattered. So how do you suggest one get refocused for 2026 in order to set that dream and make it a possibility?

SPEAKER_03:

Let's do this.

SPEAKER_01:

Let's do this.

SPEAKER_03:

Let's start with these four pillars, right? And it all ties to swag, by the way. Self-awareness, white power, aligned action, and grit. First, 2025 is right here around the corner. So that gives us exactly 30 days or 31 days to create some momentum for 2026. Goal planning, goal setting, whatever you want to decide. Okay. So to set the stage for your planning of goal setting, number one, you have to decide. That's first and foremost. You got to make that decision to decide on what that goal is going to be and what you're going to go after. That's number one. Number two is you got to understand your purpose. Why are you even going after this goal? Why are you setting this particular goal? Why is this important to you? Okay. And then number three, you have to visualize the outcome of this achievement of the goal. What does that look like when you've already achieved it? Can you visualize that? And then number four, determination. Determination, not giving up on yourself, and being diligent, committed to seeing this through. And today, through these four pillared areas that I just described, we're going to talk about that. And when I break it down, hopefully I've created enough awareness that you've generated a little bit of momentum to start to move forward. That's what I'm going to get into.

SPEAKER_01:

I hope so, Coach Mo, because right now I'm looking at this great big elephant and you're talking about dinner, right? For 2026, for me personally, I think of like one result that would change everything else. And I think that's what you're talking about is being able to have a big vision, but taking small bites at it.

SPEAKER_03:

Absolutely. Absolutely. And let's do it like this, Algie. I'm going to ask you this question. A goal that you've had in the past, that you've achieved. That you've achieved. Take me through just generally your process of like how you set the goal or how these four pillars of what I just described went into that goal process. Decide, understanding your per your purpose, visualizing the outcome, and determination. Think of a goal that you achieved, and how these four and did these four pillars that I describe appear in that process of attaining that goal.

SPEAKER_01:

When I think of a recent goal, it's been a goal of my quite some time. And that was to get more aligned in being a coach. And it was a big goal that required quite a bit out of me, right? For me, every day I had to come up with a morning ritual, whether that was a meditation or prayer or simple reflections that to remind myself, because I have this what they call punk ass critic that tries to tell me that I've got to remain who I am. And how dare you think of anything else, right? I had to remove the things out of my life that uh drained me, things that were not aligned with my purpose, whether that was people, whether that was habits, whether that was the environment. A lot of those things became time wasters. They were not moving me in the direction that I needed to do or needed to go. And so I had to create a vision board. I had to create something that I have used in the past that got me through college because some of these courses at UC Davis weren't easy, but I had to believe that it was possible. And then I had to, in a sense, get me an accountability coach. I found someone that sort of looked like you, Coach Mo, that was traveling down the same path that I was, that it constantly reminded me. So it was like almost like they said steel sharpened steel. And then I had to visualize those big possibilities and set reminders for myself on a daily basis in order to create that momentum. Those are some of the steps I had to take.

SPEAKER_03:

Yeah, that's great, man. And today I'm gonna break it down really deep for people to help understand the resistance that they may feel while they're in the goal achieving process. Because let's just get to it. Decide. Okay. Sometimes we're on the fence on deciding on whether we should go after this goal or not. And the reason we're on the fence that we typically have to deal with is the failure of the past and trying to achieve certain types of goals. And this is where the self-awareness like of the swag comes into play, the decide piece. Because sometimes there's a little bit of doubt that we may carry about if this goal is really attainable. That's correct. Because in the past, beginning of year, we tried something similar, and we wasn't successful. So I don't want to set a goal knowing that I potentially is not going to be successful. So it's easy to try to avoid that, right? And so you become hesitant to decide on going after that particular goal. And it's across the board, not just leadership, whatever goal, whether it's a diet, whether it's to be more fit, whether it's to get a promotion. Let's look at that. I like that analogy of a promotion, right? So maybe you struggled with getting interviews, and you put out in 2025, you put out hundreds of applications, and it's been silent. So 2026 is around the corner, right? And you still want a job, right? A new or not a job, but a promotion. And so, hell yeah, that'll make you hesitant to set a goal for 2026. Because in 2025, that's what you've been going after, is a promotion, and you haven't had any momentum. You haven't had any movement. So, what would make it different in 2026? So now there's a little hesitation because I'm looking at the memories of my experience of 2025 that I haven't had the hits. And it's distracting, it's worrisome, it's deflating. So, what why would 2026 be any different? The fact that you question that makes you conscious. Is why it's not going to be any different. The fact that you carry that thought because you're living in the past version of you. How can you say that, Mo? How can you say that? I'm trying to be proactive, I'm trying to move forward, I'm doing all the things I can do to be prepared to get a promotion. You say that. We say that consciously, but subconsciously, our habits are different and not aligned with what we truly want. It's conditioned in the old patterns of how you've been. And so that makes you hesitant to decide to go after that promotion because the experience of the past, it's the past pretty much now, right? We've had our experiences in 11 months of 2025. And those experiences, when it comes to searching for jobs, has not gone well for you. And you're living it through that experience, trying to project that that will be the outcome if you set a goal for 2026 as it relates to looking for a job. You're shattered, you're crumbled a little bit. You carry that. So what I'm saying, just decide. Just decide that it's gonna be different. It's gonna be different. Just make that decision. 20 2025 is behind me. You know what? There's just opportunity in how I can be different in approaching the job search this year. And it's gonna be different. And I'm gonna see it through. That's the decide process. That's elevating your consciousness around this future version of you, though. And what you're saying, regardless of what the past experiences have said, and that's what you got to take ownership in. That's how we first just decide that.

SPEAKER_01:

I was just saying when you have that 2025 mindset, that's based on who you've been. But a 2026 mindset, it's who you've grown to be based on the different mindset. It's not that interview from last year, it's not your interview for the next year. You have a different mindset for 2026. You can't bring 2025 into 2026, otherwise, you'll be 2025 and 2027, 2028, and then 10 years from now, you'll realize you've grown nowhere. You're still right where you are. And what we're talking about is a mindset for 2026. Let's say 2025, we sat back and laughed and we got through. 2026 is something that's brand new.

SPEAKER_03:

And also this too, man. The process of what you were going through and just staying in the scenario around looking for a job. What did you learn about the process? All the mistakes and everything that you were doing to search for a job, because it's all connected. It's part of the process to grow. And if you're not willing to take a deep diagnostic look at self and what you've learned through the process of not getting a job or not getting an applicant interview, whatever that process has been deflating for you, what did you learn about that process? And what can you take from that to elevate you in 2026? Right. That's why you have to decide. And it's all a part of the self-awareness that I'm talking about, right? Because when whatever that process has been for you in 2025, okay, it shaped a certain version of you. And you went through a shitload of experiences. The question is, what did you learn about yourself through those situations? Have you even thought about what you've learned through those situations? Or have you just been distracted through the frustrations of just not getting a job or not getting out of your circumstance? Because that's a possibility too.

SPEAKER_01:

That's correct.

SPEAKER_03:

And when you're distracted away from the learning opportunities within those difficult situations, you repeat the cycle. And so, what I'm telling you or coaching you on right now is to decide on what that new version of you is going to be in 2026.

SPEAKER_02:

Right.

SPEAKER_03:

And that becomes part of the goal planning process. This decide that right now. Don't wait till January. Today.

SPEAKER_01:

Right now. So today I decide to have a new mindset. Today I decide to create a new skill. Today I create a new habit. Maybe I get a new mentor. Maybe I create a new connection. Or maybe I decide to create a system. And the acronym for system is save yourself some time, energy, and money. Right? And maybe I have a system that allows this to be a little easier in 2026 than it was in 25, because as far as I know, Mo. Momentum loves recognition. So if I can find some successes and some progress, some efforts and discipline, I might just discover some breakthroughs. And these lessons tell me I'm something new.

SPEAKER_03:

But here's where I'm going to be devil advocate in my teaching. Because it's man, one minute you're telling me to decide. But then the next minute I'm going to say this. What's your purpose in deciding? Why are you even deciding? What's the point? Seriously. Why is this important to you? Why is this promotion deeply important to you? And you just can't say the money. Nah, it's deeper than that. Right? You have to after you decide. Right? You want this open mindset? What's the purpose though? Why are you even like trying to get a promotion? Why are you trying to lose weight? Why are you trying to change your diet? Why are you trying to make more money? Whatever. What's the purpose? What's the core?

SPEAKER_02:

Deep-rooted core of why you're even deciding right now. What's the significance of this? Help me understand. See, that's the conversation that you need to have with self.

SPEAKER_03:

Help me understand why this is important to me. Give me an inclination, a sign, a calling that helps me understand why getting this promotion is so important and dear to me. See, it's that conversation that you need to start having with yourself. And you may not hear it in the first ask. And that's where we give up. Oh, see, I didn't even see nothing, I didn't hear nothing, I didn't get any clues to show me why. You know why you didn't get any clues?

SPEAKER_02:

Because you're still distracted in the old you. That's why.

SPEAKER_03:

That's why. You're still distracted in the old you. How can you see the opportunities and your purpose of why for the new you you feel me?

SPEAKER_02:

I'm more than feeling you coach about Yeah man. And I think that's why power. That's the glue. Truly. Any goal right? Any goal, at least any goal I've achieved.

SPEAKER_03:

There was a why purpose. And I might not have been able to define it in that moment going after the goal, but I just knew in my spirit how deeply important it was to me to achieve it.

SPEAKER_01:

Are you saying that you had an inner calling?

SPEAKER_03:

Absolutely. We all have it. We all have a spirit, an intuition that's driving us beyond analytical thinking. It's just this feeling, this nurturing spirit that's continuously driving us to achieve something that we know within ourselves is very endear and important to us. And we just go get it. And so, what I'm doing to help you create momentum right now is let's let's put consciousness around it, let's define it, let's be intentional about what this purpose is. And it doesn't matter what your goal is, but what's the purpose of why you even said it? And try to focus on it from internal purposes, not the external. Can you break that down? Yeah, so when I say try to focus on the internal purposes, meaning the intuition, the insight driving forces within self opposed to the external. See, the external is trying to compete with the Joneses, trying to be in this competitive mindset where I have to do this because X is doing that, right? Or I have to make money so that I can live more effectively and be able to buy XYZ, which is true, but it's harder to achieve that only specifically focused on the external. When inside we are creative beings and we can truly formulate our vision of what it is that we truly want to go after. And that's all that I'm trying to teach. We all had it, we've all experienced it because we've all achieved certain goals in our life. I just want people to think about in those moments when you achieved these goals, I'm pretty sure you envisioned how you saw yourself achieving that goal. You decided that this was important to you and you're gonna go after it. Maybe it happened unconsciously, but that still was the process that you went through. And so, what I'm trying to teach you right now is let's put some intentions on it. Let's be intentional about it. We're still in December, we're moving into December. Let's be intentional with December and see what kind of momentum it kicks us off with in 2026. That's all I'm saying.

SPEAKER_01:

Well, in order to do that, Mo, if one's gonna go into 2026 and they have their why and their purpose aligned, they're gonna need a little swag.

SPEAKER_03:

You need the swag, and the glue of swag is why power, and that's what I'm talking about now. Because, all right, so when you decide, that's the self-awareness piece, because you know the feeling of doubt that typically makes us hesitant to want to decide because of the old version of us and certain past experiences in which we're trying to project may happen again. So that makes us hesitant to decide. But what I'm saying is knowing that let's put consciousness around you're looking at the old version of you. Let's let's shake that a little bit, let's shake that up, let's create the new version of you, let's put awareness around it's gonna be different in 2026. See, that's the self-awareness part. And then what we broke down was the why power. Why is it even important? Why is this important to you? Okay, and we already went through that. So now we gotta visualize the outcome. What does that even look like? You're going after this promotion. What would it look like being in that seat in the promotion? What would you be doing? How would you operate? What would be your attitude? What would be your role in this new position? How would you interact with your colleagues? How would you be towards your family? What would the income do to your state of being? See now what we're doing is we're visualizing this future version of you.

SPEAKER_02:

How do you create that imagery of your future self already has achieved this goal? How do you do that? How do you teach your mind to create this vision of you already achieving this goal? It's really simple, Coach Mo. So listen up.

SPEAKER_01:

This is part of be it forward, right? And the first part is that you have to believe in your future that you're building, even when nobody else sees it yet. It's your vision. You have to believe. Then you have to empower your mind with discipline because consistency beats talent every time. It's like uh water going over a rock. Pretty soon that rock will disappear. And then you have to inspire your circle with actions, right? Not just your intentions. You have to be inspired, or as you said, you have to know your why. And then you just transform your daily choices because that's where the real choice really, that's where the real change really takes place, is what you do on a daily basis. And then don't just dare sit on it, not someday, not eventually, not even when it's convenient, right? Because when you go Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday, I've never heard of someday. And when will it come? So those are the things I believe, Coach Mo, in order to move forward, that you have to become a different person. You have to become a different you.

SPEAKER_02:

Absolutely, absolutely, brother. And it's tough though, because the mind wants to continuous look at the old you because that's what it sees, that's the experience that it feels, and it's scary as hell knowing that you had some unsuccessful experiences, and it hurt a little bit, it created certain pain areas, and trying to project the future of you, how can you do that without the pain being present?

SPEAKER_03:

It's hard, it's hard, easier said than done, but it goes back to what you said. You have to do it in micro bit sizes. You gotta get the reps in, gotta get the reps in visualizing this for yourself. And maybe it just takes five minutes a day, maybe, and taking time to visualize what that future you will be as it pertains to the goal you're going after. Entertaining the possibilities around what do you have to do right now to create that version of you? What's one thing that I can do to create a version of self right now? And you'll be surprised how little it will be. And those little things start to add to what you're saying and be it forward. And that's what you have to that's the part that helps create the momentum. You're trying to connect to that future version of you through visualization. So there's a reason, Algie, Coach Amo. You said when you went after a goal, you had a vision board. You said that. That's correct. Right? That vision board is a part of visualizing the outcome of your achievement. It is. Man, I'm gonna tell you a quick story, really quick. When the market was shifting back after the collapse, my wife and I decided that we were ready to purchase a home. And one of the things that we used to do before we purchased our home, we used to go to model homes and just walk through model homes, just creating this vision of what it would be like to own a home and how in each of these model homes, they're all staged, look perfect. And my wife and I, we would go through these model homes almost every other week or something just to get ideas around what our house is going to look like. And I remember we had no thought or idea that we could purchase a brand new home. We were just going to the brand new homes just to get a vision to purchase a home. And so I remember we entered the market and we were getting outbidding, all of these different things, right? Cash buyers was coming in, swooping up all the houses, and it was really frustrating. And then something just told me, it was like, maybe you could purchase a brand new home. Let's just go see. Bro, we could connect it with the model home buyer. Not gonna say their name and trying to do no type of advertising like that. But anyway, next thing you know, man, we're in the process of buying a brand new home in a brand new area. We the first in our neighborhood. So it was the visualization. That visualization like really helped our purpose because we started believing it really to be true, and we dismissed the old experiences of what we were going through in the buying process. That's right. Because we would literally, and I know a lot of people experience this who purchase a home, you really would have your sights set on this particular home and you put your offer in and you're excited, and you don't get the offer in, or you get the offer in, but they don't accept your offer. They take a cash offer, and you just deflated, you're frustrated, you're carrying all of these emotions. We went through that cycle. But that visualization of what we created going to the model homes, it actually helped us purchase our first home. And in that time, in that moment, I wasn't, I couldn't identify what I'm talking about right now. I just went through it. I just went through the process. I didn't say to my wife, okay, we need to decide that's step one. Step two, we need to understand our purpose and why we're buying it. No, I didn't do any of that. In fact, I just said, hey man, let's go look at some homes and get a vision of what our house is going to look like. And that carried me. And so today, what I'm saying is I'm being extremely intentional to help you create momentum. And however you land on it, that's on you with that visualization. That's aligned action, brother. That's aligned action. Yes, that's aligned action all day, every day. So now I got self-awareness, in which I decide I have understanding your purpose, which is the why power, okay, visualizing going into the model homes, or visualizing your next role, maybe reaching out to people who are in that role or a similar role and asking them insightful questions about how they got there, what they do there, regardless, it's an aligned action. It's aligned action, and that sets the stage for your future view, for your future you. Because check this out, this is the beauty of it. When you start talking to this person who's giving you insight about the position that you're interested in, it creates a certain feeling like, damn, I think I can do that.

SPEAKER_02:

That's right. Oh, you did that? Maybe I can do that. And it strengthens your why.

SPEAKER_03:

It makes it create it strengthens your self-awareness because when that punk ass inner critic shows up saying, remember when you put in those applications, no one replied. You dismiss that punk ass shit. That's right. Because that's no longer truth. Exactly. Exactly. And what's left in all of this is just not giving up on yourself. And that's the grit, homie.

SPEAKER_01:

Wow. It reminds me of a movie I saw years ago called The Power of One. And the professor was asking him, because he was trying to help these Africans learn how to read, right? And he was getting in all kinds of trouble. And the professor said, Why would you do this? Why are you spending so much time doing all of this when it's creating this? And he was lost, didn't understand his wife. So he was walking in nature, and then he was reminded a waterfall begins with one drop. But what happens after? What happens to that waterfall? And that was his purpose. He might just be that first drop from that waterfall because of his internal calling. Said he was the one. And it reminds me of trying to get the visualizations, right? Because there I was in poverty. But I longed to have a car, as all teenagers did. And I thought, whoa, I could just fix that one sitting up down the street that's sitting up on bricks. I could fix that up. And then one day I'm sitting in class and we had these windows, right? And the road, Grand Avenue, went by, and all these cars were going by. And I said, wow, I just want one of those cars. One day I'm going to have my own car. That's right. And you know what? I got a job. And I started saving my money because my goal was one of these days I'm going to have my own car, Mo. And I did the same thing when I was riding my bike in UC Davis. I said, I'm riding by these beautiful homes, like you were saying. We never grew up in a beautiful home. And I'm looking at all these beautiful homes, and I'm like, one day, one of those houses is going to be mine.

SPEAKER_03:

That's right.

SPEAKER_01:

And guess what happened, Mo?

SPEAKER_03:

One of those houses was yours.

SPEAKER_01:

How did you guess that? Come on, man. Absolutely. My mother's reality, my father's reality, my grandfather's reality of not owning a home could have been my reality. Yep. For me, coach, I'm going to say it like this as we begin to close, right? Because I know you want to get this important information out there, and I just want to say this, right? Family, before we close, let me leave you with this. Right? Momentum is not an accident. It's a calling. It's what happens when your spirit aligns with your purpose, right? And your actions line up with your future. So hear this. Believe in the future you placed in your heart. Empower your mind with discipline because consistency, as you said, Coach Mo is sacred. Inspire your circle through the way you live, not the words you say. Transform your daily choices into steps. Honor who you're becoming, not who you were. And then don't wait. Not someday, not when life feels like it's perfect. But now's the time to be it forward. It's spiritual, it's intentional, it's a lifestyle. So this is Coach Amo reminding you don't just talk about it, don't just dream about it, be it forward for your life purpose and for the generations that's watching.

SPEAKER_03:

That's right, brother. Thank you. Termination is the key as well. The white power is the glue. Determination is very important because the old you is going to try to convince you not to visualize and to stay where you are. Always.

SPEAKER_02:

And what's most important, as all the other pillars, grit, grit, seeing it, being it forward. And at the end of the day, that's swag.

SPEAKER_03:

Self-awareness, white power, aligned action, and grit. And this is just the first install for the month of December to help creating momentum for January. And so our next section, we will continue to explore generating momentum. Generating momentum so that you can lead self better.

SPEAKER_01:

Sounds like the seeds for tomorrow.

SPEAKER_03:

Yep. All day. I appreciate you, brother. Likewise. That's another rep in the inner arena. You didn't just listen, you leveled up your swag. Self-awareness, why power, aligned action, and grit. If this hit home, share it, subscribe to the Let's Think About It podcast, and lock in with me on YouTube at Swag Coaching. Until next time, stay aware, lead with your why, act in the moment, and keep your grit strong.