From Chaos to Confidence: Goal Setting for 2026

Key Takeaways:

• Working harder without direction keeps you busy, not successful - clear business goal setting creates momentum

• The truth about your business numbers might be a bit scary, but it's the starting point for real change

• Small, consistent steps beat big intentions every time for building sustainable growth

• Your back office systems either support your goals or sabotage them - there's no middle ground

• Success in 2026 starts with honest awareness of where you are right now, not where you wish you were

Let me guess. You're working harder than ever, but your business still feels like it's running you rather than the other way round, I know cliché, right?

Up early, working late, skipping lunch, wondering why the profits aren't matching the effort. I see this all the time with business owners who come to me - they're exhausted, stressed, and stuck in a pattern they can't seem to break.

I get it. You believed working harder would fix things. So you worked harder. Longer. You gave up evenings, weekends, and probably a bit (or a lot) of yourself along the way.

But if working harder was actually the solution, you'd be somewhere sunny right now instead of reading this while stuffing your face with biscuits because you forgot about lunch. Again.

The problem isn't your work ethic. You've got that in spades. The problem is that you're running flat out without actually knowing where you're heading. And you can't reach a destination you haven't properly worked out.

Most Business Goal Setting is Just Wishful Thinking

Every January, we all do the same thing. Scribble ambitious goals on Post-it notes. "Double revenue." "Get more clients." "Work less." You might even stick them on your monitor for a week or two.

Then February happens. The Post-it notes start to curl. By March, they've fallen behind your desk along with last month's optimism.

Why does this keep happening? Because most business goal setting skips the uncomfortable bits. The bits that actually matter.

You need brutal honesty about where you are now. Not where you'd like to be. Not where you tell people you are on LinkedIn when you're trying to look successful. Where you actually are when you're awake at 2 am, worrying about cash flow.

You also need to understand what's genuinely stopping you. And I'll tell you now, it's probably not what you think. Most business owners blame their marketing when the real problem is lurking in their back office, bleeding cash and hours they can't even see.

And then you need achievable steps. Not some massive overhaul that requires you to become a completely different person overnight. Small changes that you can actually stick to.

You've probably heard about all the different business goal-setting methods out there. SMART goals, OKRs, the 10X rule, vision boards - there's no shortage of frameworks promising to transform your business. Some people swear by quarterly goals, others plan five years ahead. Some write everything down in elaborate journals, others prefer a simple spreadsheet. And look, they all work for someone.

The problem is, most of them assume you've got your business basics sorted already. If your back office is chaos and your cash flow's unpredictable, adding a complex goal-setting framework on top just creates more overwhelm. You need foundations first, then the fancy planning tools actually become useful.

That's exactly what we work through on my Writing Your Success sessions - turning vague hopes into an actual plan you can follow for the next 12 months.

You've Got to Face Where You Are First

Before you start business goal setting to plan where you're going, you need to look at where you are. Properly look at it, not just a cursory glance every six months.

How much profit did you actually make last year? Not turnover. Not "roughly this much." Actual profit.

How many hours are you really working each week? Include the evenings answering emails and the Sundays sorting out next week's jobs.

How much cash have you got tied up in unpaid invoices, stock you're not shifting, or that software subscription you forgot to cancel six months ago?

This is usually where people start backing away. Looking closely at the numbers feels scary. What if they're worse than you thought?

But you know what? After years of helping business owners sort out their back offices, I can tell you the truth is rarely as bad as the fear. And even when the numbers are rough, at least you know what you're dealing with. You can't fix what you won't face.

This is the first step of my Efficiency & Profit Framework - ANALYSE. Rip off the plaster and face reality. Because once you stop running from the truth, you can actually start fixing things.

Your Back Office is Sabotaging Your Goals

Right now, whilst you're dreaming about doubling your revenue in 2026, your back office is quietly undermining everything you're trying to achieve.

Invoices going out late because your admin's a mess. Money disappearing on suppliers you haven't reviewed in two years. Bookkeeping that's three months behind, so you're making decisions based on guesswork rather than facts.

You can't build a successful business on shaky foundations. You just end up working harder to keep a wonky structure standing.

Most business coaches will tell you to fix your marketing first. Get more clients. Run ads. Post on LinkedIn constantly.

But here's what I see happen: if your back office is chaos, more clients just means more chaos. You'll work even harder for margins that are thinner than you realise because you're losing money in places you haven't even looked at.

This is why I always start with streamlining the back office - sorting cash flow, tightening up systems, plugging the profit leaks. Once you've got solid foundations under your business, growth becomes so much easier.

What Does Success Actually Mean to You?

Before we dive into setting business goals, let's talk about what success really looks like. Not the Instagram version with the sports car and inspirational quotes. Your version.

What does your perfect day look like? And I don't mean "one day when I retire." I mean a regular Tuesday in 2026 that makes you think, "Yeah, this is exactly what I wanted when I started."

Maybe that's finishing work at 3 pm to pick up the kids without feeling guilty. Maybe it's having enough profit in the bank that you stop checking your balance before paying bills. Maybe it's hiring someone to handle the admin so you can focus on the work you actually enjoy.

Success isn't about grinding yourself into the ground to hit some arbitrary revenue target. You’re building a business that gives you control, confidence, and the life you want alongside it.

On a Writing Your Success session, we'll work through your perfect-day blueprint. Not as some far-off dream, but as something you can start building right now with the right plan behind it.

Goals Need Structure to Actually Happen

The gap between goals and results isn't about motivation. It's about structure.

You don't need another pep talk about believing in yourself. You need a clear plan with achievable milestones and someone keeping you accountable when life inevitably gets in the way.

This is the ACHIEVE stage of my framework. Set bold goals, yes. But then break them down into steps that don't require superhuman willpower.

Want to save 10 hours a week? Start by tracking where your time actually goes. You can't streamline what you haven't measured.

Want to increase profit by 20%? Start by understanding your margins on each product or service. Then work backwards to see what needs to change.

Want to take a proper holiday without your phone glued to your hand? Start by documenting one process each week so someone else can handle it.

Small steps. Consistent action. Actual progress instead of just good intentions.

And I'm a firm believer that you don't have to do this alone. Working with other business owners who understand what you're facing makes the whole thing easier. You'll get ideas you hadn't thought of. Support when things get tough. And accountability when you need that gentle push to keep going.

The Real Work Starts After the Goal Setting

Setting goals is actually the easy bit. The hard bit is doing the work when the initial excitement wears off and you're faced with the reality that change takes effort.

But I've seen this time and again: when you combine clear goals with solid systems, realistic plans, and ongoing support, something shifts. You stop feeling like you're drowning. You start feeling like you've got some control back.

Your cash flow becomes predictable instead of terrifying. Admin doesn't pile up because you've got systems that actually work. Profits improve because you're not losing money in places you hadn't spotted.

And most importantly? You remember why you started your business in the first place. Not to work harder than you ever did in a job. But to build something that gives you the life you wanted.

Your Next 12 Months Start Now

Look, 2026 can be the year things change. Not through magic or luck. Through honest awareness, practical planning, and consistent action.

You can keep doing what you've always done - working harder, hoping things will improve, setting goals you'll forget by February.

Or you can do something different.

Book a Writing Your Success Session and let's turn those vague ideas about success into a proper 12-month plan. You'll leave with clarity on your goals and a roadmap to get there.

Investment is £250 + VAT. Your business is worth that, and so are you.

Because you probably don't need to work harder. You just need to work on the right things. And that starts with knowing exactly what those things are.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: I've set goals before and never stuck to them. What makes this different?

The difference is structure and support. Most goal setting stops at writing down what you want. At Writing Your Success, we break your goals into achievable milestones, create an actual 12-month plan, and you'll be surrounded by other business owners keeping you accountable. Plus, we address the back-office systems that either support your goals or sabotage them - something most goal-setting workshops completely miss.

Q: I'm too busy to think about goal setting right now. Shouldn't I just focus on getting through the next few months?

Being too busy to plan is like being too busy driving to look at a map. You might be moving fast, but you could be heading in completely the wrong direction. A few focused hours creating a proper plan will save you months of working hard on the wrong things. To be honest, the business owners who say they're too busy to plan are usually the ones who need it most.

Q: Do I need to have my finances perfectly organised before attending?

Not at all. If anything, realising your finances are a bit chaotic is exactly why you should come. Part of goal setting is understanding where you are now, and we'll help you figure out what you need to face up to and what steps to take next. You don't need everything sorted - you just need to be ready to be honest about where things actually stand.

Q: What if I'm not sure what my goals should be?

That's completely normal, and we'll work through it together at the masterclass. A lot of business owners have lost sight of what they actually want because they've been so busy just surviving. We'll help you reconnect with what matters - in both your business and your life - and create goals that excite you rather than just adding more pressure.

Q: I'm based outside London and Essex. Are these sessions still relevant for me?

The sessions can be in person in Harlow or over a Teams call, but the principles work anywhere. The strategies we'll cover - from streamlining your back office to creating achievable milestones - apply whether you're running a trade business in Birmingham or a creative agency in Brighton. If you can get to Harlow for the day, you'll leave with a plan that works for your business wherever you're based.