happy 2026 + 3 unconventional thots

keep these top of mind

Happy new year, my friend! Hope you had a great holiday break. And have an even better year ahead.

Personally speaking:

I don’t really have any goals for the new year.

I don’t really have any ‘word’ or ‘theme’ for the new year.

I don’t really have any plans.

I just went to sleep at 9pm last night, woke up this morning, kicked it with my parents, looked up at the bright sky and chuckled like a crazy man while thinking to myself:

“Whatever happens, happens.”

And that felt good.

Not because there’s anything wrong with setting goals or themes or plans. Truth be told, I usually do those things. But this year I didn’t feel the need to. Instead, I felt like goals, themes, and plans are just tools I use to remind myself of what is important in case I fall asleep at the wheel of life (and the more I live in my sleep, the more I need goals). But the more time I actually spend awake and present to my life, the less I need goals, themes, or plans.

Instead, I simply remain awake, show up to meet the moment before me, and optimal right action just flows…

… leading to the unfoldment of my life (which has been quite wild as of recent!).

The only real aim I guess I have to support that process is to stay awake.

And I don’t think that’s just relevant to me.

I think for the vast majority the problem isn’t that people don’t know what they want. The problem is that they don’t stay awake long enough to actually get it.

Instead what happens is they’re awake, excited, and present on January 1st, but shortly thereafter the pull of their familiar conditioning pulls them out of the excitement of the new year and before they know it… they have fallen back asleep and don’t wake up again until December 31st.

This is what happens to most people.

Heck, this is what used to happen to me.

It doesn’t anymore because the solution out of this predicament isn’t to set more goals or clear goals or smart goals or realistic goals (F realistic goals) or whatever else people do…

The solution is to focus on staying awake aka maximizing presence so you end up treating every day like January 1st. Make (and keep that) your singular aim this year and watch what happens to your life!

So that’s the first thot.

Now onto the 2nd (all these are kind of related, but not really… kind of just things I was pondering and wanted to put out there to kick off this year):

When I was a teenager, I would read articles like the “top regrets of the dying” and would always see: “I wish I had the courage to live a life true to myself” at the top of the list.

But I couldn’t understand it.

How could people not live a life true to themselves?

Then I grew up, entered adulthood, and experienced how all of society is designed to collectively stab at you until you walk down your chosen mountain and embrace the mountain of the time.

It takes great courage, boldness, and the capacity to stomach many lonely nights to go against the conditioning of the time and stay true.

Definitely lost my balance here and there, but overall happy to say that I made it through all the dark nights and stayed true.

My only wish for you this year (and beyond) is to do the same.

Now onto the third and final thot:

Mindset work is very useful, but eventually it becomes a prison too.

In the beginning, the world conditions you negatively.

So positive programming is extremely useful and needed to step into a new version of yourself so you can run up the numbers and bring your wildest dreams to life.

But if you remain at the level of positive programming, you remain at the level of the mind and over time it not only becomes a juiceless existence, but you also miss out on the objective reality that exists beyond the mind.

This reality is “heavenly” and I don’t use that word lightly.

Choir bells are ringing. Liquid gold is falling from the sky. And all of creation is singing Hallelujah.

I know that sounds like just words, but it’s a small taste of the actual experience of reality in its true form. But in order to get there, you have to give up what got you here. And that is your allegiance to the mind.

The good news is nobody can force you to give it up, only you can decide for yourself. And reality is infinitely patient so there is no rush. But when you’ve had enough of living the life of the mind, you can boldly (or cautiously) drop it all and step into the land of no time.

In the beginning, it may be scary (or at least it was for me).

But eventually, it becomes liberating because you see the face of Divinity.

And once you do, all of creation is freed! :-)

–

That’s it for me.

What’s up with you?

Shoot me a reply and let me know what’s on your mind heading into 2026. I’ll read every response and do my best to reply (but it may take me a bit).

Cheers!

Your friend,

/tej

P.S. Ok thots come in bunches, so I got one more…

“Wherever you go, there you are” is often said in a negative context

Meaning:

If you’re depressed in x town, you’ll probably be depressed in y town too

And that makes sense

But the real gold of this quote is mined when you realize

If you can do the work to cultivate inner freedom and liberation and connection with your ultimate nature (that is beyond time and space), then you can remain free no matter where life takes you

Because…

Wherever you go, there you are ;-)

–

I think that’s worth doing? Not even for just this life, but all lives.

I’m not there yet aka fully stabilized personally. But I’ve definitely turned the corner.

I think I’ll crack it this year?

Idk… we’ll see, but cheers!!