00:00:00Fresh Year, Fresh Perspective
00:00:36Resolutions As Acts Of Optimism
00:01:43When Life Redirects Your Plan
00:02:36Growth Beyond The Script
00:04:02Redefining Success For 2026
00:05:15Parting Thoughts And New Year Wishes
ABOUT THIS EPISODE
Forget the tidy to-do list vision of a new year. We’re talking about resolutions as living commitments that change shape when life does—and why that shift can be the most honest form of progress. I share how a straightforward health focus morphed into launching a bagel business, and what that pivot taught me about courage, flexibility, and the real metrics that matter over twelve messy, meaningful months.
I unpack why resolutions are acts of optimism and how rigidity turns them brittle. Instead of grading a year by whether January’s plan stayed intact, we must judge the journey by who we became: more capable, more resilient, more willing to take a smart risk. You’ll hear practical ways to design adaptable systems, pair outcomes with growth traits, and set feedback loops that reward movement over perfection. Make it more about rolling averages instead of streaks, weekly reviews that spotlight learning, and how to evaluate surprise opportunities against the person you want to become.
The goal isn’t to preserve a plan; it’s to protect your momentum and expand your range.
If this resonates, share it with someone mapping out their 2026 goals, subscribe for more grounded mindset and growth episodes, and leave a quick review with one pivot you’re planning to make. Your story might help someone else choose movement over perfection.
Instagram: @mikemuldoonlc
Website: www.themikemuldoonpodcast.com
Linkedin: www.linkedin.com/company/mike-muldoon-podcast
English
United States
SHOW NOTES 🔗
TRANSCRIPT 🔗
WEBVTT
00:00:00.239 --> 00:00:03.520
Hey everyone, and welcome to six episode the Mike Muldoon podcast.
00:00:03.600 --> 00:00:04.400
Thanks for joining me.
00:00:04.559 --> 00:00:08.400
Getting trying to get this special episode in for the new year so we can all get set off right.
00:00:08.640 --> 00:00:09.679
Because here we are, right?
00:00:09.839 --> 00:00:13.039
2025 is behind us, 2026 is in front of us.
00:00:13.199 --> 00:00:13.919
What does that mean?
00:00:14.000 --> 00:00:16.640
It's a new beginning, it's an opportunity for change.
00:00:16.719 --> 00:00:17.519
And what happens?
00:00:17.679 --> 00:00:19.199
Everybody starts setting their what?
00:00:19.359 --> 00:00:21.600
Their New Year's resolutions.
00:00:21.920 --> 00:00:24.000
And the thing about New Year's resolutions, right?
00:00:24.079 --> 00:00:28.160
When people set them, the thing is nobody ever goes into a new year hoping that things get worse.
00:00:28.399 --> 00:00:34.320
You never hear someone say, This year, I'd really love to be less healthy or lose all my money or end up in a job I hate.
00:00:34.399 --> 00:00:36.079
That's just not how resolutions work.
00:00:36.320 --> 00:00:40.240
New Year's resolutions, you know, are at their core in acts of optimism.
00:00:40.399 --> 00:00:45.039
They're about any sort of improvement, whether it's health, wealth, relationships, confidence, purpose.
00:00:45.200 --> 00:00:47.200
They're about looking forward.
00:00:47.600 --> 00:00:51.200
I want something better than where I am right now.
00:00:51.359 --> 00:01:02.159
And that's what's important to remember this year, because where people tend to get stuck isn't in the intention, it's in the rigidity that they sort of put upon themselves about these resolutions.
00:01:02.240 --> 00:01:03.840
And that's what we're going to talk about.
00:01:34.799 --> 00:01:38.000
Resolutions often start with something clear and familiar.
00:01:38.159 --> 00:01:42.159
Again, health, fitness, routine, discipline.
00:01:42.400 --> 00:01:43.760
Heck, mine did last year.
00:01:43.840 --> 00:01:45.439
That's exactly how it was supposed to be.
00:01:45.599 --> 00:01:51.200
Last year began with a focus on improving my health and getting stronger physically and mentally, all that usual stuff.
00:01:51.280 --> 00:01:52.719
And then life did what it does.
00:01:52.799 --> 00:01:53.920
It just got in away.
00:01:54.000 --> 00:01:55.359
That focus didn't disappear.
00:01:55.519 --> 00:01:57.760
It just evolved into something else.
00:01:58.000 --> 00:02:08.400
Almost suddenly, my attention shifted towards something completely unexpected: entrepreneurship, starting a business, taking a risk in a world I didn't fully understand, the bagel business of all things.
00:02:08.560 --> 00:02:13.840
You know, up until uh, you know, that point, my experience with bagels and coffee shops are pretty simple.
00:02:14.000 --> 00:02:15.840
Eating bagels and writing in coffee shops.
00:02:15.919 --> 00:02:16.639
That was it.
00:02:16.879 --> 00:02:27.360
But what started as uh, you know, self-improvement through health became self-improvement through courage, through uncertainty, through building something from scratch and learning as I went.
00:02:27.599 --> 00:02:30.800
See, the resolution didn't fail, it just transformed.
00:02:30.879 --> 00:02:34.400
Because the thing is, growth always doesn't look like the original plan.
00:02:35.199 --> 00:02:37.199
That's the part we don't talk about enough.
00:02:37.360 --> 00:02:41.919
We tend to judge resolutions by only by whether or not they stayed the same all year.
00:02:42.240 --> 00:02:48.319
But growth isn't linear, and improvement doesn't always follow the script we write on January 1st of the previous year.
00:02:48.639 --> 00:03:01.120
Sometimes improvement looks like taking a risk you never planned on taking, entering a world you know nothing about, stumbling, adjusting, learning, and continuing anyway, whatever it is, becoming more resilient, not just more disciplined.
00:03:01.680 --> 00:03:09.120
See, by the end of the year, you might look back and say, you know what, I didn't hit that exact uh health and fitness goal I set out to, but I did something I never done before.
00:03:09.360 --> 00:03:11.280
I grew in a way I didn't expect.
00:03:11.680 --> 00:03:13.120
And that counts.
00:03:13.599 --> 00:03:16.240
So the real question isn't about the resolution.
00:03:16.719 --> 00:03:28.400
So maybe the better question is, you know, not so much did I stick to my resolution, but maybe it's, you know, how did I arrive at the end of the year?
00:03:28.479 --> 00:03:31.280
So for you right now, it's like, what did I start in 2026?
00:03:31.520 --> 00:03:34.800
I think it would be about I was gonna do, but how do I arrive at the end of it?
00:03:34.960 --> 00:03:41.520
Do you want to arrive in the same place, physically, mentally, emotionally, doing the same things, having learned nothing new?
00:03:41.759 --> 00:03:49.599
Or do you want to arrive having tried something hard, taken a chance, learned from mistakes, improved in at least one meaningful way?
00:03:49.680 --> 00:03:54.560
Because progress doesn't require perfection, it requires movement.
00:03:55.360 --> 00:04:04.240
So if you didn't, you know, um hit your resolutions that you started in 2025, don't beat yourself up, zoom out a little bit on it.
00:04:04.400 --> 00:04:11.039
You know, if your resolution, you know, uh changed throughout the year, it didn't mean that you failed.
00:04:11.199 --> 00:04:17.839
It just might mean that, you know, you're paying attention to growing in certain or in other areas, right?
00:04:17.920 --> 00:04:20.240
You want because that's the whole thing about a resolution.
00:04:20.319 --> 00:04:21.199
It's about growth.
00:04:21.360 --> 00:04:29.040
So at the end of this year, the goal isn't to punish yourself for what doesn't happen or what didn't happen in 2025.
00:04:29.600 --> 00:04:36.160
The goal is to honestly say, I am not the same person I was that last January.
00:04:36.720 --> 00:04:43.759
And if you look back, you might realize maybe you're stronger now, maybe you're braver now, maybe you're more capable, maybe you've built something that you didn't exist before.
00:04:43.920 --> 00:04:45.759
It's all about improvement.
00:04:46.079 --> 00:04:51.519
So when you strip it all down, that's what New Year's resolutions were always meant to be about, anyway.
00:04:52.560 --> 00:04:57.839
One year, one step, one small but real improvement.
00:04:58.160 --> 00:04:58.560
All right.
00:04:58.639 --> 00:05:05.360
So as you set your 2026 resolutions, if you're somebody who does that, or you set your goals, which is great to have.
00:05:05.680 --> 00:05:10.720
And if you set them in 2025 but you didn't hit them, but still go back and look, because where did you grow?
00:05:10.800 --> 00:05:11.839
Because that's the important thing.
00:05:12.000 --> 00:05:13.360
Growth is the most important thing.
00:05:13.439 --> 00:05:23.199
And the same as in 2026, you might set something and then the world might get in the way, or a new opportunity might present itself, a new risk, something that you didn't foresee.
00:05:23.360 --> 00:05:28.160
But at the end of it, if you grow from it, that's what matters the most.
00:05:28.319 --> 00:05:29.439
So that's what I got for you.
00:05:29.519 --> 00:05:30.720
So happy new year.
00:05:30.959 --> 00:05:36.319
Here's to 2026, and next year, let's see here where we all end up.
00:05:36.399 --> 00:05:38.079
And that's all I got for you today.
00:05:38.240 --> 00:05:43.439
So I appreciate you being with me, especially the journey is a little bit more sporadic in 2026.
00:05:43.519 --> 00:05:45.439
I'll try to get even better with this.
00:05:45.839 --> 00:05:48.959
But as always, be safe.
00:05:49.120 --> 00:05:52.240
Have a great rest of your holiday weekend if you're still off.
00:05:52.399 --> 00:05:54.560
And as always, I got another beloved.
00:00:00.239 --> 00:00:03.520
Hey everyone, and welcome to six episode the Mike Muldoon podcast.
00:00:03.600 --> 00:00:04.400
Thanks for joining me.
00:00:04.559 --> 00:00:08.400
Getting trying to get this special episode in for the new year so we can all get set off right.
00:00:08.640 --> 00:00:09.679
Because here we are, right?
00:00:09.839 --> 00:00:13.039
2025 is behind us, 2026 is in front of us.
00:00:13.199 --> 00:00:13.919
What does that mean?
00:00:14.000 --> 00:00:16.640
It's a new beginning, it's an opportunity for change.
00:00:16.719 --> 00:00:17.519
And what happens?
00:00:17.679 --> 00:00:19.199
Everybody starts setting their what?
00:00:19.359 --> 00:00:21.600
Their New Year's resolutions.
00:00:21.920 --> 00:00:24.000
And the thing about New Year's resolutions, right?
00:00:24.079 --> 00:00:28.160
When people set them, the thing is nobody ever goes into a new year hoping that things get worse.
00:00:28.399 --> 00:00:34.320
You never hear someone say, This year, I'd really love to be less healthy or lose all my money or end up in a job I hate.
00:00:34.399 --> 00:00:36.079
That's just not how resolutions work.
00:00:36.320 --> 00:00:40.240
New Year's resolutions, you know, are at their core in acts of optimism.
00:00:40.399 --> 00:00:45.039
They're about any sort of improvement, whether it's health, wealth, relationships, confidence, purpose.
00:00:45.200 --> 00:00:47.200
They're about looking forward.
00:00:47.600 --> 00:00:51.200
I want something better than where I am right now.
00:00:51.359 --> 00:01:02.159
And that's what's important to remember this year, because where people tend to get stuck isn't in the intention, it's in the rigidity that they sort of put upon themselves about these resolutions.
00:01:02.240 --> 00:01:03.840
And that's what we're going to talk about.
00:01:34.799 --> 00:01:38.000
Resolutions often start with something clear and familiar.
00:01:38.159 --> 00:01:42.159
Again, health, fitness, routine, discipline.
00:01:42.400 --> 00:01:43.760
Heck, mine did last year.
00:01:43.840 --> 00:01:45.439
That's exactly how it was supposed to be.
00:01:45.599 --> 00:01:51.200
Last year began with a focus on improving my health and getting stronger physically and mentally, all that usual stuff.
00:01:51.280 --> 00:01:52.719
And then life did what it does.
00:01:52.799 --> 00:01:53.920
It just got in away.
00:01:54.000 --> 00:01:55.359
That focus didn't disappear.
00:01:55.519 --> 00:01:57.760
It just evolved into something else.
00:01:58.000 --> 00:02:08.400
Almost suddenly, my attention shifted towards something completely unexpected: entrepreneurship, starting a business, taking a risk in a world I didn't fully understand, the bagel business of all things.
00:02:08.560 --> 00:02:13.840
You know, up until uh, you know, that point, my experience with bagels and coffee shops are pretty simple.
00:02:14.000 --> 00:02:15.840
Eating bagels and writing in coffee shops.
00:02:15.919 --> 00:02:16.639
That was it.
00:02:16.879 --> 00:02:27.360
But what started as uh, you know, self-improvement through health became self-improvement through courage, through uncertainty, through building something from scratch and learning as I went.
00:02:27.599 --> 00:02:30.800
See, the resolution didn't fail, it just transformed.
00:02:30.879 --> 00:02:34.400
Because the thing is, growth always doesn't look like the original plan.
00:02:35.199 --> 00:02:37.199
That's the part we don't talk about enough.
00:02:37.360 --> 00:02:41.919
We tend to judge resolutions by only by whether or not they stayed the same all year.
00:02:42.240 --> 00:02:48.319
But growth isn't linear, and improvement doesn't always follow the script we write on January 1st of the previous year.
00:02:48.639 --> 00:03:01.120
Sometimes improvement looks like taking a risk you never planned on taking, entering a world you know nothing about, stumbling, adjusting, learning, and continuing anyway, whatever it is, becoming more resilient, not just more disciplined.
00:03:01.680 --> 00:03:09.120
See, by the end of the year, you might look back and say, you know what, I didn't hit that exact uh health and fitness goal I set out to, but I did something I never done before.
00:03:09.360 --> 00:03:11.280
I grew in a way I didn't expect.
00:03:11.680 --> 00:03:13.120
And that counts.
00:03:13.599 --> 00:03:16.240
So the real question isn't about the resolution.
00:03:16.719 --> 00:03:28.400
So maybe the better question is, you know, not so much did I stick to my resolution, but maybe it's, you know, how did I arrive at the end of the year?
00:03:28.479 --> 00:03:31.280
So for you right now, it's like, what did I start in 2026?
00:03:31.520 --> 00:03:34.800
I think it would be about I was gonna do, but how do I arrive at the end of it?
00:03:34.960 --> 00:03:41.520
Do you want to arrive in the same place, physically, mentally, emotionally, doing the same things, having learned nothing new?
00:03:41.759 --> 00:03:49.599
Or do you want to arrive having tried something hard, taken a chance, learned from mistakes, improved in at least one meaningful way?
00:03:49.680 --> 00:03:54.560
Because progress doesn't require perfection, it requires movement.
00:03:55.360 --> 00:04:04.240
So if you didn't, you know, um hit your resolutions that you started in 2025, don't beat yourself up, zoom out a little bit on it.
00:04:04.400 --> 00:04:11.039
You know, if your resolution, you know, uh changed throughout the year, it didn't mean that you failed.
00:04:11.199 --> 00:04:17.839
It just might mean that, you know, you're paying attention to growing in certain or in other areas, right?
00:04:17.920 --> 00:04:20.240
You want because that's the whole thing about a resolution.
00:04:20.319 --> 00:04:21.199
It's about growth.
00:04:21.360 --> 00:04:29.040
So at the end of this year, the goal isn't to punish yourself for what doesn't happen or what didn't happen in 2025.
00:04:29.600 --> 00:04:36.160
The goal is to honestly say, I am not the same person I was that last January.
00:04:36.720 --> 00:04:43.759
And if you look back, you might realize maybe you're stronger now, maybe you're braver now, maybe you're more capable, maybe you've built something that you didn't exist before.
00:04:43.920 --> 00:04:45.759
It's all about improvement.
00:04:46.079 --> 00:04:51.519
So when you strip it all down, that's what New Year's resolutions were always meant to be about, anyway.
00:04:52.560 --> 00:04:57.839
One year, one step, one small but real improvement.
00:04:58.160 --> 00:04:58.560
All right.
00:04:58.639 --> 00:05:05.360
So as you set your 2026 resolutions, if you're somebody who does that, or you set your goals, which is great to have.
00:05:05.680 --> 00:05:10.720
And if you set them in 2025 but you didn't hit them, but still go back and look, because where did you grow?
00:05:10.800 --> 00:05:11.839
Because that's the important thing.
00:05:12.000 --> 00:05:13.360
Growth is the most important thing.
00:05:13.439 --> 00:05:23.199
And the same as in 2026, you might set something and then the world might get in the way, or a new opportunity might present itself, a new risk, something that you didn't foresee.
00:05:23.360 --> 00:05:28.160
But at the end of it, if you grow from it, that's what matters the most.
00:05:28.319 --> 00:05:29.439
So that's what I got for you.
00:05:29.519 --> 00:05:30.720
So happy new year.
00:05:30.959 --> 00:05:36.319
Here's to 2026, and next year, let's see here where we all end up.
00:05:36.399 --> 00:05:38.079
And that's all I got for you today.
00:05:38.240 --> 00:05:43.439
So I appreciate you being with me, especially the journey is a little bit more sporadic in 2026.
00:05:43.519 --> 00:05:45.439
I'll try to get even better with this.
00:05:45.839 --> 00:05:48.959
But as always, be safe.
00:05:49.120 --> 00:05:52.240
Have a great rest of your holiday weekend if you're still off.
00:05:52.399 --> 00:05:54.560
And as always, I got another beloved.
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