The Soft Rebrand of 2026: A Practice in No Expectations

Happy (almost) New Year!

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I’ll be the first to confess that as a founder and growth marketer, I’m naturally drawn to performance-related metrics in all facets of my life, ranging from measuring health insights and social engagements to TERA’s traffic. Optimizing towards milestones feels instinctive and logical, because growth is a natural part of evolving with life.

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But lately, I’m starting to realize the current state of performance culture is starting to feel illogical, because we’re applying measurement to everything, like to the act of being creative or brand building. While we often celebrate the final product, the art of creation lives in how and why something comes into being. It’s a philosophy as much as a practice.

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Performance culture robs us of the natural flow of life and the act of creation itself.

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It trains us to ask:

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Will this land? Will this scale? Will this be worth it?

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When we really should be asking:

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Does this feel aligned to my brand (personal or work), even if no one notices?

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Not applying a performance mindset to everything isn’t to say that excellence or effort don’t matter, it’s just that metrics like virality, likes, shares are not accurate proxies for value because our standards are being defined by a general audience. Being popular today is not synonymous with good quality, and chasing it can dilute the depth, meaning and originality of the work we create. By optimizing for performance for the masses, instead of authenticity, our work starts to reflect what others want to see rather than who we are and what our actual standards may be.

A word about authenticity from the greats:

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The Risks of Always Being ‘On’

Brands and people alike feel that if they’re not posting constantly, announcing literally everything, silence signals irrelevance. But constantly making a point of being online can be interpreted as brand compulsion disguised as engagement rather than brand-building (personal or business). Unless what you’re producing consistently meets a high bar for clarity and originality, posting for the sake of presence dilutes identity rather than strengthening it because sustained excellence every day is challenging. It’s not impossible, but it does require intentionality. When we post on social media, we feel the spike of validation when the likes come streaming in, only to start doubting ourselves when another post fails to perform. Over time, our nervous system starts to equate visibility with safety, and absence with risk, teaching us to prioritize stimulation over substance.

Not being online all the time isn’t to be confused with responsiveness or cultural fluency. Being attuned to culture, knowing when to speak, when to respond, and when to participate reflects emotional intelligence from a brand (both personal or business). Timeliness when paired with taste and intention builds relevance and trust. Reacting thoughtfully signals awareness.

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What does that mean for us in 2026?

Give yourself some grace this year going into 2026. Not everything needs to be performative, measured, validated. Some things just need to exist. This doesn’t mean ignoring growth or impact, but it does mean letting go of the constant need to perform for an audience or optimize for approval. 2026 is about doing less for the world’s applause and more for the work itself.

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Here Are Some Ideas to Kickstart a Non-Performance Mindset

• Write a blog post for an audience of 1 (you)
• Turn off strava and just run
• Take a walk in your neighborhood pretending it’s your first time seeing it
• Make a meal without following a recipe
• Create a playlist for a very specific non-existent mood
• Make a short film with your phone and never show anyone
• Create a holiday for yourself and celebrate it alone
• Make a drawing using only your non-dominant hand
• Add an alter ego to your vision board
• Start a secret hobby
• Post without explanation
• Go a day (or ½ a day) without looking at your phone
• Do one thing per day without multitasking
• Try something you won’t be good at
• Learn a song badly and sing it loudly in the shower
• Try drawing a self-portrait blindfolded
• Wear two completely mismatched socks and embrace it
• Get ready to go to a gala but never leave the house
• Find something weird you’re really into and start talking about it

Although I’m writing this post at the beginning of the new year, this philosophy isn’t tied to a calendar. It’s not how much you’re doing or how you’re optimizing, but how little your self-worth depends on others knowing you’ve done it. It’s about decoupling your value from performance. Let this be a gentle practice, not another metric to get right!

Happy 2026 :)

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