A few months ago I came across an interesting article on anti-goals written by Tiny co-founder Andrew Wilkinson. In it, Wilkinson explains that when he found his days filling up with things he didn’t want to do, he and his business partner, Chris, thought about the worst day they could imagine and made a list of all the ways they intended to avoid it. They called this their anti-goals.

This approach struck me as a useful exercise as we step into an uncertain 2022. It may be hard to identify what we want for 2022 in the way of traditional goals or resolutions, but we can explore what we don’t want as a way to lead us more intentionally to what we do.

It’s also an interesting lens through which to consider building your thought leadership platform. In that spirit, here’s a quick exercise to help clarify your approach to personal branding this year:

• What do you not want to sacrifice as you build your brand?
• What leadership approaches have you seen or experienced that you do not want to replicate?
• What PR and marketing platforms will you not use to promote your personal brand in 2022?
• What tactics or strategies have you been using that you want to let go of?

Just as I was finishing this email, I came across the root word of “resolution,” from the Latin word “resolvere.” I was surprised and delighted to discover its true meaning: to loosen, relax, set free, release.

Wishing you a safe and hopeful step into 2022.

P.S.: I love this line from T.S. Eliot’s Little Gidding, “For last year’s words belong to last year’s language, And next year’s words await another voice.”