How to Set Goals That Actually Work in 2026 #668

Why do 92% of people fail their New Year's resolutions? It's not willpower, it's a broken system.

In this video, I break down the exact 6-step framework I used to run 58 marathons in 58 days, build a 6-figure coaching business, and prepare for fatherhood, all while maintaining freedom and balance.

You'll learn:
✅ How to set a North Star Goal that actually drives you
✅ The Anti-Goals method (the game-changer no one talks about)
✅ Why your environment predicts your success (backed by 32 years of data)
✅ How to master your time and stop the "96 checks per day" trap
✅ The identity shift that makes goals inevitable

TAKE THE FREE LIFE PERFORMANCE SCORECARD (4 minutes):
👉 https://lachlan-p0moailx.scoreapp.com

This scorecard shows you exactly where you are across the Core 4 pillars (Strong Body, Calm Mind, Clear Purpose, Confident Life) and what to prioritize first. Over 400 men have used it to clarify their next move.

📖 READ THE FULL BLOG POST:
👉 https://www.lachlanstuart.com.au/blog/how-to-make-2026-your-best-year-framework

🎙️ LISTEN TO MY PODCAST:
👉

📱 CONNECT WITH ME:
Instagram: @lachlanstuart
LinkedIn: Lachlan Stuart
Website: www.lachlanstuart.com.au

⏱️ TIMESTAMPS:
0:00 - Why 92% Fail
0:45 - The Problem with Goal-Setting
1:30 - The 6-Step Framework Preview
1:45 - Step 1: North Star Goal
4:00 - Step 2: Anti-Goals (Game-Changer)
6:00 - Step 3: Supporting Goals
7:30 - Step 4: Engineer Your Environment
9:00 - Step 5: Who You're Becoming
10:30 - Step 6: Master Your Time
12:00 - The 3-Week Window
13:00 - Recap + Take the Scorecard

📚 STUDIES REFERENCED:
- University of Scranton (8% success rate): https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/2980864/
- Framingham Heart Study (57% environment impact): https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/17652652/
- Charlie Munger's Inversion Principle: https://fs.blog/inversion/

Chapters

• 0:00 Why Resolutions Fail
• 2:14 Coach Credibility And Big Wins
• 3:35 The Six-Step Roadmap Overview
• 3:58 Step 1: Define Your North Star
• 5:40 Step 2: Set Anti-Goals
• 8:06 Step 3: Build Supporting Goals
• 10:00 Step 4: Engineer Your Environment
• 12:07 Step 5: Upgrade Your Identity
• 15:06 Step 6: Master Your Time
• 17:35 The Three-Week Momentum Window
• 18:17 Recap, Scorecard, And Next Steps

Transcript

SPEAKER_00: 0:00

92% of people who set out in a news resolution will fail by February. And it's not because they're lazy, it's because they're using a broken system. I'm going to show you the six-step framework to puts you in the 8% who actually succeed. Hey, I'm Lachlan Stewart, a life performance coach for men who refuse to settle for mediocrity. And before you think, oh great, another productivity guru telling me to wake up at 4 a.m. and drink green smoothies, let me tell you where I'm coming from. OM PS. I hate waking up at four o'clock, so I don't. And I'm not expecting you to do that. In 2014, I was a carpenter with big dreams and zero frameworks to achieve them. Today, I've built a multiple six-figure coaching business. I ran 58 marathons in 58 consecutive days. That's a marathon every single day for nearly two months. And it's a world first. You can check it out on my website or just Google 58 marathons in 58 days. And we raised over$162,000 for mental health awareness along the way. And I'm about to become a dad, all while maintaining the freedom to do what matters most. The difference between where I was and where I am now, a repeatable system. And that's what I'm going to share with you today. Here's the brutal truth. Research from the University of Scranton shows that only 8% of people achieve their New Year's resolutions. Let me say that again. The problem is that most goal setting advice is designed to feel good in the moment. You know, when people say, hey, just do this, it's that simple. You're like, oh, I believe I can do that. But it doesn't actually work in the real world for a lot of people. We need to keep it super simple and we need to look beyond just the goal in and of itself and the frameworks that support that. And I have spent the last 12 years refining a framework that's helped hundreds of high-performing men turn their potential into actual results. And I've done it for myself multiple times. And I'm going to walk you through all six steps in this video. So make sure you stick around and if you get value from it, make sure you hit the subscribe button. But first, a quick example. Tim, 39-year-old real estate agent that I was working with this year, when we started working together, he was on the edge of burnout, you know, working hard, making plenty of sacrifices, packed on eight kilos, and was in the startup phase of business. Six months later, he ticked over a million dollars in sales for the year, dropped eight kilos, and he's spending more time with his family and friends, going, you know, camping and doing heaps of fun stuff that whites him up. Same guy, different system. So if you're serious about making 2026 your breakthrough year, buckle up. Let's get into it. This isn't theory. This is what actually works. So here's what we're going to cover today. Firstly, your North Star. Secondly, anti-goals. Now, this is game changing that most people miss. It's the game changer that most people miss. Sorry. Thirdly, supporting goals. Fourth, engineering your environment. Fifth, who are you becoming? And sixth and final, mastering your time. And before we dive in, if you want a personalized breakdown on exactly where you are right now, across the core four, which I'll talk about, so you can find out where you're drifting and where you're thriving, I've created a free four-minute life performance scorecard. The link's in the description. Over 400 men have used it to get clarity on what to prioritize first. Okay, let's get into it. So step one, your North Star goal. Your North Star isn't just any goal, it's the one thing that if you achieved it this year, it would fundamentally change your life across multiple areas. And here's why that matters. When you commit to real growth, when you're signing a contract, when you commit to real growth, you're signing a contract with adversity. It's something that a lot of people overlook. Challenges aren't surprises, right? They are guarantees. But without a North Star, you know, a lighthouse in the storm, those challenges feel like roadblocks. But with the North Star, they're just part of the journey. My 2025 North Star was running 58 marathons in 58 days across Australia and the United States. So I ticked off the 50 States Marathon Challenge. And it wasn't just about the running, it was about proving to myself and showing others what's possible when you fully commit to something meaning meaningful. You know, we're all capable of so much more than we believe. And so here's your question: What's that one goal that if you achieved it this year, it would make you look back and say, that changed everything? You also need to think if that doesn't excite you and terrify you, it's probably not big enough. Now, once you have your North Star, you need to make it smart. You've probably heard that acronym, specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, time bound. And then this is the key. Break it down. So I review my North Star quarterly, then I break it into monthly milestones, weekly targets, and daily tasks. And that is how a massive goal, like the 58 marathons, becomes manageable, right? It's the difference between I want to run 58 marathons and today I run 28, uh, sorry, 20 kilometers before 8 a.m. Your daily tasks should always ladder up to your North Star. If they don't, you're just busy, not productive. I want you to remember that. You're not sorry, you're just busy, not productive. All right, step two, anti-goals. This is where most goal setting frameworks completely fall apart. Everyone talks about what you want. No one talks about what you're not willing to sacrifice to get there. When I committed to running the 58 marathons, my primary anti-goal was very clear. I will not lose my marriage. That one statement shaped everything, how I trained, how I communicated with my wife Amy, how I structured my days. Because here's the truth: every goal requires sacrifice. That is no secret, right? It's not mind-blowing there for you. But if you don't define what you're not willing to give up, you'll accidentally sacrifice the things that matter most. It's why I see so many men who financially blow their goals out of the water or they achieve the promotions that they want, but they're on their third marriage, their children don't talk to them, and they don't have the health or the adventure that they're looking for. So that is something to be mindful of. This concept comes from Charlie Munger's inversion principle. Sometimes the best way to solve a problem is to think about what you want to avoid, not what you want, not just what you want to achieve. So this year, as I prepare for fatherhood, right? I've got a kid due in February. My anti-goals are I will not be broke, I will not work more than 40 hours a week, I will not be consistently stressed and run down. Think of anti-goals like riverbanks. Without them, the water spreads thin and evaporates. But with them, well, that same amount of water becomes a powerful current that carves through the mountains. So pause this video now or this episode. Seriously, pause it. I know it's gonna ruin my algorithm, but pause it and write down three to five anti-goals for a goal that you've set for this year. What are you absolutely not willing to sacrifice this year? I'll wait. I'm not going anywhere. You can pause and start this whenever you want. Got them? Good. Let's keep going. Thirdly, or step three, supporting goals. Your North Star doesn't exist in isolation, it needs a foundation. Your North Star is the summit, right? It's supporting goals are the base camps on the way to get up there. You know, nobody summits Everest in one push from C-level. You need to acclimatize, I'm sorry, you need to acclimatize stations and you need base camp. You rush past them and you won't make it home. So for me, supporting goals always include health goals because energy determines my execution. Relationship goals, because success means nothing if you're alone. Financial goals, well, resources create options and opportunity. Recovery goals, sleep, rest, play, the things that keep you sharp and make life fulfilling. This is where my core four framework comes in. And I'll eventually link this to another episode once I get it up. But strong body, calm mind, clear purpose, confident life. Every supporting goal should feed into at least one of these pillars. This is how I believe we can be prove to ourselves that we're capable of more than we thought if we're constantly growing and expanding in those areas. So this principle is simple. You can't sustain peak performance in one area if the other areas are collapsing. You can't build a business if your body's breaking down. Well, you can, but it's probably not sustainable if you want to have a life outside of that. You can't be a great husband or father if you're constantly stressed. It all works together. Look, I know there are a lot of stressed dudes who may hear that statement and they may go, well, I think I'm a great husband and father. If you're chronically stressed, you could probably be a better father because kids are amazing at picking up on energy. People are amazing at picking up on energy. Think about this. When you have a mate who's stressed and he walks into the room or down to the pub or goes for a run with you, you can tell, right? You can tell something's off. So people can tell the same for you. So even if you're doing the best that you can, you could probably level up. And that's why for a lot of people who seek coaching, it's not always because their life's falling apart. It's because there are these one percenters that can improve how they're showing up in different areas of their life that allows them to be a better business owner, better husband, better mate, and just a better version of themselves. But step four, engineer your environment. This one's uncomfortable, but it's critical. Your environment will either elevate you or erode you. There's no neutral ground. And here's the data to prove it. The Framingham, Framingham, sorry, heart study tracked 12,000 people over 32 years. That's a pretty big study. And found that if your friends become obese, the chances of you becoming obese increase by 57%. Let me say that again. 57%. Your environment isn't just influential, it's predictive. You won't lose weight hanging around obese people. Not because they're bad people at all, but because their habits, their mindset, and their standards will become your default. Unless you're just one of those anomalies who can break free of that. Conversely, spend time around millionaires or great fathers, and your likelihood of becoming one skyrockets, right? This is where we align values with actions and the things that I mentioned before. When I decided I wanted to build a million-dollar business, look, I'm not there yet, but I'm working hard, I'm working hard. I knew that I needed to be around people who had already done it. The problem, though, at the time was I wasn't someone that millionaires wanted to spend time with, unless I paid them, of course. So I had two choices in that moment: accept my current circle or become so valuable that high performers wanted me in their world. I chose the latter, the decision, and that decision changed everything. So here's your homework, right? Audit your environment. Are the five people that you spend the most time with pulling you towards your North Star, or are they anchoring you to mediocrity? And only you can answer that. You have to have some honest conversations with yourself. And there's a little thing that I heard years ago and I cannot remember for the life of me who told me, but there are three ways to look at the relationships in your life. There are relationships that you just need to completely remove from your life. And it's not because the people are bad. It might just be that you're on a different or you're heading in a different direction. There are relationships that you need to disassociate or limit the time with because they're still great relationships, but maybe they're holding you back a bit. And then there are going to be relationships that you really need to enhance that time with. And you probably have an idea of those relationships, and that's a separate episode. But step five, focus on who you're becoming. Here's the secret that nobody tells you the goal isn't really about the goal. When people ask me how I ran 58 Marathons, built a lifestyle business, and maintained a thriving marriage, they're asking the wrong bloody question, in my opinion. The real question is, who did I need to become to make those things possible? Because many people want to create change and they try to do it all at once. But I don't believe you can do it all at once. But you can eventually have it all. And what it all looks like depends on your North Star. But every big goal is an identity upgrade disguised as an achievement. Because if you were already to have the results that you wanted, you would be the person or the version of you that would be able to sustain that, right? You would think the way you would have the discipline, you would have the standards, you would understand how the process is working, you'd have the systems, right? So goals crucible. Identity is a steal. The heart isn't meant to destroy you. Sorry, the heat isn't meant to destroy you. It's meant to forge you into something that is harder to break. That is why doing hard things seems to be so popular, but we feel so much satisfaction around doing hard things and coming out the other side. We're just like, man, if I can achieve that, what else am I capable of? That's what's exciting, and I'm pretty keen to hear what you guys get up to in 2026. So after finishing the 58 marathons, people expected me to have this dip, right? This this big crash. They assumed that my identity was wrapped up in the guy who ran 58 marathons. But I didn't have that come down because of previous experiences, because the run was never really about the destination. Yeah, I wanted the outcome. Yeah, I believed it was going to significantly change my life in so many different ways. That's the whole point of having that year-defining goal. But it was more about who I became in the process. More disciplined, more resilient, more capable of handling adversity. And most importantly, just proud of who I am. That version of me didn't disappear when the run ended, right? He's the one building my business, preparing for fatherhood, setting even bigger goals for 2026. It's why I'm committing to doing more of these videos and releasing one to two a week, building out the blog, having the scorecard and the courses that will be available for everyone. So this year, don't just chase outcomes. Ask yourself, who do I need to become to make this goal inevitable? Right? Back yourself into a corner where it's almost impossible to fail. So step six and the final step, master your time allocation. So show me your calendar and I will show you your priorities and predict your results. So many blokes that I've worked with don't even use a calendar. I sit there scratching my head, I'm like, so how do you know what you're doing? They're like, oh, I just, you know, I've got a task list. I'm like, okay, well, how do you make time for the things outside of work or things that are on that task list? Like most people schedule work things, but they don't schedule time outside of work, time with their relationships, time for their health, time with their friends, and that just blows my mind. So if you aren't doing that, that's a little hack. But time is like water in a bucket with holes. You keep pouring more in, working harder, you know, just shipping it in, and you can plug the leaks by saying no. So, or you can plug the leaks by saying no. Most people are exhausted, right? Because they're trying to outpour the holes. That's stupid. So here's a stat that'll blow your mind. The average person checks their phone over 96 times a day. I think there's an updated one where it's like 300 times a day. Pretty wild. That's almost once every 10 minutes, probably more now. I would say I do it more. That's not time management. That is time hamoraging. Like, what are you using your phone for? Is it just addiction or is it, you know, that you're actually on there for meaningful things? I actually bought this device. I don't have it with me. It's just on the fridge behind me, but it's called the brick. If you just jump on Google and Google brick phone control device, it'll come up. It's been a game changer because if you can have it shut down apps on your phone and you can't put a pin code in to do it, you have to go back and scan the app. So if you leave it in a place outside of the room, you just say, ah, you pick up your phone and you realize I don't actually need it now. Everything's locked. I've used a calendar, sorry about a bit a bit of a tangent, but I've used a calendar religiously for years, and I still love a handwritten diary. One that I used, and this is not an endorsement, but it is called My Daily Greatness. They have some great ones available. I also have my own with the Man That Cam project. But here's what most people get wrong: scheduling isn't about doing more, it's about saying no to the right things, right? The more successful you become, the more responsibility you get from children to work. You need to learn to start saying no so that you can free up time to say yes to the right things. The more capable you become, the more people are going to want your time. I promise you. Without the clear frameworks, you'll drown in opportunities that don't move you closer to the North Star. You'll be that busy guy again. But before saying yes to anything, ask yourself this does this move me closer to or further away from what I want? And if it's not a clear yes, it's a no for now. All right, so here's something critical. You have a three-week window. Research shows that 80% of New Year's resolutions fail by February. I'll be about having a kid in February. It's my birthday in February, but 80% of New Year's resolutions fail by then. That means the first three weeks of January are everything for building momentum and establishing habits that will carry you through the year. So if you're watching this in late December or early January, you're in that window. Don't waste it. Okay, all right, let's recap the six steps. North Star goal, the one thing that changes everything for the year. Anti-goals, what you refuse to sacrifice, supporting goals, your base camps to the summer, environment, they elevate or erode. Identity, who are you becoming? Time, plug the leaks. Now, if you're serious about making 2026 your breakthrough year, here's what I want you to do. Take the life performance scorecard. It's free. It takes four minutes and it will show you exactly where you are across the core four areas and what to prioritize first, because expanding those is going to help you prove to yourself that you're capable of more. Over 400 men have used this to gain clarity. And honestly, it is the fastest way to know if you're on track or if you're spinning your wheels. The link's in the description and it's pinned in the comments. And if you want more strategies like this to level up your life, hit that subscribe button. I drop a new video every week. And as I've said on this new channel, I'm committing to do that every week in 2026 on life performance, discipline, and how to become the man that you're capable of being. 2026 is the year that everything changes. But it only but only if you stop treating goal setting like New Year's ritual and start treating it like a strategic process that it actually is. The framework is here. The question is, are you ready to use it? Thanks for watching. I'm Lachlan Stewart. Let's make twenty twenty six great. We'll see you in the next one.