It's (almost) that time again. What are people focusing on in 2026? I can't even remember my 2025 goals. Maybe to learn how to swim, and get my French to B1? I didn't do any of that. I did pick up a new work certification though, on Salesforce integration architecture. I'll be getting another work-related certification in 2026 on identity and access management. In my personal life, I'm going to try again to get a paper published in 2026. I've got a few ideas involving my current line of work in credit unions.
There's still time to reach 2025 goals! For example, I've always wanted to do National Novel Writing Month—NaNoWriMo is a challenge in which one writes 50,000 words within the month of November—and I think I have enough ducks in a row right now to try it.
Great reminder! I did NaNoWriMo a few years ago and it was a lot of fun. Though I did not hit my 50K goal, it did give me the confidence to write a book, which I later did. (Impact Measurement and Outcomes Evaluation Using Salesforce for Nonprofits: A Guide to Data-Driven Frameworks | SpringerLink)
I shipped my micro-SaaS app, so in 2026 I'll be focused on growing my customer base. I'm also trying something else new: I'm working on a paper that I want to get published to kick off working toward a PhD by Publication in the next 18-24 months. There are quite a few universities that don't restrict these programs to their own faculty members, but are open to all.
Neat! I've been looking into research accelerators lately. They are programs that pair you up with a mentor to help work through some of those things you'd normally do with an advisor if you were enrolled in a PhD or MRes. Keep in mind that many schools require the publications used for the PhD by Publication to be achieved after you're accepted - so you might use this first one to learn the skills you need and then seek out the program.
In my research I haven't yet come across a program that require the publications to be achieved after acceptance. I'm only interested in PhD by Prior Publication programs where you get 6-12 months to turn your published works into a dissertation and defend it. I have some contacts in academia that I might ask to help me find someone who would be willing to act as a mentor for me. I'm also following the advice of Dr. Tara Brabazon. I learned about her on here - I think it was you who posted a video of her holding a virtual seminar about the PhD by Prior Publication process. She is a goldmine of information and I'm subscribed to her YouTube channel where she's pretty active.
Best of wishes to you on getting published! I'll take a look into research accelerators. I hope you find a mentor you like.
Chopin Prelude XX. Simple on the page. Hard for arthritic hands. Hunh. When I first saw the title of the thread, I thought it said "Goats 2026". That wouldn't be bad, either.
Goats are great. I won my work's Hackathon this year (second time in a row!) and got a little trophy that said "The Goat."
As part of my goal to publish a paper in 2026, I've joined a research accelerator. Basically, they bring several students together with a study they've conceptualized and lead you through the process of collecting the data and writing the manuscript. They have a statistician do the stats and then assign students the responsibility of writing up the different sections of the paper, creating the figures and submitting the manuscript. I'll make a post in a month or so when I'm a little bit further along in the process but my experience is positive, so far.
Make it to 2027. Other than that, finish the Executive Certificate at Liberty, then reassess what I want to do as far as education.
Now that the Human Capital Lab has been shelved, my goals are: 1. Re-energize my consulting practice. I was distracted with the Lab for several years, taking me out of my lane as someone who develops successful managers into strategic leaders. 2. Flesh out my offer of the Purposeful Leadership Accelerator(TM), a one-on-one developmental experience involving measurement, learning, tutoring, coaching and re-measurement. 3. Begin my research on building my Purposeful Leadership Development(TM) theoretical model and testing it under real-world conditions. 4. Write the history of distance learning with an emphasis on its rogues' gallery. 5. Move into our new house in the Spring. 6. Introduce my Dissertation Coach(TM) offer, where I apply my coaching skills to help working professionals through the doctoral dissertation process (as a complement to the advisor)
