(Opinion) Stop trying to do more and start doing what matters

How leaders can use January to set their organization up for a successful year

Kristi Baxter

MANAGEMENT

By: Kristi Baxter 

Do you ever kick off the year and think it’s January and I already feel behind?

New goals. New initiatives. New expectations.

Everyone starts the year energized and ready to go, but before the month is over calendars are full, priorities are often blurred and momentum starts to wobble.

Here’s the truth many leaders don’t say out loud: Most organizations don’t struggle because people aren’t working hard enough; they struggle because they’re working hard on too many things.

Momentum doesn’t come from doing more; it comes from doing what matters.

January is an opportunity to reset, not by adding more goals, but by creating clarity, capacity and focus that will carry your team through the year.

Before rushing into execution, great leaders pause to assess three critical areas in their organization: people, priorities and patterns.

Most teams aren’t short on talent; they’re short on alignment and effectively utilizing the talent they have.

High performers often end up carrying more and more work — not all of it aligned with their strengths. Some of it they do exceptionally well, some of it they do simply because they can. When organizations reward doing instead of discernment, strong leaders naturally keep saying yes, taking on more and positioning themselves as the default solution.

Meanwhile, other capable team members may be underutilized, unclear on expectations or hesitant to step forward. The cost of this lack of clarity is significant: diluted impact, quiet disengagement, unnecessary burnout and leaders spending time compensating instead of leading. When priorities and roles aren’t clear, effort increases and effectiveness declines.

January is the time to ask: are roles clear? Is ownership/accountability defined? Are we relying on a few people to carry too much?

When the right people are in the right seats and clear on success, effort sharpens, impact grows and energy stops leaking out of the system.

Many organizations say they have priorities yet operate as if everything matters.

When there are 10 or 15 “top priorities,” focus gets diluted, energy gets scattered, and in reality, that’s not a viable strategy, it’s a wish list.

One of the most effective leadership moves in January is strategic subtraction. This means clearly identifying: the three outcomes that truly matter this year; the projects, metrics or initiatives that won’t be pursued; the work that’s good, but not essential right now.

I often encourage leaders to create a “Not this Year” list, taking the things off the table that aren’t aligned with the most important outcomes for the year ahead. It can be a difficult exercise but creates clarity, sharpens focus and speeds up decision-making. Clarity isn’t limiting, it’s liberating.

This is where many leaders miss the mark. They set goals without reviewing the habits and behaviors that produced last year’s results — good and bad — and wonder why nothing changes.

Patterns and behavior matter — they quietly determine outcomes.

January is the time to reset how your team operates — a time to “re-team” and think about:

If your culture rewards urgency over intention, busyness over impact or silence over truth, those patterns will follow you all year. This is the time to review and revise to set yourself up for success. Strong leaders determine the destination and guide how the journey unfolds.

The most successful leaders I work with aren’t chasing momentum, they’re intentionally setting the conditions for it. They make small but powerful shifts from: more meetings to clearer communication; more pressure to better priorities; and more effort to better alignment.

This isn’t about lowering standards or doing less; it’s about directing energy with intention so progress feels sustainable rather than forced. When clarity leads, momentum follows. Three questions every leader must answer in January:

• What are the three outcomes that matter most this year, and what are we willing to stop doing to achieve them?

• Do we have the right people focused on the right work, or are we compensating with over-functioning and long hours?

• What patterns need to change so our effort turns into progress? Results improve when habits do.

January isn’t about starting the year off in a sprint, it’s about direction. Leaders who take the time to clarify what matters, align their people and reset how work gets done create organizations that move with confidence instead of chaos.

Where focus goes, energy and progress flow.

Kristi Baxter is an executive and leadership coach who partners with organizations and individuals to build clarity and confidence, lead with grounded authority, and unleash the best in themselves and their teams. She can be reached at kb@kristibaxter.com