What Are You Known For Going Into 2026?

As we move into the new year, I have found myself thinking quite a lot about reputation, how it’s built over time and what people actually associate with you when your name comes up.

Over the last 12 months in particular, I have been much more intentional about how I want to be perceived and where I want my work to sit. Last year was a strong turning point for me. I was fortunate to receive several awards and secure some fantastic new contracts, those opportunities genuinely shifted the direction of my work and the conversations I am now part of. That change did not happen by accident though. It was something I had been working towards and seeing it start to land confirmed that I was moving in the right direction.

Going into 2026, I am thinking about how to build on that rather than letting it plateau.

One thing I have become increasingly aware of is how important it is to treat personal PR as something ongoing, not something you dip into occasionally when you have news to share. I know I am very guilty of relying too heavily on social media, and while that still has a role, watching how platforms are changing has made it clear that it cannot be the only place you show up. Content moves fast, visibility is unpredictable, and credibility now comes from being present across multiple outlets, not just one feed. The irony is not lost on me when I have fantastic PR people around me!

What has also changed for me is how I think about connection. For a long time, I probably subscribed to the idea that more was better where followers and more connections were concerned, that they automatically meant more opportunity. Now, I am much more interested in relevance. I have been spending time looking at my LinkedIn following and asking whether it really reflects what I do today, because what I do now is not the same as what I was doing ten years ago. My work has evolved, my clients have evolved, and the conversations I want to be part of have evolved too.

That naturally means being more selective, not in an exclusionary way, but in a way that allows space for the right relationships to develop.

Another part of this shift is being more present in rooms that matter. I am incredibly thankful to be taking part in the Ignite Business Expo in January with Paul Green & Tom Stansfield, alongside other speaking events I have coming up. Opportunities like these are not just about visibility, they are about context. Being seen and heard in the right environments changes how people understand your work far more effectively than trying to explain it in a single post.

So that is where my head is as we start 2026. I have a clear sense of how I want to be seen, the direction I am moving in, and the consistency I need to maintain to support that.

Which brings me to you.

Are you happy with how you are going into this year? Do you feel clear on what you are known for, or are there things you have been meaning to do that keep slipping down the list? Are the people you are connected to, both online and offline, aligned with where you are now, or where you used to be?

What about your positioning? I will always come back to this, because I see the impact of it time and time again. A book changes perception. Not because it is a badge of status, but because it gives structure to your thinking, depth to your expertise, and longevity to your message. For business owners especially, it becomes a calling card that works quietly in the background long after a post has disappeared.

We currently have a couple of books going into this year’s Business Book Awards, and I already have two lined up for next year, which is genuinely exciting. It is also a reminder of how powerful it can be when people decide to take that step and commit to being seen properly.

So if writing or publishing a book is something you know you want to do, whether now or later this year, and you want support with that process, I would love to talk. Sometimes the real work is not the writing itself, but deciding what you want to be known for and then backing yourself enough to put it out there.

2026 feels like a year for building on momentum rather than starting from scratch, and for being intentional about the story your work tells when you are not in the room. For me personally, 2026 is going to be blooming amazing!