February 3rd, 2026

Every new year triggers the same leadership reflex:
Add more.

· More goals.

· More initiatives.

· More tools.

· More meetings to “align” on all of it.

It may feel like momentum, but it’s actually avoidance. Because adding is easier than choosing. Saying no to people, projects, and priorities that once felt important is hard.

The fastest way, however, to kill a strategy isn’t bad execution. It’s refusing to subtract. It’s not able to say no.

The real work of strategy creation begins when leaders confront the uncomfortable questions:

• What are we still funding out of habit?
• Which priorities remain simply because no one wants the conflict of removing them?
• Which work continues simply because its failure hasn’t been obvious??

Do not start the year asking, “What should we do next?”

But ask, “What should not survive this year?”

Every priority you keep carries a hidden tax:

• Slower decisions
• Bloated calendars
• Safe consensus instead of real trade-offs
• Teams stretched thin but going nowhere

When everything is a priority, nothing is.

Clear the noise first—or nothing new will matter anyway.

Leadership Challenge

Pick one initiative, metric, or standing meeting that:

• Once made sense
• No longer compounds value
• Still consumes attention “just in case.”

Kill it. Don’t pause it. Don’t rebrand it. End it.

Then answer this question with your team:

What will we now have the space to do exceptionally well, because we stopped doing this?

If nothing meaningful replaces it, you haven’t cut deep enough.

Get started. Get in touch.

JP Van Steerteghem

Mail me at [email protected]

Or schedule some time https://calendly.com/jvansteerteghem