“We need to learn how to do less with less,” a client recently said. I was surprised and not surprised.

In her first three years, this extraordinary leader had doubled the already-impressive budget; exponentially grew their programs and impact; and created a model organizational culture. And then the earthquake of 2025 happened and shook their (and countless other organizations) to their core, bringing chaos, destruction and an urgent need to pivot.  

Although we may still experience aftershocks, this is the moment to finish clearing the debris and begin rebuilding for strength, resilience, and impact in 2026.

Here are five simple, important strategies for leaders and teams to Re-ground, Retool, and Realign, internally and organizationally. These aren’t sequential steps. They’re interconnected and ongoing practices that reinforce one another and lead to powerful, sustainable results.

1. Begin with shared reflection and meaning-making

Stress can bring teams together—or quietly fray connection. After a year of strain, people need time to reconnect around shared purpose and direction. Hold intentional conversations about how you’ll work together this year: the pace you’ll keep, how decisions will be made, and how you’ll support one another through uncertainty.

• Begin by gathering your team and reflecting on 2025 together. Create a safe space to build a shared experience map, naming and honoring the incredible accomplishments, heartbreaking losses, and the lessons learned. 
• Share stories of persistence, ingenuity, and impact even in the hardest moments; of how you collectively honored your mission and values even amidst the most trying times.
• Acknowledge that everyone is starting 2026 with different levels of energy and readiness – and that’s okay. This alone helps people feel seen, heard, and supported. It’s a beautiful way to re-ground and reconnect. It’s not about lowering standards or dropping accountability; it’s about beginning the year from a space of grace and psychological safety.

2. Clarify what “doing less with more impact” means in your context

We’ve all tried to do more with less… and discovered it doesn’t actually work, especially when living a on a fault line (yes, back to the earthquake metaphor). The idea of Doing Less isn’t coming from scarcity but from clarity, focus, and intentionality about what will create the greatest impact with the capacity you have. What does doing less with more impact look like in your world?  

• Reflect on what is truly essential, first with your leadership team, and finally across the organization.
• To build buy-in, invite everyone to contribute, “What’s possible for our impact, collective energy and well-being if we truly prioritize? Where might we get stuck or be tempted to do more than can be sustained? How do we handle it together when it happens?”

3. Name priorities and milestones clearly

Define a manageable set of priorities that will make the greatest difference this year.

• A simple decision matrix – mapping initiatives by capacity and impact – can be enormously helpful. If you’d like to see the slightly more refined one I use with clients, please let me know and I’ll happily share.
• Use these tools to decide where to focus and what to pause, so energy and resources align with what matters most and what can be purposefully sustained through the year.

4. Resource yourself and your team

Use support wisely. Maybe you already have a leadership cohort that keeps you grounded and energized. Community matters more than ever – which is why I’m relaunching and inviting you to join the Leadership Insight Circle later this month.

• Consider investing at the most strategic moments in a skilled, experienced organization development consultant. Perhaps it’s to support that reflection and/or strategic conversation to help your team make sense of competing priorities and design a clear path forward.  
• Whether it’s me or another experienced practitioner (I’m always glad to connect you with the right fit), even a limited engagement with a trusted partner can make a transformational difference.
• Leverage technology, when it makes sense. Use AI assistance to refine messaging, prepare for funder conversations, or streamline communication – freeing yourself and your team to focus on higher-value work.

5. Set a steady rhythm to focus on strategy and alignment

Strategy works only if we actively sustain it. And, as famously stated by Peter Drucker “Culture eats strategy for breakfast.” This means that we need to tend to both, especially this year. A consistent rhythm keeps teams aligned, intentional, and nimble.

• Establish a regular cadence of longer strategic sessions and short, purposeful check-ins focused on learning, adjusting, and staying aligned.
• Keep agendas simple and transparent – track what’s working, what’s shifting, and where support is needed. This is where your AI assistant can help.

Finally, and most importantly, give everyone – including yourself – grace. It takes discipline to do less when every instinct (yours and mine) pushes us to work harder, longer, more! Yet we know that’s the fastest path to burnout for ourselves and our team. Modeling empathy, steadiness, and measured purpose is how we’ll thrive – not just survive – in 2026.

If your team is ready to re-ground, re-tool, and re-align, I’d love to be a thought partner in that process.
Whether that means a complimentary strategy conversation, a short engagement to help clarify priorities, or joining the upcoming Leadership Insight Circle – a space for senior leaders to reflect and refocus together – please reach out.

Wishing you a meaningful, connected, and impactful Year of Doing Less (With More Impact)!

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