4 Habits That Make Your 2026 Better（mindset, tools…）

Hey everyone, it's Lingzi here. So we've officially closed the chapter on 2025 and here we're in 2026. Wow. I know this is maybe a slightly late year in review, but honestly, I needed time to actually process what happened. This past year I've been juggling three very different identities. There were four different habits and one big mindset shift that completely transformed my year. So today in this video, I'm breaking down exactly what worked, what didn't and what I'm taking into 2026. So let's get started. The first habit is capture ideas the second they come to you. So this is important ideas are like dreams. If you don't write them down immediately, they disappear and I mean immediately, you know, the feeling when you are in the shower and you have the genius idea and you think I will remember this and then 10 minutes later, it's gone. Yeah, that used to be me constantly. So here's what I do now. I've put my voice mammal app right on my homepage. No folders, no search and just tap record down. Whether I'm driving, walking, cooking, whenever an idea hits, I talk to my phone like it's my personal assistant. For example, let's say we have a new video idea. I will say okay, how procrastination is actually just fear of imperfection blah blah blah. Then I use AI tools to transcribe and organize this voice notes into actual readable mammals. And also every Sunday, I do a weekly review. I go through everything I'd captured, delete what is no longer relevant and expand on ideas that still spark something. Now here's the crazy part. I actually capture over 100 ideas a month, maybe 10 of them become videos, but those other 90, they don't just disappear. They become inspiration fuel for better ideas later. And I believe that. And who knows? Maybe one of those rejected ideas can be one that goes viral six months from now. So the thing is you need to capture it. If you don't, you will forget it. Trust me. Your brain is not as reliable as you think. And the second one is use AI tool to eliminate repetitive work. I'm not an AI expert, but I'm an active user. So content creation has so much repetitive work like outlines, thumbnails, slide checks, slides, editing, the list goes on, a lot of things. I used to spend hours on tasks that AI can now do in minutes. So let me show you one tool that saved me probably 100 hours this year. It's a bit exaggerating, but yes, so it's called AIPPT. And if you make presentations, slide decks, or study notes regularly, you need to check this out. Here's how it works. Let's say I have a video outline. And for example, this video outline, I paste it into AIPPT, select a template, click generate, and in five minutes, I have a professional presentation ready to go. You don't need to think about which font should I use, which picture, which kind of template, just beautiful, clean slides. I use it for course content, client presentations, and study notes, even some video thumbnails. I get some aesthetic inspiration from this AIPPT. Over the past year, I used it for course contents, client presentations, and also my study notes. And honestly, even when I don't need to make any slides, I go on AIPPT just to get design inspiration. It's so good. The templates here are very, very good. So this connects to something I learned this year, the effortless principle. We often think that spending more time on something means we're working harder. Psychologists call this presenteeism, basically tricking your brain into thinking you're productive just because you're busy, physically busy. But here's the truth. Effort is not equal to effectiveness. Sometimes the most productive thing you can do is find a tool that does the boring stuff for you. So you can focus on what actually matters in your life, like creativity, strategy, storytelling. So there's a link to AIPPT in the description with a special discount code. Believe me, it's genuinely worth checking out. Okay, habit number three, always prepare the next step. Okay, confession time. I am a procrastinator. I know, shocking, right? People always say, okay, Lindsay, how do you get so much done? You create content, make videos, like you do a lot of things every day. But my answer is simple. I prepare the next step before I need to start. Let me explain. Let's say I need to edit a video tomorrow. I know this, but the thought of opening my laptop, importing footage, organizing all kinds of different files, and editing, that sounds so overwhelming, right? So here's what I do the night before. I don't edit. I just import the footage. I create a project file, and maybe rename a few clips. That's it. That's all kinds of different preparation works, right? So the next day, when I sit down to edit, I'm not starting from zero. I'm starting from step number two, and psychologically, that makes all the difference. Another example, let's say I want to study English, and read an article tomorrow. If I wait until tomorrow to find the article, open it, read it, and take notes, that's so exhausting. My brain sees it as a very, very giant task, and hard task. But if I find and save the article today, then tomorrow, my only job is to read and absorb. One task, not four. So this works for everything. Got an important meeting tomorrow, so just lay out your outfit tonight, near your pillow or something. Need to work out in the morning, just put your jean clothes by your bed, something like this. Always do one small step beyond what you've already done. It's like giving your future self a head start. And honestly, this habit alone has cut my procrastination in half. I'm still a procrastinator, but it makes me feel better. So habit number four, This is probably the most important one. Here's the idea, don't put all your eggs in one basket. We know the philosophy, right? If your entire sense of identity and self-worth comes from just one thing, like your job, your relationship, or your content, what happens when that thing goes wrong? You just collapse. But if you have multiple pillars holding up your life, when one falls, you're still standing. For me, those pillars are my business, content creation, language learning, fitness, reading, teaching, friendships and relationships. So even if I have a terrible day where a video flops or I feel stuck, I can still go on to the gym. I can still read a good book. I can still have a meaningful conversation with a very close friend. And suddenly the day doesn't feel like a waste, right? The pillar that's been most transformative for me is fitness. Even on days when everything goes wrong, if I work out, I still feel like I did something today. It's not just good for your body. It's essential for your mental health, actually. So if you take one thing from this video, you'd a regular exercise habit from 2026. It's the foundation and hosts everything else up. Now, habit number five. And this is really more of a mindset shift. Never stop learning, but also know when to quit. I know that sounds a little bit contradictory. Let me explain. So this year I started reading outside my comfort zone. I've always been a language person. That's my thing. But this year I started reading finance, business strategy, topics I knew nothing about. And honestly, it was humbling. I realized how narrow my language system was. I was an expert in language, but I didn't understand how business worked, how to manage money, how to build a team. So I built a reading list for myself, and I committed to expanding my horizons. Here's what I learned. When you only read about one topic, you confine your thinking to one little box. But when you read across disciplines, psychology, philosophy, science, business, history, you start seeing connections between them. You build a more holistic understanding of the world. And that makes you not just smarter, but more creative. That is a kind of continuous learning. But here's the other side of the coin. You also need to know when to quit. And this is about a huge choice and decision. This year I applied for a PhD I got in. I started, and then I realized it wasn't for me. So I jumped out. But actually it's a little bit crazy, but that's one of the hardest decisions I've ever made, because we're taught that quitting is failure. We're taught to push through, to endure, to not give up just because it's hard. But here's the truth. Sometimes quitting takes more courage than staying. I have already invested time, effort, money, but I realized that kind of costs are not reason to stay, right? I mean, if something isn't serving you, whether it's a job, relationship, career, anything, you thought you wanted, you are allowed to walk away. Giving up on the wrong thing makes space for the right thing, I believe, and leaving that PhD program was the best decision I made all year, and I don't know the future, but I just feel I need to make the decision. So to wrap up, these are five habits and mindsets that made my 2025 better. Capture ideas immediately, use AI to eliminate repetitive work, always prepare the next step, build multiple life pillars, but quit what doesn't serve you. So I believe next year is going to be different. I'm going to with more clarity, more systems, and honestly, more self-compassion. I'm not trying to be perfect. I'm trying to be intentional and inclusive. I hope this habits inspire you a little bit to build your own systems for a better year. I believe the next year will be a year of growth, courage, and doing things that actually matter. Let's go. So let's learn from each other. So tell me in the comment. What's one big habit you are taking in 2026? Thanks for watching. If you like this video, give a like and subscribe to my channel. I will see you in the next video.