3 Things to Stop Doing in 2026 - Without Feeling Guilty
By Susie Drummond, Founder, Rebel KindlyHave you had enough of the “new year, new you” pressure?
In 2026, be a Kindly Rebel instead.
Let this be the year you stop doing things that make your life too full, too pressured and too focused on fixing things that aren’t broken. You don’t have to do everything - this isn’t the 90s superwoman era. You don’t have to do anything perfectly.
Here are some practical ways to help you end 2025 strong and step into a softer new year.
Why do we feel the need to say yes to everything?
Being a female founder brings pressure. Not just to do well, earn a living and support your clients, but to do it all perfectly. Like an AI version of yourself: carefully curated posts, polished products, lifting others, winning awards, eating your five a day while training for a triathlon.
Does it make you feel tired even just reading that?
Choose to be a Kindly Rebel in 2026 and beyond. Practice compassion and saying a kindly no to projects that aren’t for you, so you can say yes to what truly matters. There will always be responsibilities - things that don’t make your heart sing but still need doing. And still, you deserve more ease and less pressure.
Wouldn’t you love to role model that for your team, your family, and others?
Let your heart and your head work together, so you can truly thrive.
What does it mean to be a Kindly Rebel?
Being a Rebel means using that passion inside you - the power of caring deeply and wanting to change things. Being Kindly means using compassion - for yourself, for others, for the planet - to adapt, flex and stay connected to what you’re trying to achieve.
Being a Kindly Rebel is about balancing both, so you - and those around you - can thrive in the midst of change.
Understanding guilt
Guilt is an emotion that tells us we should be doing something. Often, it’s driven by other people’s expectations - even when those expectations are so embedded they feel like our own.
Left unchecked, guilt can drain our contentment. It keeps us spending time and energy on things that don’t truly help others - or ourselves.
Next time guilt starts leading your decisions, pause for a moment:
How does it feel in your body?
What colour is it?
Whose voice does it sound like?
By simply acknowledging it, you can shrink guilt down to a quiet murmur in the background - and then choose what you actually need to thrive.
Three things you can stop doing in 2026 - without guilt
1. Trying to do everything perfectly
Use your Rebel passion to stop doing everything for everyone.
You know that feeling when you’re full of energy and ready to start something? That’s your passion speaking. Think back to moments when you were so immersed that time disappeared. It was probably challenging - hard work - but you were in flow.
Now, choose one thing that gives you that excitement and do it with gusto. Don’t worry about whether it’s any good. Just keep going.
Done is better than perfect.
When you finish, be kindly. Congratulate yourself for being creative, productive and imperfect - a human being, not a human doing.
2. Saying yes when you don’t really mean it
Be kindly to yourself and stop saying yes by default.
It feels good to be needed. We’re social animals, after all. Being asked can feel validating. But if you don’t have the time, energy or desire - especially alongside everything else in your life - you are allowed to say no.
That’s easier said than done, so here are a few gentle tips for the moment itself:
Take a small pause and breathe before responding
Smile at the person asking
Say you don’t have space for it right now
Resist over-explaining or apologising
Stay quiet, calm and grounded
Kindness doesn’t require justification.
3. Proving yourself to everyone
Be a Kindly Rebel and build inner confidence instead.
You don’t need to prove yourself. People work with you because of who you are, what you stand for and how you make them feel - not because you’re perfect.
There will always be people who aren’t satisfied. Don’t turn that dissatisfaction inward. When you build your life with real passion, your focus shifts away from naysayers and towards what your unique talents can offer the world.
Being compassionate with yourself means letting go of the endless inner critique. If someone judges you, respond kindly outwardly - and just as kindly in your inner voice.
Keep your imperfect goals in sight
Letting go is not always easy. Saying no can feel uncomfortable. Choosing “good enough” over perfect takes practice.
Celebrate yourself when you manage it. Stay connected to your bigger goals rather than getting distracted by shiny new ones. And remember - you’re allowed to ask for help. It takes courage, but people often love to be asked.
Try imagining how you want to feel at the end of 2026, rather than focusing on the awkwardness of individual moments. Future you will be grateful for the joy, ease and connection you allowed in.
By letting compassion and passion guide you, you take pressure off yourself - and quietly give others permission to do the same.
That’s the power of being a Kindly Rebel.
