Yearly resolutions are designed for you to fail.
Yearly THEMES are designed for you to succeed.
“When trying to build yourself into a better version of you, exact data points don’t matter. All that matters is the trend line.” - CGP Grey
I’ve been implementing themes instead of resolutions for over three years now. Themes are that constant reminder about the direction that you want to grow, rather than rigid criteria. 2024 was “Manufacture Opportunities.” 2025 was “High Agency.” For 2026, the theme is Scale Your Compute.
“Scale your compute to scale your impact.” - IndyDevDan
What It Means
“Compute” is literal: AI systems, software tools, automations that execute work. The idea is simple: each unit of effort should yield more than one unit of result.
Whether it’s prompting Claude to build a custom workflow, automating a repetitive task, or writing code that runs while I sleep, I’m scaling compute. It’s turning 1 hour of setup into 100 hours of recurring value.
Why Now
For me, 2025 proved that intensity works. Raw effort, high agency, bias toward action delivers results. It also proved that direct labor doesn’t scale. Sixty-hour weeks produce output, but those hours have a cost. They don’t compound.
The question for 2026: What can I build that runs without me manually doing it?
AI has made this possible for everyone, not just software engineers. You don’t need a CS degree to build tools that multiply your output. You need prompts, systems thinking, and willingness to invest an hour building something that saves you ten.
In this new world, computational leverage is no longer optional. We’re living through a fundamental shift: The Age of Intelligence, The Age of AI. The old model locked simple automations behind years of expertise. Today all you need is $20 and an ability to describe what you want the software to do.
Why Share?
Yearly themes work because they’re directional, not binary. You can’t fail a theme; you can only orient toward it or away from it.
2026 is the year to build systems that scale your compute.