A new year symbolises both an ending and a beginning. It can often feel exciting, like a fresh start to turn over a new page, to start writing a new chapter, to have the opportunity to find motivation to do the things you’ve always wanted to do. Try the new hobby, taste new food, visit the new place.

However, it can also be quite daunting. Even though we always know it’s coming, the new year always seems to arrive too suddenly. One moment it’s December, and the next we’re expected to be ready to move on. Maybe it’s because we’re not always prepared for things to end. We want to hold onto things for longer than we should, even when those same things are what stop us from becoming who we want to be. Or maybe we just simply aren’t ready to commit to something new, to take that leap of faith, to turn a want into something real. The truth is, you might never feel fully ready. I know that I’m not.

‘Happy 2026 Everyone, New Year, New Me!’

Except that’s not really true, is it? New year, new me? Me. You. Who are you right now? Who were you last month? Last year? Are you sure? How do you know?

Most importantly, who do you want to be? Start there.

As for me, I have no absolute answers to the questions I keep asking. As Oscar Wilde puts it, ‘To define is to limit’. Keep that in mind.

Social media tells us that the new year calls for a rebrand. I’m not convinced. The concept of the 2026 rebrand feels stifling. In many ways, it sets people up for failure. You are not a company or a production. You are a human (shocker). You do not need to be marketable.

Rebranding is about projecting an image of change; it’s about performance and controlling perception. But why are you performing? Who are you performing for? And why does changing how others see you matter so much? To put it simply…why do we even care about what others think of the new ‘us’?

Change doesn’t have to look like that. Evolve but don’t rebrand. A rebrand works from the top down, evolution happens from the inside out.

So if we’re talking about a 2026 rebrand, what does that even mean? A new colour scheme, monochrome or pastel? A new font and in what size? A slogan, how many words? Is the logo too big, too small, too messy?

Waiting on approval. Waiting for validation. Waiting for permission. Instead, try this: form your own opinion of yourself, decide what you actually want and work out how you’re going to get there.

Resolutions are about personal growth, not presentation.

Growth is messy. It’s confusing, difficult, and at some point you will question why you even decided to try. You’ll fail… more than once. Not because your ‘brand’ wasn’t strong enough, your image wasn’t curated perfectly enough, or because you weren’t aesthetically pleasing, but because you’re human. Change is hard enough without having to make it visible, likeable or digestible for anyone other than yourself. Change is heavy, maybe too heavy to depict here or package neatly. Your resolutions don’t need to be a spectacle.

So this 2026, don’t rebrand. Evolve. Language matters. The way we categorise, classify and identify ourselves matters.

And if this feels ‘too woke’ for you, oh well, that’s fine. You do you. Adopt soulless corporate language into your everyday life and allow it to infringe on your personal values (capitalism btw – unfortunately I don’t have time to get into all of that).

Words by: Jayda Cole

Featured image courtesy of Tim Mossholder via Unsplash. No changes have been made to this image. Image license found here.