Happy New Year! Hello 2026.
I hope this finds you well—and that you're entering 2026 with greater clarity, courage, and hope.
As the year begins, I wanted to share what I'm building and how I hope to serve you.
I'm soft-launching Constava
Constava is a strategic design studio that helps founders, leaders, and artists navigate seasons of accelerated change. We do this by envisioning, designing, and building businesses and organizations with greater clarity, agility, and resilience.
Personal leadership is the key leverage point—and the primary constraint
That's why I'm dedicating the start of this year to writing about personal leadership—the foundation that makes all organizational leadership possible.
Working with founders, leaders, and artists has taught me this: In seasons of change, envisioning and designing are often the easy parts. The real challenge begins when you enter the building phase—and you can't build alone.
This is where leadership becomes essential.
Leadership isn't about you—but it always starts with you. How you lead yourself determines how effectively you can lead a team, organization, or movement.
Throughout this year, I'll share practical insights on both personal and organizational leadership. Leadership is the true force multiplier—strategy without it rarely survives contact with reality.
My one word for 2026: Honest
For 16 years, I've chosen a single word to guide my year—not as prediction, but as intention. This practice has consistently shaped how I lead, build, and show up.
This year, my word is Honest. It comes with three guiding principles:
- Be honest — Say less. Write more. Choose clarity over noise.
- Be humble — Think of yourself less (not think less of yourself).
- Be human — Embrace limitations instead of performing invincibility.
This is both a personal commitment and a leadership posture. I'm not just writing about leadership—I'm practicing it in my own life, work, and business. And I'll be sharing what I learn along the way.
Co-creating a better, more beautiful future
I'm especially interested in co-creating with founders, leaders, and artists who are carrying a vision of a better, more beautiful future—and who are willing to do the honest work required to build it.
If you're curious, here are a few ways we can work together:
Clarity Sessions
Half-day to two-day working sessions to answer core questions: What is the change you seek to make? Who is it for? Why does it matter? We also clarify current reality—moving from delusional idealism to hope-filled realism.
Design Sprints
One- to two-week engagements walking through the Strategic Design Process: Envision the future, embrace reality, evaluate paths forward, establish rhythms and systems, and enroll in leading change.
Build Seasons
Twelve-week seasons focused on execution—integrating strategy into real-world results.
Constava Studio
Longer-term partnership through fractional leadership, investment, or co-creation for organizations ready to scale.
To read stories, testimonials, and endorsements from those I've served, click here.
Thank you!
I'm grateful for the relationships, conversations, and trust that have brought me to this moment. I'm building slowly, honestly, and with intention—and I'm glad you're part of the story.
Happy New Year!
Sam