Introduction
As we step into a new year, this is the right time to make a fresh start and promise to be a better manager. New Year’s resolutions not only support personal growth, they also help you create stronger teams, enhance productivity, and make a positive workplace.
It does not matter whether you are handling a small team or an entire department; setting the right goals and resolutions in 2026 will create a significant impact on your work and your team’s success.
In this article, we will discuss 10 New Year’s resolutions for managers that can help them boost their leadership in the coming year.
1. Embrace flexibility (and help your team embrace it too)
A critical lesson that remote work has taught us is how to be flexible in our approach to work management.
Flexible working helps you to do more work while making space for your personal life. But without the right balance, it can also affect your focus and performance.
As a manager, you should support flexibility for yourself and your team. Understand everyone’s schedules, and make room for different working styles.
Commit to being more flexible this year. It will reduce pressure, build trust, and create a more productive and balanced work environment for everyone.
2. Balance out work challenges with the right support
It’s already a well-known fact, and new research also states that challenging (not hindering) work can boost employees’ organization-based self-esteem and make work meaningful for them.
Employees enjoy taking on new challenges because it helps them grow and feel valued.
But if there are only challenges and no support from the manager, employees may feel stuck in between. Support from the manager helps employees to overcome challenges and grow. A manager should assign tasks to employees that match their strengths and interests, and also make sure they are not left to handle everything on their own.
The manager should provide them with proper guidance, share helpful resources, and give constructive feedback so they know how to overcome challenges. When your team gets the support they need to grow, everyone succeeds.
3. Acknowledge and appreciate good work
How Tony Shwartz at HBR has commented on appreciation at work is an eye-opener. He says, “We’re not fluent in the language of positive emotions in the workplace. We’re so unaccustomed to sharing them that we don’t feel comfortable doing so.“
This may explain why it is handed out quite underwhelmingly despite a severe need for appreciation at work. A sincere and honest remark about someone’s “good job done” can make their day and help them deal better with other negative emotions at work.
You, as a manager, can learn some golden lessons here. Pleasant appreciation starts with the ability to see the genuine positives in people. We’re invariably tactful at finding errors and faults, but looking at the brighter parts of your team isn’t something so natural.
Hence, you can work on building appreciation, a charming part of your skillset as a manager.
4. Prioritize self-care and practice it
Self-care varies from individual to individual. Spend a little time identifying what makes you feel good and brings out the best in you. For some people, it is taking little breaks during the day; for others, it is talking with colleagues or doing anything else. After finding out, add it to your daily routine. Even a little activity can bring a good change.
Taking care of yourself means that you will be more effective both at work and in your personal life. It is all about maintaining balance between work and life.
5. Make silence your new best friend
We live in a world of constant notifications, meetings, and endless digital noise. Taking a few moments of silence can help you reset your mind. Even short breaks during the day, like sitting quietly for a minute, can bring clarity and calm in your life.
It not only improves your decision-making skills but also helps you handle pressure. It also has a positive effect on concentration and improves your creativity in problem-solving. These little, silent moments can improve your emotional health.
6. Work on where you lost most of your time
Employees waste up to 50 days of a year doing repetitive work.
While we can’t expect either managers or employees to be productive all the time, it’s healthy to investigate where they waste most of their time.
Instead of thinking about how other people manage their time, begin by identifying your own habits. Recognize what distracts you the most and identify the activities that take longer than usual. After identifying these, it is time to work on reducing them. This could be over phone usage, multitasking, or organizing your work better.
The new year is a fresh start. Small changes today can help you gain more productive time throughout the year.
7. Meaning-making at work
December is the time when one is surrounded by existential thoughts like, “Where is my life headed?”, “Am I thrilled?”, “Is this just me?”
If you are caught amongst such ponderings, consider reviewing how you make meaning at work.
One of the most valuable resolutions this year could be investing in meaning-making.
It involves asking yourself, “What are the things that I find meaningful at work?”
Is it helping others, working with a team, solving problems, learning new skills, or meeting new people?
Once you understand what gives your life meaning, try to add more of that into your work. Many people feel unhappy or stuck in their jobs because they don’t see any purpose in what they do. When you finally find meaning in your work, you feel more motivated and satisfied.
Bonus: Here’s a holiday read for you to explore this concept – Man’s Search for Meaning.
8. Learn, unlearn and revamp virtual skills
Most of us know the basics of virtual work, like joining video meetings and using digital tools. Many companies allow people to work from home and use more digital tools.
Insights offered by McKinsey talk about organizations planning to continue remote work, downsize their physical offices and invest in flexible working.
So, both managers and workers can learn new virtual skills. This includes leading a remote team, conducting online meetings, or using teamwork apps properly.
Online work keeps changing, so learning new tools, leaving old habits, and improving how you work online will help you do better in your job and in life.
9. Practice the art of leading through examples
At the team level, managers play several leadership responsibilities that impact the effectiveness of their work.
You must have come across certain manager personalities who like stating their beliefs and values way too often. They talk a lot about values like honesty, discipline, and hard work, but what matters most is not what they say; it is what they do.
It’s a well-known fact that teams are heavily influenced by their leaders’ attitudes and work ethics. If the manager is on-point, disciplined, and gives their best to their work, the team is more likely to do the same.
Leading by example builds trust, sets clear goals, and creates a positive work culture in the workplace.
10. One upskilling activity for every quarter
Acquiring a management position marks a significant milestone in one’s career. Learning the role of management is a lifelong process.
An Upskilling and Reskilling survey carried out by TalentLMS depicts that about 42% of companies have leveled up their employee upskilling initiatives since the pandemic hit. Thus the opportunities for the same are on the rise.
To make this a proper resolution, you should focus on picking at least one activity for every quarter. Usually, an upskilling training such as a project management course or business communications certificate takes less than 3-4 months. You can also learn skills like emotional intelligence, data analysis training, or leadership skills through online workshops.
Hence, you can successfully undertake the same alongside managing your day job.
Conclusion
No matter which New Year’s resolution you choose, it is not the choice that matters, but the commitment to do it that matters. A resolution provides us a path to follow and the good things we can achieve. There are many small resolutions, as stated in this article, that you can set and achieve.
Take one step at a time to fulfil your resolutions. Stay safe, enjoy the journey, and be grateful for the progress you make along the way.
