24/02/2026
Misogi: a goal that defines your entire year. Usually a physical challenge, and the point is to make it so difficult based on your own personal capacity, that even with preparation, you have about a 50% chance of failure.
Itās a modern interpretation of the Japanese misogi, which means water cleansing ritual. Part of Shinto tradition, the original misogi was a purification by standing under freezing cold water.
I decided my 2025 misogi was to complete my first marathon in under 6 hours. Technically, I āfailedā. I finished in 6:28. Butā¦ 42.2km is the longest Iāve ever run, walked or moved anywhere continuously. The fact that I finished it at all 6 weeks after a health scare felt like it was enough.
The takeaway for me is that although I struggled to stay consistent with anything else (mainly around my coaching business and being a solopreneur), I was committing on a daily basis to the December marathon goal.
No hacks needed, no accountability systems required (I discovered Iām not much of a run club fan).
But posting on LinkedIn, marketing myself, stuff like that. I couldnāt force myself to do these things, and no amount of experiments worked. I spent most of 2025 feeling like I was failing at being a solopreneur, even wondering if I have undiagnosed ADHD.
So, it turns out I donāt have a consistency problem. I have a problem being consistent about things I donāt really want.
My 2025 misogi proved I was not just lazy. I CAN commit when something is actually aligned with what I want.
Right now Iām thinking about my 2026 misogiā¦ and encourage you to consider one too. If you do, pick it now, before 2025 ends. Make it hard enough you might fail. And see what it shows about what youāre actually willing to commit to.
