💡 The Writer’s End-of-Year Reset: Health, Habits, and Hitting Your Goals
What I've learned hitting 7 figures in my writing business and keeping my autoimmune condition in remission for over two years :)
Somewhere between finishing my second book of the year and figuring out how to hit 10,000 steps without dying on the San Francisco hills, I realized: this is the healthiest — and most creatively energized — I’ve ever been.
That’s not an accident.
It’s the result of a slow and deliberate transformation. Two years ago, I was still living in the shadow of an autoimmune condition that drained me dry. And yet — even then — I wrote some of my best work. I ghostwrote memoirs for founders. I mapped out pitch decks from bed. Creativity still poured through the cracks.
But now? I’m not just surviving the work. I’m thriving inside it.
I’ve been in remission for two years. My writing business crossed the seven-figure mark. And I want to show you how the two are connected — because locking in your health goals and writing goals isn’t about chasing perfection. It’s about building a life that’s structurally set up for success.
Let’s talk about how to do that — before 2026 makes its grand entrance.
✍️ Part I: Lock In Your Writing Goals Like a Pro
Let’s start with the part above the paywall: writing goals. Because even if you’re not participating in a National Novel Writing Month–style sprint this November, there’s no better time to map out the habits and targets that will set you up to win in the new year.
Here’s the formula I live by:
Start with Identity. You’re not “trying” to write a book. You’re a professional writer — so act like one. That mindset shift does more for consistency than any productivity app ever will.
Work Backward From Your Goal. Let’s say you want to finish your memoir by March. That’s four months. If it’s 60,000 words, that’s 15,000 a month, 3,750 a week. Or about 625 words a day, six days a week. See? Doable.
Create a Weekly Output Ritual. If you’re growing your Substack, how are you showing up weekly? Are you posting essays every Friday? Interviewing creatives once a month? Start by scheduling your publishing cadence — then treat it like it’s client work. (Oh and if you’re looking for Substack growth tips, be sure to check out my article on how I hit $166,000+ in Annual Recurring Revenue on my Substack — even while being away from my desk for 6 weeks!)
Use Sprints (But Don’t Burn Out). Sprints are helpful — only if you recover after. A month of high-intensity word count is great, but what’s the long-term structure? I’d rather see consistent weekly output for a year than one monster month followed by burnout.
I talk about this in my upcoming book Write for Money and Power, but here’s the core shift: your goals are downstream of your habits, and your habits are downstream of your identity. So ask yourself — who do you need to be in order to reach your writing goals?
Then act like them. Today.
Part II: Behind the Paywall — Health is the Cheat Code
Paid subscribers, welcome to the part most people won’t talk about on social media. Let’s get real.
When people ask me how I can write 1.5 books a year, run multiple paid newsletters, travel the world, and still show up to Substack Lives with something interesting to say — the answer is: health.
I’m not talking about being shredded or biohacked or glowing with goop. I’m talking about putting my body in a state where creativity has room to breathe.
Because brain fog kills ideas. Inflammation strangles momentum. Sleep debt compounds until your best ideas flatline.
So here’s what I’ve done — and what I’m still doing — to lock in my health goals before the year flips.
