Train Your Brain to Hit Your 2026 Goals.
January 2026 | Episode 010
Happy New Year!
As we kick off 2026, many leaders may feel the familiar pressures to set goals, create plans, and somehow muster the energy to make it all happen. But while goal setting can no-doubt be an exciting and motivational exercise, it’s also a deeply neurological one.
Your brain is built to help you succeed. And when you understand how it works, you can leverage its natural patterns and reward mechanisms to set goals that really stick.
At McLaughlin Mentoring, we help leaders and teams harness emotional intelligence and applied neuroscience to create meaningful, aligned progress. As you begin shaping your goals for the new year, there’s no better place to start than understanding the brain systems that make success possible.
The Case for a Brain-Based Approach to Goal Setting
Goal setting is often treated as a cognitive activity, something you think about and write down. But neuroscience shows that effective goals also engage the emotional and sensory parts of the brain, not just the logical ones.
Enter the Reticular Activating System (RAS): the brain’s built-in filter for awareness and meaning. Located at the base of the brainstem, the RAS determines what information gets through and what gets ignored. It’s the reason you suddenly notice the same car everywhere after deciding to buy one. Or why a single word (your name, a goal, an idea) can jump out of a noisy room.
When aligned with your goals, the RAS becomes your personal search engine, spotting opportunities and patterns you would’ve otherwise missed.
And in a world filled with (a lot of) distraction and competing priorities, this selective attention is one of your greatest advantages as a leader.
Why SMART Goals Aren’t Enough
The RAS influences how you set, pursue, and ultimately achieve goals by shaping what you pay attention to. The more aligned your focus is with your goals, the more your brain gets to work behind the scenes, automatically amplifying anything connected to what you want.
Many leaders were taught the SMART model of goal setting (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic, and Timely). And while SMART goals provide clarity, they often lack the emotional charge that activates the RAS.
SMART goals tell your brain what you want, but they don’t tell your brain why it matters or how you want to feel along the way.
For true transformation, emotions must also be part of the equation.
The EXACT Goal Method: A Neuroscience-Based Upgrade
To create goals that spark focus, energy, and sustained action, the EXACT model taps directly into the RAS and emotional intelligence.
E - Explicit - Clear, specific, unambiguous. Your brain needs clarity to know what to look for.
X - Xciting - Emotionally activating. Aspirational. Something that sparks desire and meaning.
A - Assessable - Measurable. You need a way to recognize progress and success.
C - Challenging - Goals should stretch you and disrupt limiting beliefs.
T - Timely - Short, medium, and long-term timeframes that anchor your vision and micro-actions.
EXACT goals energize your nervous system, prime your RAS, and ignite the emotional drivers that move you forward.
It’s the difference between: “I want to start a business.” and “I want to build a business that gives me ownership, flexibility, and the joy of creating something that is fully mine.”
One gives direction, while the other creates genuine momentum.
Why This Works
When you combine RAS activation with well-structured goals, you’re engaging:
The hippocampus (memory and encoding)
The prefrontal cortex (planning and decision-making)
The dopamine reward system (motivation, reinforcement, habit formation)
Studies show:
Writing goals down increases success by 42%.
Vividly described goals make you 1.2–1.4x more likely to achieve them.
Specific, challenging goals improve performance more than easy or vague ones.
Micro-goals also leverage the Progress Principle, the brain’s tendency to build positive momentum through small wins.
Dopamine rises with each small step completed, creating a reinforcing loop that propels you toward larger outcomes.
This is why the EXACT model includes multiple time horizons, and why repetition and visualization are so effective.
Bite-Sized Wisdom for Big Impact from Our Coaches
Put Brain-Based Goal Setting to Work
As you step into 2026, remember that your brain is always filtering and prioritizing.
When you set goals that excite you, and when you repeat, visualize, and emotionally anchor them, you’re literally programming your brain for success.
And one of the simplest, most powerful ways to start is by choosing a Theme Word for 2026, a word that keeps your goals aligned and energized throughout the year!
Download your free theme word worksheet here!
I wish you a fabulous first month of 2026!
With optimism,
Jillian & Team
McLaughlin Mentoring Inc.