Each year, I pick a few loose learning and growth targets. These aren’t resolutions, they are directional learning objectives.

AI has changed how this works. Learning no longer stops at understanding. It spills directly into building. As a result, the feedback loop is shorter, sharper, and far more addictive.

AI has also dramatically changed how we learn. So in 2026, I encourage you pick 3 things to learn and 3 things to build (and use AI for all of them, just to see what i feels like).

Here’s a simple framework to help you get started.

Here are three bucket areas to help you anchor your own learning goals in 2026:

1. Learn something in one new domain area

2. Learn something for personal or self-improvement

3. Learn something that helps you better understand the world on a macro level

Whether you’re new to AI no-code tools or already building, the pace of change is fast. Learning to use technology to solve problems is now part of keeping up.

The three areas that will help you kickstart your builder journey are:

1. Build something small or creative with a new tool

2. Build something to help you plan for next steps (in your career or home life)

3. Build something to streamline your or work life

Part of learning and building is getting more comfortable picking up new tools. But here are a few to get you started

• LLMs: ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini are all great places to start your learning and building journey. Make it a default this year to use AI at the start of a new task. I like to run a deep research query and then use that to help me learn or build other things.

• Synthesizers: NotebookLM is my favorite tool for quick deep synthesis of a new topic area (you can make slides, flashcards, podcasts, and infographics). But if you’re just getting familiarized with AI, start by using AI note-takers like Otter or Granola to build in the reflexive habit of AI use in everyday tasks.

• No-code builders: If you haven’t experimented with building without code, you must try something in 2026, as this will soon be a negotiable for any career professional who works with a computer. Start by turning your resume into a simple website, then start incorporating AI-native elements and APIs into your work. Gamma.app is the simplest proof of concept to start, whereas tools like Lovable and Replit

To give you a sense of how I’m setting up my own year in this framework, here’s what on my list for 2026:

1. New domain area: Corporate finance
   I spent most of last year learning how to build mini-apps and incorporate an engineering mindset into my work and home life. Now that I’m start to generate revenue through my business, I’d like to apply this engineering mindset to help me get more systematic at understanding another big topic area I’ve been exposed to for most of my career without ever really understanding myself: corporate financial.
   

2. Self improvement goal: How to incorporate more mindfulness and balance into my personal and professional life
   Last year I learned the limits of what’s possible as a single human who sets out to build a “company of one” while on a tight budget with constrained resources and time. As a parent, a community leader, and a founder, I did not have a great balance of figuring out how to elegantly fit these aggressive life modes into one neat little pile. This year I’d like to learn how to re-incorporate self-regulation into my life and learn more about things like mindfulness practices.
   

3. Macro level learning: What’s the persona of a non-technical small business owner?
   Now that I have a good sense of what’s possible in building with technology without formal training, I’d like to spend more time this year meeting other people who have already committed to starting and running their own businesses to see how technology might supercharge their work in meaningful and unexpected ways. I’d like to better understand the profiles of a variety of non-traditional, non-tech small business owners and learn more about some of their opportunities, challenges, and motivations.

1. Agentic workflows to automate more of my work life
   Now that I have a good sense of some of the repeating patterns of my work in team trainings and AI hackathons, I can finally commit time toward building AI agents to help me work toward those goals without as my human intervention. I’m excited to use AI to get me a little non-human help on my routine tasks (and teach others to do the same).

2. Local-first data repositories to build on top of
   As a 1% user of ChatGPT, I was a little appalled recently when I downloaded my entire data archive and discovered that OpenAI saves the actual voice recordings from any realtime audio conversation you had. While being such a power user has had major benefits for me, this year I’m looking to decouple from this monolith and start to use open source models on my own to manage my own data (without sending everything back away to someone else).

3. AI-native app development on different types of hardware
   I spent most of 2025 learning how to build software for the existing technology and interfaces (ie: web browsers and smartphones). But I’m increasingly noticing that some of the way that I use technology is quickly moving away from being screen-first. I’d like to test out building something for a non-traditional and new interface with an audio-first or screen-free interface (ie: glasses, cameras, speakers, etc.).

There are a million ways to get started on your own learning and building journey in 2026. I encourage you to push past your comfort zone and go to AI for step one. Maybe you…

• Ask an LLM to make you a plan to learn about a topic unfamiliar to you

• Use an AI no-code to builder to create a learning dashboard for yourself

• Set a calendar block in your day where you time-box yourself to 20 minutes of judgement-free AI experimentation

If you need ideas of what to build, check out this growing prompt library I’ve been curating for the Build First community, which gives you starter prompts to build any number of things.

Each year, I pick a few loose learning and growth targets. These aren’t resolutions, they are directional learning objectives.

AI has changed how this works. Learning no longer stops at understanding. It spills directly into building. As a result, the feedback loop is shorter, sharper, and far more addictive.

AI has also dramatically changed how we learn. So in 2026, I encourage you pick 3 things to learn and 3 things to build (and use AI for all of them, just to see what i feels like).

Here’s a simple framework to help you get started.

Here are three bucket areas to help you anchor your own learning goals in 2026:

1. Learn something in one new domain area

2. Learn something for personal or self-improvement

3. Learn something that helps you better understand the world on a macro level

Whether you’re new to AI no-code tools or already building, the pace of change is fast. Learning to use technology to solve problems is now part of keeping up.

The three areas that will help you kickstart your builder journey are:

1. Build something small or creative with a new tool

2. Build something to help you plan for next steps (in your career or home life)

3. Build something to streamline your or work life

Part of learning and building is getting more comfortable picking up new tools. But here are a few to get you started

• LLMs: ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini are all great places to start your learning and building journey. Make it a default this year to use AI at the start of a new task. I like to run a deep research query and then use that to help me learn or build other things.

• Synthesizers: NotebookLM is my favorite tool for quick deep synthesis of a new topic area (you can make slides, flashcards, podcasts, and infographics). But if you’re just getting familiarized with AI, start by using AI note-takers like Otter or Granola to build in the reflexive habit of AI use in everyday tasks.

• No-code builders: If you haven’t experimented with building without code, you must try something in 2026, as this will soon be a negotiable for any career professional who works with a computer. Start by turning your resume into a simple website, then start incorporating AI-native elements and APIs into your work. Gamma.app is the simplest proof of concept to start, whereas tools like Lovable and Replit

To give you a sense of how I’m setting up my own year in this framework, here’s what on my list for 2026:

1. New domain area: Corporate finance
   I spent most of last year learning how to build mini-apps and incorporate an engineering mindset into my work and home life. Now that I’m start to generate revenue through my business, I’d like to apply this engineering mindset to help me get more systematic at understanding another big topic area I’ve been exposed to for most of my career without ever really understanding myself: corporate financial.
   

2. Self improvement goal: How to incorporate more mindfulness and balance into my personal and professional life
   Last year I learned the limits of what’s possible as a single human who sets out to build a “company of one” while on a tight budget with constrained resources and time. As a parent, a community leader, and a founder, I did not have a great balance of figuring out how to elegantly fit these aggressive life modes into one neat little pile. This year I’d like to learn how to re-incorporate self-regulation into my life and learn more about things like mindfulness practices.
   

3. Macro level learning: What’s the persona of a non-technical small business owner?
   Now that I have a good sense of what’s possible in building with technology without formal training, I’d like to spend more time this year meeting other people who have already committed to starting and running their own businesses to see how technology might supercharge their work in meaningful and unexpected ways. I’d like to better understand the profiles of a variety of non-traditional, non-tech small business owners and learn more about some of their opportunities, challenges, and motivations.

1. Agentic workflows to automate more of my work life
   Now that I have a good sense of some of the repeating patterns of my work in team trainings and AI hackathons, I can finally commit time toward building AI agents to help me work toward those goals without as my human intervention. I’m excited to use AI to get me a little non-human help on my routine tasks (and teach others to do the same).

2. Local-first data repositories to build on top of
   As a 1% user of ChatGPT, I was a little appalled recently when I downloaded my entire data archive and discovered that OpenAI saves the actual voice recordings from any realtime audio conversation you had. While being such a power user has had major benefits for me, this year I’m looking to decouple from this monolith and start to use open source models on my own to manage my own data (without sending everything back away to someone else).

3. AI-native app development on different types of hardware
   I spent most of 2025 learning how to build software for the existing technology and interfaces (ie: web browsers and smartphones). But I’m increasingly noticing that some of the way that I use technology is quickly moving away from being screen-first. I’d like to test out building something for a non-traditional and new interface with an audio-first or screen-free interface (ie: glasses, cameras, speakers, etc.).

There are a million ways to get started on your own learning and building journey in 2026. I encourage you to push past your comfort zone and go to AI for step one. Maybe you…

• Ask an LLM to make you a plan to learn about a topic unfamiliar to you

• Use an AI no-code to builder to create a learning dashboard for yourself

• Set a calendar block in your day where you time-box yourself to 20 minutes of judgement-free AI experimentation

If you need ideas of what to build, check out this growing prompt library I’ve been curating for the Build First community, which gives you starter prompts to build any number of things.