New Year’s Resolutions 2026: Lessons from Colleagues

As another year draws⁣ to a close, it feels as though every publication is ​offering a dry eye disease-centric list in 2025. Enough so that I am ‌not sure I⁢ have all that much ‍new to⁢ add to a list of resolutions. I was thinking about this ‍on a return flight from a⁣ conference‌ recently at which I hung⁢ out ⁢with my closest‍ professional colleagues. ⁢This is a group that is‍ roughly 50-50 men and women, with an ‌age range ​of late 30s to early 70s. We spend ‌a couple of days teaching each other about new stuff and about ⁤how we handled some of the rough stuff. Most of us are deeply involved in ​consulting with the leaders of the companies that make products for us and for our patients; all of ⁢the folks from ‌industry who attended‍ this meeting ‍were invited to‌ attend our clinical talks on days 1 and ⁤2.

Where this meeting ‍shines, and where I found my inspiration for this column, is what we do on the⁤ last day of our meeting.‌ We send all the industry ‌folks home to enjoy the ​weekend with their families. Behind closed doors, we then spend 4 hours talking‍ about how we ‍can be⁣ better at everything we ​do. Not just the doctor thing,​ although for sure we talk about that,⁤ or⁤ even the boss thing​ for those of us ‌who⁢ run practices, ⁢residencies or‌ entire programs. On day​ 3, we open up and ask ourselves and ⁣each other how ⁢we can just ⁤be better people.

This year,I‍ resolve to ⁤be more like these special colleagues.

I resolve ‍to ​see the good side of everyone I meet like my‌ friend Bill. ​More than that,⁤ I resolve to⁢ let everyone know about the good things I‌ see in ⁣those people and‌ to give everyone a chance ‍to see what⁣ I see⁤ in someone the way that Bill does.

I resolve to⁢ be brave like my friend Audrey. ⁣Faced with an untenable practice ​situation at a stage in life at which many people would simply retire and ride off into the ‌sunset, Audrey realized that she was not yet done making a contribution, so⁢ she left a place that was no longer welcoming and hung out her ⁣shingle. When I need‍ to have some guts, I ‌resolve to think like Audrey.

I resolve to look at something new, and frankly a bit intimidating, and just jump right ⁤in like my friend Gary, who decided that he needed to learn ‌all things ‍AI in eye care. Gary gave us a⁣ tool kit for everyday AI in⁤ our practices, one he assembled by literally just diving in. I resolve to jump into‍ my next challenge just like that.

I resolve to ⁤tell the ⁢unvarnished‌ truth ⁢like my friend eva. now,⁢ to be sure, I am​ fairly well known ‍in​ my circles as a ⁣bit⁤ of a truth-teller already, but not ⁤like Eva.​ My truth often seems to ​come out like a novella; Eva’s truth is more like haiku:⁤ fewer and truer words without flourish. My truth could use a⁢ little more ‍Eva.

I resolve to persevere like ⁤my friend Dee. With quiet dignity, she overcomes‍ challenges that would cause most people to unravel, and yet she marches on, leading us​ all to ‌greater levels of‌ achievement in our personal and professional lives simply by living hers. I resolve​ to think of Dee‌ when things ⁤are hard and ⁣to push on.

I resolve to have dreams, big⁤ dreams, like ⁤my friend Mitch, no matter what other folks may say about them. If I should come upon