Five things Christian creators should
stop doing in 2026. And why am I saying
this with confidence that you should
stop doing this in 2026? Because there
are the things that I struggle with and
caused me so much like just frustration
because of what I did in 2025. So was
2025 a great year for us? Yes, it was a
great year for God and gigs. some
amazing accomplishments that we were
able to achieve in 2025. But there are
some things that I would definitely
change. And so that's what I want to
share with you today. The first thing
that I am not going to do and I don't
think any Christian creator could do
should do in 2026 is to over complicate
Now, you might say that's kind of
strange for me to start with as a
generally a solo entrepreneur, solo
creator. I do help run podcasts with a
team at my church. So, I do have a team.
We do have some people that are so
helpful for me in God and gigs where
it's a small team, but I do have my
virtual assistant who's been with me
forever. She is such a great help who's
helped me throughout the years and our
our brand ambassadors like Simony and
people like that who have been uh such
they've been helping with community
engagement. There's so many people that
are inside my world that have been a
blessing to my creative career. Even
though I have help and not a lot of
people that I have to manage,
what I did wrong was I overco
complicated so many things to try to
make it feel like things are happening
by adding more bells and whistles, by
adding more structures that didn't
necessarily achieve anything new. I just
wanted to look the part of a growing
organization, of a growing brand. And so
I added a lot of things and it made it
super complicated. This includes a quiz
that I added, which by the way, the quiz
is still active. But when I look back at
all the different things I tried with
it, I was like, man, did I even really
think this through? There was so many
complicated things that didn't quite
work. And even now, I'm looking back,
I'm like, oh, this didn't work and that
didn't work. Because I basically what I
heard Star Trek, this is a great phrase.
Um, I don't know why it's from Star
Trek, but I guess it's also an old quote
that the more that you complicate the
plumbing, the easier it is to stop up
the drain. And that's exactly what
happened. I found people that were left
in the cracks because they couldn't
follow the breadcrumbs of all the
different things I created for them to
do. And over complicating that, both the
internal and the external, made it so
hard for these people to really get a
sense of, well, what do I do next? What
does Alan need next? I over complicated
my organization, which will not happen.
I can guarantee you if you have been
tempted to add so much to your creator
lifestyle, to add other pieces, other
you know software to add more things
that make it more complicated than it
needs to be. Stop right now. Do not do
that in 2026. Join me in simplifying.
That has been my number one thing
The theme in our group is rest and
renewal. And part of that renewal and
rest is taking out anything that does
not really need to be there. Any parts
of your business, any parts of your
creator lifestyle that are just
complicated for no reason. There's no
good added benefit or value. And this is
where I had to take a hard look. This
was hard, y'all. It was hard to take a
look at the things that I created and
realize that I didn't need it. I didn't
need it. I over complicated it on on
just the the desire to feel like I had
to have some change. And so adding all
these layers and things as a creator
just it didn't really benefit. It didn't
add life or add any kind of benefit to
the things that actually mattered. This
is a year for simplification. I've heard
this from so many other creators, people
that I respect and I and I follow and
people that are, you know, following me
who are trying to build things.
Let's talk about the second thing that
you should not do in 2026 and that is
neglect to set cash flow targets.
In a nutshell, this means I did not plan
on how much money I wanted to earn. And
we all know what they say about a
failure to plan, right? A planning a
failure to plan is planning to fail. And
I hate to say it, but this was all on
me. Can't blame anyone else. The fact
that I set up all these different plans
and different things for selling,
whether it be to do an album earlier
last year, I think it was last year or
two years ago that I wanted to do an
album. And then there was these other
notions that I tried things in terms of
building up a whole cash funnel, cash
flow funnel or a salesunnel. Use chat G
TBT. You know, everyone's using a chat
TBT. So, I was like, "Oh, I'm going to
build this big funnel." But the entire
time, I never really sat down and said,
"Okay, how much money do I really want
to make from this? What will it take to
make that kind of money?" Creators, we
are often times very guilty of this. So,
I know I'm not the only one that needs
to leave this in 2025. Don't do this in
If you are starting something, even if
it's just to set a $100 budget or $100
target or $1,000 or $100,000, whatever
don't start it without really saying
this is my goal. My goal is this much.
Because what happens mentally is once
you have a goal that you've set, you now
have parameters in which to decide how
you're going to achieve that goal. just
starting to sell something like, "Oh, I
hope I sell a few." Even the goal is
again super small. Gives you a a gives
you a playing field. It tells you what
game to play and how much you should be
trying or what you should be trying to
do this without that playing field.
You're off just floating, just hoping
things happen. And that was me. I hate
to say it, but this is really what got
me honestly in a lot of trouble this
year. Financially, things weren't
awesome. There were m there were months
that were great, but there were other
months that I didn't. And again, the
reason why it was kind of like back and
forth is because I didn't set it
And because I didn't consistently set my
goals, I found myself floating back and
forth. Did I try it? Did I do this work?
This not? And I just never sat down to
say, "Okay, this month, this is how much
needs to come in. This is what I need to
do to get that much." Again, thinking as
a business, thinking as a creator, I
know we don't like to think about
budgets. I know we don't think like to
think about planning financially. We
kind of want to like just go out there
and create and hope things happen. But
this was a big problem in 2025 that I am
not taking to 2026. Guarantee you by the
end of 2026 or 25 I should say before we
get to 2026. I will have a goal for
January. I have a cash flow goal for
February. I have a cash flow goal and I
will talk it out and write it out. How
much do I want to make and what do I
need to do to make it? That was a big
issue 2025. I'm not the only one, I'm
pretty sure, that had that issue that
did not set cash flow targets because
you were like, I'm just going to sell.
I'm just going to write. I'm going to
play. I'm going to perform. I hope money
comes in. Just the wrong way to go about
it. I'm raising my hand again. I want to
make sure that y'all didn't think I was
coming in here just telling you the five
things that you need to stop doing.
These are things that all of us need to
stop doing. So, this is a we problem,
not a you problem. It's a me problem as
well. So that was number one, overco
complicating our organization. Just
reviewing so we keep together. Number
two, neglecting to set cash flow
targets. That's the second thing we got
we got to stop doing in 2025. Number
three, this one is another big one that
I hate to admit, but also hopefully will
help you. And that is ignoring clear
signals from my community.
This again I hate to admit this because
you are in my community as I'm spoke
speaking to you right now but I did
ignore some obvious signals. One of
those signals was from my email list
which was I was spending so much time on
the emails y'all. I want to be very open
with you in terms of those of you who
subscribe to go to the newsletter, the
creator checkup newsletter, which is
basically the I try to make it as the
written version of this. So, you can
but what you're going to see recently is
not even close to how much I was writing
at the beginning of the year. So, I was
really using the newsletter as almost
like, you know, a bonafideed like four
articles, three or four articles per
email. I was writing all of this stuff
out. And so every single time I got this
email out to you guys and then I would
see no clicks and click rate is not a
big deal. But I would just realize that
I didn't know if I was giving you guys
value with those long emails. Were
people even reading them? Were you even
going all the way down scrolling out? It
was a clear signal to me that I was
adding all this stuff. Now, if you if
I'm wrong and you guys liked the long
emails, please tell me and I will bring
them back. But the clear signal was this
is and I was staying up late to trying
to finish these and all this kind of
stuff. And so, you know, again, very
very honestly, even on Wednesday, I
didn't get it done. I released it on
and I just felt this the the the click
rate was about the not click rate, the
open rate was about the same. So, the
clear signal is y'all ain't worried
about Wednesdays because you opened it
on Thursday. And the clear signal is
nothing really changed when I made it
shorter. So, if I had made it shorter
and the open rate had dropped or the the
headlines had dropped then, you know,
people weren't really reading them or
just got tired of reading them, then I
would have seen this huge dip. I didn't.
So it was almost like a well this what I
was adding was not adding more value and
nobody complained when I changed it. So
the clear signal was this is what I ask
you guys to do for 2026 is ask the
questions do you really want this? Do
you really want this you know particular
event? Do you really want all these
emails? Do you really want me to do
social media five times a day? Because
they may not want it. They may not be
following it or finding it. and it's not
valuable to them. And why would you keep
doing it just because you know you're on
this hamster wheel? So 2026, I'm telling
you all and I'm telling myself, stop
ignoring the clear signals. If
something's not working, it's okay to
let it go. All right? I'm talking to
myself here. It's okay to let things go
when things are not working. Don't
ignore the signals. As soon as you see,
you can try it for a little while. try
for 60 days, but after 90 days,
something like that. If there's a clear
signal that this is not working, be okay
with cutting it down or changing it up
and pivoting. Okay? Something I'm
definitely going to learn and I'm going
to do less of or really not not do at
all in 2026. All right, we're to number
This one again was one of those, oh,
everybody who's reading and listening
and following this, please don't repeat
This one hurts because this has to do
with employment, paying people, but
yeah, I overcommitted my resources
without a plan. So, one of the big
things I wanted to do this year was to
take on um a virtual assistant and take
her on almost not full-time, but
definitely more in a big a larger role.
And I'll be honest, I did not plan that
out well. So, right now we've rolled
back a little bit to where I'm doing
more of the in the the the day-to-day
work, which again, it's not a huge deal,
honestly, because I'm simplifying as a
creator. So, honestly, I'm able to dial
back on my virtual assistant because I
am also making things simple, so I can
actually keep things done, get things
done. So, this is for all of you who
like to buy all the software. This is
me, too. You buy all the software. Every
single time a guru comes out with
something, you want to try it. You feel
like you have to be cutting edge. So,
you got to have the best camera, got to
have the best microphone, have the best
keyboard, you got to have the best
everything, but you don't have a plan on
how that's going to reinvest into your
company or your business or your creator
lifestyle. This is not a good thing. I
am again if you are here watching and
you are this has happened to you please
be honest and share it in the comments
later if you're not chatting because
this can burn you in 2026.
If you overcommit your resources, what's
going to happen is not only are you
going to get frustrated because your
resources are dwindling, but the things
you should be focusing on are not going
to have either the cash or the time or
the energy that they require. And it's
just so easy, like I said, to get into
what I know the business people call
sunken cost. The more you try something
and the less it's working, the more you
don't want it to fail and your emotions
take over and you try to save it. I had
to admit to myself, this was
overcommitting. I didn't I can't sustain
this and be honest with people.
So, in 2026, let's not overcommit our
resources. At least if you're going to
invest more, like we said, number one,
have a plan on how much it's going to
take for you to do that. So that goes
back to setting your cash flow targets
so that you know exactly how much it's
going to take to get the resources to
build a certain thing. But don't do it
willy-nilly thinking that you know faith
alone again I know prayer is the most
important thing but faith without works
is dead and prayer without some wisdom
is also just a dead end so let's all
realize that we have to be careful about
planning how we're going to allocate our
resources when it comes to people
software equipment whatever it is make
sure you have a plan on how it's going
to sustain itself number five we've
talked about over complicating
We're not going to neglect neglect to
set cash flow targets. We're not going
to ignore clear signals from our
communities. We're not going to
overcommit our resources. This one again
is the last one, but it also hits the
hardest. And I don't want to do this in
2026, and neither should you. I will not
let my pride stop me from asking for
This one y'all, especially if you're
entrepreneurial and you don't feel like
you want to be a charity and your
ministry is not necessarily ministry
alone, but it's also very much a c a
Asking for help feels like failure. I
admit that I have a tip jar or really a
giving. Yeah, it's kind of like a tip
jar, but it's for giving. And for many
many many almost the entire year, I
never really mentioned the fact that we
could also accept donations. Even when
things were getting kind of tight, never
thought about it. Same thing when it
comes to like asking for help on some of
the different things that we do that I
was paying for that I probably should
have just asked for help with instead of
hiring. I could have just, you know,
asked someone to volunteer. But no, I
tried to do it myself. And honestly,
that was pride. It was pride trying to
look the part when things were not
really happening. And so y'all please
again learn from my example. Don't be
too proud to ask for help. And even if
that help comes or you're asking for it
in terms of a voluntary or free basis,
just be just be honest about that. Just
say, "Hey, I can't pay you now. Are you
willing to do this? Are you willing to
be a volunteer? Am I can I repay you in
some other way?" And be willing to ask
Can't tell you how blessed I was when I
did this. Basically a a a
um appeal to give godgeeks.com/give.
I might even have it here for people who
were not going to buy anything. I mean,
I was just assuming that everybody was
going to buy something, but maybe they
didn't want to buy something. I'm going
to make sure to link that banner right
now just in case you guys are want to
use it right now because I'm going to be
and be honest and say, "Hey, not
everybody has to buy something, but we
appreciate donations. I appreciate when
people help without having to, you know,
be be put into some type of funnel."
uh appeal on my podcast and I said, "Hey
guys, we do accept donations."
And immediately I I didn't even I don't
know where they saw it. I don't know if
they responded to the email. I don't
know if they responded to a a YouTube
post that I put, but I saw $20 pop in
from someone who just decided to give.
Y'all, that was humbling. It was
Sha, thank you so much for that. I want
to make sure I got it right.
So, I I appreciated that donation more
than the months where five or six people
bought like a$100 or $200 course.
That absolutely blessed me. It blessed
me because I realized that my pride and
my feelings of wanting to be a big time
entrepreneur, creator, entrepreneur,
big- time YouTuber, podcaster as if,
right? Like, what was I thinking? And to
be honest again, I don't think I was
but the mentality seeped in. I I don't
think I'm anyone special, but I think
the comparison and the desire to look
apart definitely seeped in. And so for
me to mention and say, "Hey, you know,
things aren't going good this week. I
need some help. Hey, can you come in and
help me with this? Can you help me with
this? Can you can I borrow some can I
can I get some information from you?"
This was super super super powerful for
me to actually say, "All right, this may
not be the money-making venture, but I'm
still going to lead by example and show
people that, hey, you know, as Adam
Curry says, who's I'm highly, highly,
highly, you know, indebted to just for,
you know, giving me a new idea on how to
structure my podcasting and my my
content." He calls it value for value.
And I just need to say, hey, if you get
value from this, please provide value.
Simple as that. If you buy something, if
you that's great, but this is a value
for value. I will continue to give value
even if nobody buys the courses or joins
the membership. But if you get value
from this, I can honestly say, hey, the
Bible says it's better to give than to
receive. Do I does that mean I have to
be in a position of receiving sometimes
and humble myself? Yes. because how can
I give you the opportunity to give if
I'm refusing to be open to get to
receiving? So, this is really, really,
really powerful. And I love the fact
that Lashondaanda is right here, our
bootstrap biz advice mentor and coach.
Um, she says, "So proud of you. Just
keep reminding people of how they can
support you and trust the Lord to use
his means to provide. You're doing
incredible work." Again, y'all don't
understand. Y'all don't understand. I'm
going to cry. I mean, I I can tell you
some stories literally right now of
something. Lash, I'll talk to you later
off camera. Things that have happened in
the last 24 hours are like, "Okay, Lord,
the world is going insane and it's
coming to my doorstep and I'm going to
need your help and your provision cuz I
don't have answers to this." And so just
knowing for you all of you that are
watching replay live shanda
that is such a blessing to know that you
can put your your your feelings aside
and say hey I need a community. Honestly
that's why the membership exists. That's
why godoggixs.com/membership
the godgix 360 community exists because
I need more than money, more than
income, more than cash flow. I need a
community. The community makes it all
worth it. And so when I talk about the
community is honestly I'm one of
Landanda, you'll see this more and more
and I'm learning from you all the time.
I'm not necessarily promoting the the
the the higher level coaching, the
bi-weekly coaching. That's if you just
join at the 20 uh the $17 a month, just
under 17. I'm trying to keep it under
$20 just to make sure that we can pay
bills. So, like we talked about, hey,
this is something that I need to be
aware of and be set my cash flow
targets. So, I do have a cash flow
target just to make sure that the
membership's paid for. But after that,
Basically, it's how can I sew into more
people through my creator lifestyle? How
can I build more bridges through my
creator lifestyle? How can God use my
talents, my gifts, my abilities through
my unique creator lifestyle? Whether it
be full-time work, part-time, hybrid,
whatever, my creator lifestyle, which
allows me to bless more people in 2026.
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