Show Your Face: Why Visibility is my Word of the Year for 2026
The Vision
My word of the year is visibility. At the end of 2026, I want to feel seen. I want to step in front of the camera instead of always being behind it. I want to show the behind-the-scenes of building a creative business on the side while working full time, living a healthy lifestyle, and actually enjoying life. I want people to know me by name and recognize my face. I want them to come to my website, slide into my DMs on Instagram, read my newsletter and feel like they understand not only what I do, but who I am. I want them to see my original paintings, my designs on fabric, my cycling and climbing content, my silly sense of humor, my perfectionist tendencies, my prints and products and be interested because I am the one talking about them. I want to have a personal brand.
Why I Almost Decided Not to Pick a Word
In 2025, I felt like I didn’t quite live up to my 2025 word of the year. This made me wobble about whether picking a word of the year was a good idea. But completing my annual planning process and picking a word is not only a way for me to direct my focus for the upcoming year, it is also a way of documenting my journey along the way. Things have changed quite a bit in the three years since I chose my first word, consistency, in 2023, a year that saw the launch of my website, newsletter, and really set the stage to start building my creative business. While some years the word has resonated more than others, it has always proved a useful tool.
How I Use My Annual Planning Process to Pick a Word
Despite a bit of imposter syndrome, I went through my usual annual planning process. This year, I did the bulk of my planning in December. My process involves a lot of reflection time and getting ideas out of my head and onto paper (yup, I actually put pen to paper). I answer questions such as:
What worked last year? What were the successes?
What sucked?
How do I want to feel in the upcoming year? (This usually helps with picking a word later in the process.)
What are the ideas and goals for next year that are already taking up space in my brain?
What are the biggest priorities for the year based on this list?
For 2026, my primary goals are:
Creating two original painting collections to display and/or sell
Creating enough surface pattern design work to create my first portfolio, including retaking Immersion with Bonnie Christine
Growing my Etsy shop to include original paintings, prints, and products
Redesigning my website to encompass all of the different aspects of my creative business, specifically original artwork and surface pattern design.
This is Part 2 of a four part series on annual planning for 2026. Read Part 1: 2025 Creative Business Reflections: Art, Goals, Burnout, and Looking Forward . Grab your free Annual Planning Toolkit.
How to Pick a Word
To choose a word, I review my responses to my journal prompts and my goals and started to identify feelings or qualities that I would need to embrace to help me achieve these goals. 2025 felt disjointed and challenging because I felt like I was not sure where to focus. I primarily paint in watercolor, but I really got into line drawings in 2025. I love the technical side of designing patterns for fabric, wallpaper, and home decor. I love to write and share my process on my blog. I’m trying to experiment with products. Last year, I never felt very sure how all of these pieces fit together. The more I journaled about these goals, I kept coming back to the idea that the unifying force behind all of these things is always me. I have long envied those artists that appear to seamlessly bounce back and forth between their different passions, whether it is painting, knitting, new recipes they are obsessed with, where they recently traveled, what podcasts they are listening to, or what books they are reading. What these artists have in common is a personal brand.
According to Google AI: A personal brand is the unique impression people form of you, encompassing your skills, values, personality, and reputation, essentially defining what you're known for professionally and personally, both online and offline, to build trust and stand out in your industry or career.
The more I thought about the idea of building a personal brand, the word I kept coming back to over and over again was visibility.
visibility (noun) the degree to which something is seen or known about.
What Visibility Means to Me
Immediately I got a pit in my stomach when thinking about this word. I’m an introvert to my core. I would much prefer sitting at home, in my yoga pants, with my hair up in a messy bun, and painting by myself than doing anything else. I prefer small intimate groups of people. I hate networking. And nothing makes me happier than when plans fall through. While I have occasionally shown my face on Instagram or have a couple pictures (outdated) of me on my website, I am typically on the other side of the camera. I’m talking about art, not myself. Not that I haven’t thought of stepping in front of the camera. I love it when artists just chat in their studio about what they are working on or what they are thinking. I have planned out many a reel or story in my head and then have never done anything with the idea. The fact that just the idea of choosing visibility as my word was already making my palms sweat was a clue that I was probably onto something.
With the idea of visibility starting to take hold, I started to dig a little deeper. If I was going to demonstrate visibility throughout the year, what would that mean? How and where would I be showing up? Cue more time brainstorming in my journal. When I think about a version of me that embodies visibility, this is what I envision:
I present myself as a multifaceted artist whose style is visible across mediums, whether watercolor paintings, minimalist line drawings, or surface patterns designs across industries and products.
I seek out new venues to display my artwork, such as applying for exhibits when my artwork fits or organizing my own exhibit at a local venue (like my local climbing gym, which I have daydreamed about for years!).
I have positioned myself as a designer with a signature style and a professional portfolio that is marketed as a core part of my artistic identity and is ready to be pitched for licensing opportunities.
I am comfortable seeking out feedback about my art, my patterns, and my products.
I am a part of an extensive community of artists and designers that can support me as my business grows and shifts.
I am visually present across my platforms: I regularly show my face on Instagram. I not only share my art, but I talk about my process. I share the good, the bad, ugly of building a creative side hustle. I share about my hobbies and lifestyle and how they play a role in how I make art. I make personal connections with my followers and aim to serve my community.
Choosing a Book to Kickstart My Year
Each year I have chosen a word, I have also picked a book to help put me in the zone for the year. (In 2025, I read Year of Yes: How to Dance It Out, Stand In the Sun and Be Your Own Person by Shonda Rhimes to start my year of courage.) When I heard Jen Gottlieb on a podcast talking about her book Be Seen: Find Your Voice. Build Your Brand. Live Your Dream. just as I was starting to debate different words for 2026, it felt like the proverbial cherry on top for picking the word visibility. The book was the right combination of encouragement, tactics, and tough love to start out my year. My favorite parts of the book were the end of chapter notes that included key points, action steps, and reminders to put on a post-it. I took photos of them and have them on my phone for easy reference whenever I need a little boost of confidence or a kick in the butt. Some of my favorite lines:
Get in the pocket and connect with the truest version of yourself. Remember that Real You will lead you to higher highs than Fake You ever could.
Acknowledge which symptoms of fear are showing up for you right now and have a conversation with that biyatch. Tell it you’re grateful for the guidance, but you can take the wheel from here!
Follow the rule of 51 percent - you don’t need to believe in yourself 100%, you just need to believe a little more than you don’t.
20 percent of the value is in the original interaction, 80 percent of the value comes from what you do with it.
You will always be happy you went.
If you’re not getting the response that you want from your audience, you’re probably burying the lede.
Looking Forward
I am excited and hopeful about 2026. I have some big ideas and goals per usual, but I also want to create something that feels authentically me and I’m curious to see how the year and my word plays out. If you want to see how I’m trying to be visible on the daily this year, make sure to follow me on Instagram.
Me, handing out in my apartment studio. Translation: half of the second room in our apartment.
You Might Also Like
Book: Be Seen: Find Your Voice. Build Your Brand. Live Your Dream. by Jen Gottlieb
Podcast Recommendation If You Don’t Quit, You Can’t Lose (The Jasmine Star Show)
Podcast Recommendation Stop Faking Confidence: How to Build the Real Thing with Erika Cramer (Into the Wild with Renee Warren)
This is Part 2 of a four part annual planning series for 2026:
Part 1: 2025 Creative Business Reflections: Art, Goals, Burnout, and Looking Forward
Coming Soon Part 3 How I Used ChatGTP to Create My Five Year Plan
Coming Soon Part 4 From Vision to Action: How I Planned My 2026 Year Using ChatGPT
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Grab my free toolkit to kick start your annual planning process. Inside you’ll find:
My Yearly Plan: A guide to help you reflect and identify priorities
5-Year + Annual Planning Process Using ChatGPT Checklist
The ChatGPT-Powered Annual Planning for Creative Entrepreneurs Checklist