Project: Dabble

In 2026, I’m making lifelong learning a key focus. Here are a few learning projects I’m pursuing this year and how they’ll help me engage more fully with the world.

Happy New Year! January 1 has always been my favorite day. It feels full of possibility and hope as the year to come begins to unfold.

Each year, I write down my New Year’s resolutions on the first page of my monthly planner. I also look back at the previous year’s goals, noting which ones I met and which ones fell short. For the goals I achieved, I consider how to build on that progress. For those I didn’t, I reflect on what got in the way. Were the barriers practical or motivational? Is the goal still relevant, or is it time to let it go?

This year, in addition to my usual resolutions to get in shape and eat healthier, I’m making lifelong learning a priority. Here are a few learning projects I plan to pursue in 2026.

Building a Stronger Vocabulary

Words are tools. A rich vocabulary adds color and vibrancy to writing, enhances our ability to communicate with precision, and supports learning.

Entrepreneur and author Dan Strutzel argues that vocabulary is even linked to higher earning potential. In his book 30 Days to a More Powerful Vocabulary, he notes that CEOs score the highest on vocabulary tests, even over editors, journalists, doctors, and professors.

“So if you want to climb the ladder of success in the company you work for or are building, mastering vocabulary is a key skill,” writes Strutzel.

One of my top goals for 2026 is to strengthen my writing and speaking skills by expanding my vocabulary. For this learning project, I plan to complete the Building a Better Vocabulary lecture series on The Great Courses Plus and cement the new words into my lexicon using research-based vocabulary strategies from Bringing Words to Life by Isabel Beck et al. It’s a small, steady investment with long-term returns.

Embracing Winter Through Snowshoeing

I love dabbling in new ways to stay active so my workouts never feel repetitive. Last winter, our family rented snowshoes at a nearby nature preserve. We spent the afternoon hiking trails through a forest transformed into a winter wonderland. The experience was both magical and a surprisingly effective full-body workout.

This year, I was thrilled to receive my own snowshoes as a Christmas gift from my husband. With record snowfall here in Cleveland, I’ve decided to embrace the long winter ahead rather than grumble through it. Instead of remaining confined to a treadmill indoors, I’m looking forward to getting outside and revisiting my favorite trails on snowshoes.

For this learning project, I plan to explore snowshoeing techniques, equipment, health benefits, safety considerations, and basic trip planning.

Creating Through Crochet

I recently finished Sutton Foster’s excellent book Hooked: How Crafting Saved My Life. In it, the Tony award-winning actress explains how keeping her hands busy through crocheting, cross-stitching, and art helps her feel centered. Crafting has also helped her cope with the stress of her career and the heartbreak of her mother’s debilitating mental illness. When she is not on stage, Foster can often be found backstage with a crochet needle in hand, immersed in a project.

“For every production I was in or concert I have sung, there is a collage or stuffed animal that tells the behind-the-scenes backstory of my life.,” writes Foster in Maria Shriver’s Sunday Paper.

What especially piqued my interest is the way crafting connects her to the special people in her life. Foster crocheted an octopus toilet-paper-roll cover as a wedding gift for her Younger co-star, Hilary Duff, and even taught her to crochet. She also cross-stitched a scene of baskets for her mother, who hung the piece in the front hallway. For her daughter, Emily, she lovingly made a penguin baby blanket.

I’ll admit I’m not naturally crafty, but I’m excited about crocheting gifts for family and friends and the sense of self-efficacy that comes from creating something with your own hands. Because crafting is such a wonderful way to bring people together, I’ve invited my daughter to join me in this learning project. We plan to take crochet classes together this summer.

Cultivating the Scientific Spirit Through Chemistry

In high school, I barely scraped by in Honors Chemistry. It took a lot of tears, late nights, and rescuing from my lab partners. At the time, I held a very fixed mindset about my science and math abilities. I labeled myself as a “word person” and assumed I lacked the aptitude for any subject involving numbers or formulas. Chemistry, in particular, felt too abstract and disconnected from real life.

In college, I avoided science courses as if they were radioactive. As a result, I feel I missed building a foundational understanding of the phenomena that shape our natural world, along with the scientific habits of mind that help us make sense of it.

These habits of mind, such as questioning assumptions, gathering evidence, testing ideas, considering multiple viewpoints, and recognizing relationships within systems, help us become better problem-solvers and make informed decisions not only in science, but in everyday life.

In the delightful book Chemistry for Breakfast, author Mai Thi Nguyen-Kim explores what it means to cultivate these habits, or what she calls the “scientific spirit.”

“Scientific spirit means not taking anything for granted and observing the world through fresh eyes. Looking for the miraculous in the familiar,” Nguyen-Kim writes.

That idea is what inspired me to develop a basic understanding of chemistry this year. Chemistry is the study of matter, including its composition, properties, and the changes it undergoes, and it shapes every aspect of our lives. It is also a central science, meaning that an understanding of chemistry supports learning in disciplines such as physics, biology, and geology.

For this learning project, I plan to complete the course “Chemistry and Our Universe: How It All Works” on The Great Courses Plus and try my hand at a few kitchen chemistry experiments.

Finding the Miraculous in the Familiar

On the surface, these learning projects span very different interests. Yet each invites me to discover the miraculous in the familiar, whether it’s the beauty of a well-chosen word, the steady rhythm of a chain stitch, or the chemistry at work in a home-cooked meal.

Here’s to many learning adventures in 2026!