From A to Z

Written by Asa-Mari Z. –– The Brief: My word for the year will shape my decisions around work, money, visibility, and joy in the year ahead. I chose Threshold as my word for 2026 because it aligns with the internal patterning I use as a compass. Threshold differs from reinvention, and that matters when the “audience of one” is myself. What will 2026 feel like?

Written by Asa-Mari Z. –– The Brief: McDonald’s Netherlands released a Christmas ad created with generative AI that reframed the season as “the most terrible time of the year,” depicting escalating holiday mishaps relieved only by McDonald’s.

Written by Asa-Mari Z. –– By the time December arrives, most people are exhausted by the noise. The inboxes are full, the feeds are frantic, and everyone is summarizing a year that still feels unfinished while being told, loudly and repeatedly, to prepare for the next one.

Written by Asa-Mari Z. –– Here's what it really takes to build a successful podcast. (Hint: It’s not the mic. It’s the system behind the mic.) Most people start a podcast because they have something to say. But most podcasts fail because no one ever built the system that allows them to keep saying it.

Written by Asa-Mari Z. –– There’s a quiet truth I’ve been sitting with lately; one that has reshaped how I understand my work, my communication style, and the environments where I do my best thinking.