2,300+

That’s the number of prompts, chats, and queries I ran through AI this year.

I leaned into AI in a more intentional way than ever before. Not because it’s the newest shiny toy to play with. Most of the tools I use already have AI baked in. This was the year I started building real workflows and systems around it. For my business. For client work. For thinking.

ChatGPT, Perplexity, Gemini, and NotebookLM became part of how I explore ideas, pressure-test decisions, document my thinking, and move faster without rushing.

Celebrating a decade of self-employment

Brenits Creative wasn’t legally formed until January 2016, but I was technically self-employed and serving clients for the second time in my career in 2015, after being pushed into it (I jumped into it in 1999, then went back in-house in 2007). That makes 2025 ten years since hanging out my shingle this time around.

That’s ten years of:

• Building a sustainable business
• Building a solid, trust-based client base
• Nurturing a strong professional network
• Being my own boss, for better and for worse

Not including the freelance design work I did starting at 15 through graduation from college, I’ve been my own boss for 18 of the last 31 years.

A little context

I last wrote my year-end recap in December 2019. It was, by all accounts, a good year. Then, in March 2020, everything shut down due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

While my business grew that year, due in part to a wave of new solopreneurs navigating layoffs, furloughs, and unexpected pivots, I knew many businesses were struggling. Writing a celebratory “by the numbers” post at the end of 2020 didn’t sit right with me, so I stopped.

2025 feels like the right time to bring it back. Though it was another banner year for me, I’m still hearing about small businesses struggling. My hope is that this is seen as nothing more than insight, perspective, and inspiration.

And so, encouraged by my business coach, Ilise Benun, and inspired by Deidre Rienzo’s long-running “By the Numbers” posts, I’m returning to this format with a fresh perspective. It won’t be another five years before I write the next one. I plan to do this again next December. Who knows, maybe there will even be a mid-year check-in.

What surprised me most this year

What surprised me most wasn’t the volume of work. It was how much clarity came from slowing certain things down while being more deliberate about others. Fewer reactive decisions. More intentional ones. Less proving. More choosing. It reinforced something I’ve been circling for a while now. The work I enjoy most sits at the intersection of strategy, judgment, pattern recognition, and calm problem-solving, not just execution.

Alongside the numbers, 2025 was shaped by a mix of long-standing relationships and new collaborations. I continued my annual work with ECERJ, designing the brand identity for the 2026 conference, a project that has become a familiar and meaningful rhythm each year. TotalTrans International, now a subsidiary of longtime client Cyclone Shipping, launched a new brand identity and website, extending a partnership that has evolved steadily over time. And Hamilton Packing, now under new ownership by a past client who returned to ask me to “do your thing,” began a brand refresh that’s currently well underway, starting with an updated identity.

This year also brought the opportunity to work with new clients at moments of real transition and growth. I led brainstorming sessions on brand and marketing strategy for Hamilton Packing, ShadeThings, BehaviorRX, Cornelis Hollander Jewelry, Unbreakable Lifestyle, Anderson Wealth Management, Cross-Cultural Dynamics, LLC, and Underground Burger. In each case, the work centered less on deliverables and more on clarity, positioning, and decision-making, helping founders and leaders sort through complexity and choose their next moves with confidence.

2025 by the numbers

Clients and relationships

• Total clients served this year: 28
• New clients in 2025: 9
• Clients who have been with me more than five years: 12
• New clients who came from referrals: 6
• SCORE mentees: 3

Advisory, strategy, and leadership

• Board and advisory meetings participated in: 17 sessions
• IdeaStorm sessions held: 9
• BrandTherapy sessions held: 36
• Mastermind groups joined: 1

Writing, publishing, and visibility

• Editions of The Creative Brief and Solo(ish) published: 18
• Un-Newsletter subscribers: 1,000+
• LinkedIn posts: 160+
• Questions answered on Reddit: 15
• BrandTherapy Notes sent: 3
• Articles, podcasts, or blog posts quoted in or interviews given: 5

Life, family, and the human stuff

• Time spent watching the NY Jets and Giants lose, again: 22 games, so far
• Meals cooked for my family: Countless, and I loved doing it every time
• Most sacks recorded in a single game by my son: 6
• Most aces served by my daughter in a single match: 3
• Number of former professional NFL players I know or have worked with: 5
• Rowing machines purchased: 1
• Rowing machines used: 0

What’s my plan for 2026?

As I often do this time of year, I create a Start, Stop, Continue list for my business and for myself. A Start, Stop, Continue list is a simple planning tool that helps clarify what to begin, let go of, and intentionally build on. As a solopreneur, the line between the two is thin at best. Decisions about my business inevitably shape my health, energy, and time, and my personal choices directly impact the quality and sustainability of my work.

Here’s what’s guiding me heading into 2026:

• More one-to-one, in-person networking and conversations
• Continuing the transition from being a designer who also provides strategy to a strategist who sometimes designs
• Intentional, sustainable lifestyle changes to improve my health and reduce my A1C
• Less news, more Masterclass and podcasts

Heading into 2026, I’ve got a plan and, more importantly, the intention to stick to it. Not in a rigid, all-or-nothing way, but with the perspective that comes from being a decade in, clearer about what matters, more disciplined about what I say yes to, and committed to building work and a life that remain sustainable and meaningful over the long term.

Grateful for the work, the people, and the chance to keep going. Here’s to a bright 2026.