Stubborn Optimism and Other Things Worth Fighting For in 2026
Oh, hello 2026 – you big, mysterious dish of a year!
My resolution for the year is to have NO resolutions – to float through the year and adapt as events, opportunities come at me, not committing to absolutely anything.
Because for some damn reason – don’t ask me why – I’m feeling pretty good about 2026, even with the shit-storm tornado of beyond-negative news that ambushes us all moment by moment, post by post.
And when you’re feeling this floaty, for whatever reason, why commit to a resolution other than, perhaps, to commit to feeling this fab the entire year through.
So, today, I’m going to fluidly hop into a few news items that I find curiously fun, quite interesting, or of value, focusing on the branding, design, and ad space – oh, and also on news you can use for those using your lives, businesses, or careers in pursuit of purpose.
First Up – Best Non-Ad of 2025
When was the last time you watched an ad for 18 minutes? Me neither.
But take a digital space with which we’re all familiar – an internal marketing meeting in the frames of Zoom – add a cast playing Hollywood movie marketing types – then top it off with Timothée Chalamet and you have the best non-ad “ad” of 2025.
In a clever sendup of an internal creative team marketing meeting, Chalamet acts the part of a client in sharing his “brilliant” creative ideas for promoting his new film, Marty Supreme.
For what it’s worth, I watched the first nine minutes before I had to jump on a Zoom call. And then returned for the second half of the ad immediately upon my call’s completion.
Totally worth watching and Chalamet’s performance is worth an award. So, let’s give him this publication’s first-ever “Speedy” award. To which we say “Schwep!”
Schwep? You’ll just have to check it out for yourself.
Oh, and the movie Marty Supreme is pretty good, too. Immediately after viewing, I gave it a strong B+, then through time and additional consideration have moved that grade up to A-. Of course, I love ping pong AND the color orange, so factor that into your assessment of my independent credibility.
Top 5 Sustainability Terms of 2026
Our good friends at B Lab, the nonprofit organization that runs B Corp certification, came out with their Top 5 Sustainability Terms of 2026. To me, these sound more like a rallying cry, goals to work for rather than simple terms. There are a couple that especially resonate with me. You?
Here they are:
Stubborn Optimism – The radical belief that a better economy is possible and worth fighting for, even when the headlines say otherwise.
Greenshouting – The antidotes to greenwashing: boldly celebrating progress while backing it up with verified impact.
Stakeholder Accountability – When businesses actually answer to employees, communities, and the planet, not just shareholders in quarterly earnings calls.
Just Transition – Moving to a sustainable economy without leaving workers or communities behind.
Collective Courage – The understanding that system change requires moving together, not competing alone.
R.I.P. Corporation for Public Broadcasting
With the elimination of its Federal funding, the board of the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB) has voted to disband the organization.
I’m as sad as the next person – and I am assuming here that you ARE the next person – about Congress defunding public broadcasting, which was founded in 1967 by President Lyndon B. Johnson.
At the same time, I’m wondering about the efficiency of a pass-through entity that exists mostly to allocate congressional funding to Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) and National Public Radio (NPR).
Yes, I’m hoping with my current floaty and optimistic outlook that in the future federal funding will return to public broadcasting, but perhaps this disintermediation, in the long term, will be a move for more efficient, sustainable, and direct funding of PBS and NPR. That and increased support from viewers and listeners like you and me. I don’t watch PBS much but I’m an avid listener of NPR and have had many, many driveway moments listening to its stories. Considering the challenging funding environment, I stepped up my donation 25% during the last pledge-a-thon.
If YOU feel like giving, here's a donate link for PBS and another for NPR. Of course, your local affiliate station could use some love (💰), too.
Maybe my take is simplistic and flat-out wrong. So, feel free to correct me in the comments!
"What I Regret Most in My Life are Failures of Kindness"
Anybody else a big George Saunders fan? Me, too.
He’s a writer supremo of the highest order, so if you haven’t dipped your toes into his freaky and funky waters, by all means get your feet wet. Oh, heck – go all the way up to your knees! You might start with short stories in which case I’d recommend Pastoralia or Tenth of December. Feeling like long form than entomb yourself in Lincoln in the Bardo.
I just became aware of something else he wrote, elevating the standard graduation commencement speech into something much loftier. And even though this was delivered in 2013 (Syracuse University), its theme of “Failures of Kindness” is as relevant today as it was then. Maybe even more so.
Plus, it’s fun to see his writing at work on a subject that for an audience of 22-year-olds, their friends and families, could be a real sleeper. Enjoy.
Godspeed, friends.
Russ