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What were you doing on July 2? If I had to guess, you were likely gearing up for a long holiday weekend and the celebrations marking America’s 250th birthday.
While we were busy preparing for fireworks and other festivities, another occasion quietly slipped by: the midpoint of 2026. For one brief moment last Thursday, exactly six months sat behind us, and six months stretched ahead.
Granted, that milestone is easy to miss, but it offers a unique perspective: Few moments invite us to look backward and forward at once. We can celebrate what we’ve accomplished and decide what still needs our attention before the year slips away.
For many, New Year’s Day is the traditional time to reflect and set goals. We make resolutions and ask ourselves questions like "Am I spending my time the way I hoped I would?" and "What do I want the year ahead to look like?"
But there’s a strong case to be made for a July check-in. We’ve lived half the year and now know which promises we’ve kept, which ones have slipped away, and which still matter enough to begin again. A fresh start doesn’t have to wait six more months.
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A better time to begin again
The problem with New Year’s resolutions is they often ask us to change too much, all at once, during one of the darkest and busiest times of the year. As a result, a staggering 88% fail within the first two weeks of January.
Yet resolutions still matter because they give us a reason to reflect and choose a direction. Even when we fall short, setting an intention reminds us that growth rarely happens by accident. It comes from the small choices we make, often in ways we don’t appreciate until we look back.
The midpoint of the year gives us the chance to renew those intentions with more perspective. Our aspirations have been tested by real life, making it easier to see which goals still matter and where a small adjustment could make a meaningful difference.
If I were choosing just one resolution to carry into the second half of the year, it would be this: stay connected to the people you care about.
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My midpoint resolution
This goal may not sound as ambitious as training for a marathon or finally organizing the garage, but few choices have a greater impact on our quality of life. Both research and experience point to the same conclusion: strong relationships sit at the center of a healthy, fulfilling life.
As I’ve written in many Celebrations Pulse letters, scientists have found that strong social ties reduce stress, improve physical and mental health, and protect us against loneliness. They also support nearly every other goal we care about, from career growth to emotional resilience.
Yet relationships rarely disappear all at once. Life gets busy, responsibilities stack up, and time moves faster than we expect. Most relationships don’t end with a blowup or a falling out; they simply fade when we stop tending to them.
That may be why this resolution feels different from most others. It asks us to pay a little more attention to the people who matter most. And summer makes that easier than almost any other season.
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Put the season to work
Summer gives us countless reasons to connect. Vacations, weddings,
reunions
, backyard cookouts, neighborhood gatherings, and long evenings naturally bring people together. The opportunity is there; we just have to use it.
A long drive to the beach becomes time for the phone call you’ve been meaning to make. A graduation or wedding becomes the perfect reason to tuck a handwritten note into a card. A cookout becomes an opportunity to invite someone you’ve been meaning to see.
You don’t need a new planner or another productivity app. You need one name that comes to mind and one message: “You popped into my mind today. I’d love to catch up.”
That’s your power of connection put to use in a single message — one that may not change someone’s life overnight but can reopen a conversation, rekindle a friendship, strengthen a family bond, or remind someone they’re not forgotten.
Because summer has already made room for moments like these, you could keep that resolution before you finish reading this letter. You never really know what a simple act of reaching out might mean to someone else.
There’s only one way to find out. Use your power.
All the best,
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Young men are facing significant challenges — from loneliness and anxiety to social media pressure and the loss of meaningful friendships.
In this week’s Power & Impact, licensed therapist Austin Cole
joins me for an honest conversation about what's really happening with men’s mental health, why relationships matter more than ever, and how parents, friends, and mentors can help the next generation thrive.
Whether you’re a parent, mentor, leader, or navigating life’s challenges yourself, this conversation offers insight and hope for building stronger relationships and a healthier future.
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50 Years In: The power of a camping trip
As 1-800-Flowers celebrates its 50th anniversary, I’ve been thinking about the lessons that shaped me long before I opened my first flower shop. Some came from mentors. Some came from customers. One of the most important came from a camping trip I never really intended to take.
During my years running St. John’s Home for Boys, a couple of the older boys asked me if I had ever been camping. Wanting to sound more outdoorsy than I was, I said, “Sure. All the time.” That was a complete lie.
They immediately said, “Then why don’t you take us camping?”
At the time, one of the hardest parts of the job was getting the boys out the door and into school each morning. Lectures and threats rarely worked. So I made them a deal: If everyone went to school for two straight weeks without cutting class, I’d take them camping.
Almost overnight, the boys started waking each other up, pushing one another along, and holding each other accountable. And yes, we went camping. It remains the only real camping trip of my life, but I never forgot what it taught me.
A good goal gives people a reason to commit. It creates energy, makes progress visible, and transforms individual effort into shared responsibility.
I can trace many of my ideas about leadership to that experience. Whether you’re working with kids at St. John’s or building a business, people need to know what they’re working toward. They need to see how they’re doing. And they need to feel that the goal belongs to them, not just to the person in charge.
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Why summer is perfect for winter birthdays
Summer has a way of opening up our calendars. With the spring holidays behind us and school out, many families find themselves with a little more breathing room.
That makes it the perfect time to celebrate someone whose birthday always gets squeezed by the rest of the year.
If you have a friend or family member with a birthday that falls near Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Year’s, or during the busiest stretch of winter, you know how easily those celebrations can become an afterthought. A “half-birthday” picnic, backyard dinner, or weekend gathering in the sunshine can give them a celebration that’s entirely their own.
Last year, I wrote about the unique challenges of birthdays that share the spotlight with other occasions, and it became one of the most popular stories we’ve ever published. Readers told me about growing up with Christmas birthdays, Memorial Day birthdays, and Fourth of July birthdays — and the creative ways their families made those days feel special.
If someone you love has one of those birthdays, summer might be the perfect excuse to celebrate them now.
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Celebrating Friendship Month
Friendship is one of life’s greatest blessings because the people who celebrate our victories, help us through disappointments, and make ordinary days more enjoyable shape our lives in ways we often don’t fully appreciate.
That’s one reason I’m glad July is recognized as Friendship Month. It’s a reminder to use your power to reach out and let the people who matter know they’re appreciated. A phone call, a note, or an unexpected visit can strengthen a relationship that’s been years in the making.
As we move through the month ahead, I hope you’ll take a moment to celebrate the friends who have made your life richer — and perhaps become that kind of friend for someone else.
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Related articles that caught my eye
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Written by our Founder and Chairman, our Celebrations Pulse letters aim to engage with our community. From sharing stories to welcoming your ideas, we want to help you to express, connect, and celebrate the important people in your life.
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