Step Off the Treadmill: How to Change Your Mindset and Stop the Rat Race in 2026

Before you write another goal or resolution for 2026, take a deep breath.

Ask yourself: Do I really want to keep living like this?

The constant running, the striving, the feeling that you’re always one step behind. It’s the modern treadmill we’ve all been conditioned to stay on. But this year, it’s time to step off.

Carolina Bakker, a burnout recovery coach and founder of Rat Race Recovery, has some tips on how to shift your mindset from surviving to thriving, and finally stop living life like it’s a competition you never signed up for.

The Slow Burn of the Rat Race

Carolina spent years climbing the corporate ladder in high-pressure global companies. On paper, she had it all: the visibility, the title, the impact. But inside, she was running on empty.

“I was never officially diagnosed with burnout,” she said, “but my body and emotions told me everything I needed to know.”

She describes waking up one sunny Saturday morning. 

Birds singing.

Light streaming through her window

And feeling absolutely nothing. 

“I didn’t want to move. I didn’t want to feel. I just wanted to hide.”

That’s how the rat race steals your joy. It doesn’t crash in suddenly. It creeps up, one late night and one “I’ll rest on the weekend” at a time, until you forget how to feel alive.

The Rat Race Is Internal, Not External

This blows my mind, and it will blow yours:  the rat race isn’t your work environment. It isn’t your long commute. It isn’t your crazy home life.

We point to our bosses, companies, and workloads as the problem, but the real race happens in our minds. Our brains become trapped in survival mode, wired for speed, fear, and scarcity.

“You can’t innovate from fear,” Carolina says. “You can’t lead from exhaustion.”

When we’re stuck in survival mode, creativity shuts down. Compassion disappears. Authenticity fades. But when we learn to shift into a calmer, more curious mindset, everything changes. How we lead, how we show up, and how we live.

Three to Thrive: Simplify to Succeed

Carolina’s favorite mindset tool is what she calls the Three to Thrive which is a practice rooted in Tony Robbins’ principles and the 80/20 rule.

Here’s how it works:

1. Focus on the 20% of tasks that create 80% of your results. You know, the Pareto principle

2. Choose three things each day that would make today feel successful and only accomplish those.

3. Do the hardest one first and celebrate once it’s done. (Note: As an ADHD coach, this may be hard for those ADHDers out there so for you specifically, do the thing that is the most exciting for you to propel you forward to do the hardest thing next.)

Then CELEBRATE! 

That small celebration, whether it’s a great cup of coffee or a quiet walk, rewires your brain. It builds momentum, reminding you that productivity isn’t about how much you do. It’s about doing what truly matters.

Small Shifts Create Big Change

If changing your mindset feels overwhelming, start tiny. Carolina calls it the two-millimeter shift, which is a concept that proves transformation comes from consistent, incremental action.

• Leave work five minutes earlier.

• Say “no” once this month.

• Breathe for 60 seconds before your next meeting.

  
  

These micro-moments recondition your nervous system. Over time, they rebuild trust between your body and your mind. You’ll start to feel less reactive, less rushed, and more in control.

“Don’t underestimate what one small change, done consistently, can do,” Carolina reminds us. “Change doesn’t come from massive leaps — it comes from steady steps in the right direction.”

The Power of a Single Decision

Real transformation doesn’t begin with a massive action plan. It begins with a decision.

Carolina’s advice for 2026 is simple but profound:

“Decide that when you wake up tomorrow, you’re going to enjoy life.”

That decision might sound too easy, but it’s how every real change begins. You can’t always control your environment, but you can control your mindset and that’s where freedom starts.

When you choose to slow down, to be curious instead of critical, and to lead with compassion instead of fear, you start living from empowerment, not exhaustion.

Boundaries, Self-Care, and the Courage to Feel

As we enter a new year, the most radical thing you can do is prioritize yourself. It took me YEARS to learn this! Years! But oh, it’s magic!

Self-care isn’t selfish. It’s strategic!

It’s not about bubble baths or spa days. It’s about taking three deep breaths before you react, setting one healthy boundary at work, or taking five quiet minutes just for you.

Because you can’t create an environment of authenticity and innovation around you until you’ve created one within you.

When you listen to yourself with compassion instead of judgment, your mindset shifts from fear to empowerment and that ripple effect changes everything.

The 2026 Mindset Shift

So, as the clock strikes midnight, skip the resolutions that make you feel like you’re not doing enough.

Instead, set an intention:

• To do less but mean more.

•  To listen to your emotions, because they’re data, not drama.

•  To show up with curiosity, not criticism.

• And to live life like it’s meant to be lived. That means fully, freely, and on your terms.

  
  

Because 2026 isn’t about doing more. It’s about becoming more you.

Listen to Stop the Rat Race: Burnout Recovery, Mindset Shifts, and Small Daily Changes That Transform Everything with Carolina Bakker on Work Unscripted here. She will inspire you for the entire year.