The Q1 Blueprint: How to Start 2026 Like You Mean It

The way you start the year is usually the way you run it.

If January begins slowly with a bit of procrastination and a lot of "I'll get to that next week" that pace has a funny way of sticking. 

On the flip side, if you're proactive from day one, building pipeline while diaries are still open and people are still receptive, you put yourself in a very different position by the time February rolls around.

Week one, for me, would be about momentum. 

Reaching out early. Booking meetings while calendars are still light. Starting conversations before everyone else switches back into reactive mode.

Not because it feels good, but because it sets a standard for how the rest of the quarter is going to look.

Why this matters: 

Most of your competitors are still "easing back in." The clients you want to work with have open diaries and clearer headspace than they'll have in three weeks. 

The candidates you want to speak to are reflecting on their careers after the break. 

There's a window here, and it doesn't stay open long.

Action Task: 

Ask yourself - what does "starting properly" actually look like for me? 

What am I putting off that would immediately move the needle? 

Write it down and commit to doing it this week.

Before I'd even think about setting new targets, I'd spend some time looking back at last year properly (If you haven’t already!)

Not in a dramatic way, and not just focusing on the highlights but really asking some uncomfortable questions:

What genuinely worked in 2025? 

What looked busy but didn't produce much? 

Which clients were worth the effort, and which ones quietly drained time and energy? 

Where did my best fees actually come from? 

What habits helped me perform, and which ones consistently got in the way?

This isn't about overanalysing the past. It's about not repeating the same mistakes with a shinier plan.

If the foundations were cracked last year, building bigger on top of them won't fix the problem.

The honest questions to sit with:

Action Task: 

Write down three things from 2025 you want more of in Q1, and three things you're consciously leaving behind. 

If you're not sure, use the worksheet at the end of this edition to work through it.

This is where the guesswork stops.

Let's say you want to bill £75K in Q1. 

That's £25K a month, which for most 360 recruiters means roughly two to three placements per month, depending on fee size.

Once you know that number, the pressure changes. 

It's no longer "I need to bill £75K." 

It becomes "I need to do these inputs consistently", and that's a much easier problem to solve.

Here's how to reverse-engineer it (using £75K as an example):

Start with your average fee. Let's say yours is £10K. 

That means you need 7-8 placements across Q1. That's roughly 2.5 placements per month.

Now work backwards through your conversion rates:

Your numbers will be different, but the principle is the same. 

Know your ratios. Map the activity. Then protect that activity every single week.

Action Task: 

Reverse-engineer January only. What's your January target? 

What does that require in terms of placements, interviews, CVs, and conversations? 

Get specific. Use the worksheet below to map it out.

From your 2025 review, be ruthless about identifying your top ten existing clients.

These are the ones who either are hiring now, have told you they'll be hiring in Q1, or have worked with you before and genuinely value what you do. 

These aren't "nice to have" accounts - they're the foundation of your quarter.

Once those are clear, build a target list of 90 accounts you want to either break into or have meaningful conversations with by the end of Q1. 

Roughly 30 per month.

Not random companies. Not vague "nice brands." 

Actual organisations where there's a real reason for you to speak to them.

The structure that works:

Every one of those goes into a structured BD plan, reviewed weekly, adjusted quickly if something isn't landing.

Action Task: 

Write your Top 10 down right now. Then build your 30 for January. 

If you're not sure where to start, ask yourself: who spent money with me last year that I haven't spoken to since? Who did I meet at an event but never followed up with? Who's hiring in my market right now?

Everyone has something that limits their performance.

For some, it's inconsistent BD. For others, it's weak qualification, poor conversion, or terrible time management. 

If I were doing this properly, I'd pick one thing and make it my focus for the quarter.

Not trying to overhaul everything at once, but committing to actually improving one skill properly. 

Watching content on it, asking for feedback, role-playing it, and practising it until it feels natural.

Progress comes much faster when you stop spreading your attention too thin.

Common culprits to consider:

Action Task: 

Decide on your one focus for Q1. Write it somewhere you'll see it every day. 

Then find one resource, person, or practice habit that will help you improve it over the next 12 weeks.

Big quarters aren't won by grinding yourself into the ground by March.

If you're exhausted, distracted, and constantly "catching up," something is off.

For me, this would mean protecting mornings for high-value work, doing BD when I'm at my sharpest, and not sacrificing sleep or training just to feel busy.

Sustainable intensity always beats burnout.

A few questions worth asking:

Action Task: 

Identify one habit or commitment that's draining your energy without giving much back, and adjust it. 

Maybe it's saying yes to every call. Maybe it's working through lunch. Maybe it's checking emails before bed. 

Pick one and change it.

Very few recruiters figure this out in isolation.

If I were serious about Q1, I'd be leaning on my manager for feedback on my outreach and calls, and I'd be asking them to hold me to the plan I've set.

I'd also find someone on my team to run alongside. 

Someone to check in with weekly, share wins with, and keep each other honest when momentum dips.

Accountability changes behaviour far more than motivation ever will.

Action Task: 

Set up one recurring check-in that keeps you honest throughout Q1. 

Whether that's with your manager, a peer, or someone outside your business, make it happen this week.

I've put together a simple worksheet you can use to work through each of these steps.

It covers:

[Download the Q1 Planning Worksheet here] (Link to worksheet - spreadsheet version)

[Download the Q1 Planning Worksheet here] (Link to worksheet - doc version version)

P.S. Whenever you're ready, there are 3 ways I can help you:

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