Design Your Summer
June 18, 2026
To Inspire:
Have you ever felt at the end of a season that you didn’t do some of the things you wanted to do? Or felt like you missed out on some of the opportunities that season holds? This year, summer officially begins this weekend on Sunday, June 21 (the astronomical summer solstice). If you want to get the most out of it, design your summer now.
Writer and researcher Gretchin Rubin recommends spending just a little time thinking about what you want to do this summer. If you think planning ruins spontaneity, Gretchin finds the opposite to be true. She says, “When you know what you’re hoping for, you recognize the opportunities when they appear.”
Here are some ways you can design your summer.
Choose a theme. Pick a one-word theme for the season. Over the next three months, as you’re thinking about where to focus your time and energy, ask yourself, “does this choice reflect my theme?” Some summer theme ideas: adventure, family, nature, peace, health.
Pick a focus. Think about what you want to do more of this summer, and what you want to do less of. Answering those questions for yourself can help point you toward where you want to spend your energy. Make your answers as specific as possible. “Get outside more” is not specific. “Take a walk after dinner most days each week” is a goal you can track and hold yourself to.
Leave time for play. Summer for most of us means great weather, longer days, more time off (if you’re still working). Use these longer, more relaxed days to shake up your usual routine. Gretchin says, “Research shows that taking time each day to recharge boosts vitality, energy, and creativity—so take advantage of it while the season lasts.”
Whatever your theme and focus, recognize that summer can introduce some challenges to good habits. Vacations, for example, may offer temptations that derail your good intentions, but that’s okay. Decide ahead of time which habits you will try to maintain and which will go on hold until you return.
Summer is my favorite season, and you can find me most days enjoying the peace of my garden. But I have decided that my focus for summer 2026 is “friendship.” I will do my best to spend more time with my friends and to reconnect with old friends.
Spend just a few minutes this weekend to think about your own theme and focus for this beautiful season. I’ll report back this fall on how successful I was with my summer theme!
Written by Michelle O’Brien, Manager of Marketing & Communications