Pre-Meal for Jan 14, 2026Looking Ahead in 2026

Happy Wednesday!

One of my dad’s most cherished sayings is: “The secret to happiness is always having something to look forward to”—and the older I get, the more wisdom I find in that.

So this first newsletter of the new year is a preview of some of the excitement we’re planning in 2026.

First up, The Field Guide: I couldn’t be more excited about this. My next book, Unreasonable Hospitality: The Field Guide, comes out in April and is available for pre-order now.

I collaborated with the mad geniuses at Invisible Creature to create a four-color workbook that’s as beautiful as it will be useful; if Unreasonable Hospitality is the why, this is the how. The Field Guide is meant to be discussed, marked up, and referred back to—and I absolutely cannot wait to see what you get up to with it.

If you do pre-order, hold on to your receipt; we’re going to do some fun giveaways closer to publication.

The Summit: We held our first Unreasonable Hospitality Summit in Nashville last year. It was an incredible couple of days, as rejuvenating and invigorating for us as it was for our amazing attendees. We cannot wait to take over the Four Seasons to do it again.

The only bad part: the inaugural Summit sold out in seconds, leaving over a thousand people on the wait list—which didn’t make us feel very hospitable at all. Preserving the intimate, personalized feeling of the workshop is paramount—but so is accommodating more of you. So, in 2026, we’ll be doing the Summit twice! Once April 9-10, and again April 21-22.

Tickets will go on sale January 28 at 1 p.m. ET. The Summit is designed as a one-time experience, so if you weren’t with us last year, mark your calendars and watch this space for announcements.

The Welcome Conference: On October 5th, we’ll host our eleventh (!) Welcome Conference at the beautiful David Geffen Hall at Lincoln Center. I’m charged up about the speakers we’re inviting, and all the surprises we have planned.

If you’re a repeat attendee (and I love seeing how many people come back to be with us every year), please note the date is not the second week in September, as it usually is; this year, we’ll see you October 5th. Tickets will go on sale in June, and we’ll give you a heads-up before they do.

There’s lots more I can’t wait to share. Our team is incredible, and we’ve got some truly exciting creative projects in the works. Mostly, though, I want to wish you and yours a very Happy New Year. I’m thrilled we’ll have so many ways to connect in 2026.

Have a good service!

Will