We’re wired to think in quarters. Revenue targets. Annual goals. Five-year plans if we’re ambitious. But what if the meaningful shifts in our work happen on a completely different timeline?
February’s Lunar New Year is now in full swing. It’s the Year of the Fire Horse – a rare cycle that only comes around once every 60 years. The last Fire Horse was 1966. In my lifetime, I will have experienced two cycles. The next one won’t be until 2086. But here’s what I started thinking: we can look at our lives in 20-year increments. 2006 was 20 years ago. 2046 will be 20 years from now – halfway to the next Fire Horse. I’m wondering: what would it be like to measure our growth not by fiscal years, but by these longer cycles of transformation? What patterns would we see if we zoomed out that far?
Many of us haven’t had our businesses for 20 years. Wicked Bionic is in its 11th year. So what if we look at our lives instead?
Twenty Years Ago
Not a Fire Horse year – but a turning point.
Twenty years ago, I was delivering television shows to networks. That was also the year my marriage ended – a short one, but gratefully, a good ending.
I remember making a decision that year: I wanted more. A different kind of life. And I couldn’t get there staying where I was.
So I didn’t.
Nine years later, I left television and started Wicked Bionic. Everything I do now – the work with underserved communities, the campaigns that bridge gaps between resources and the people who need them – started with that choice in 2006. I just didn’t know it yet.
Hong Kong-based Chinese astrologer Letao Wang describes Fire Horse energy as being “about speed and momentum,” adding that it’s a year to “take action and start galloping.” That’s what 2006 felt like. Movement. Forward motion. No permission asked.
What the Fire Horse Brings
The Fire Horse isn’t subtle. Horse energy is about independence, movement, speed, and freedom. Fire amplifies everything: passion, visibility, risk-taking, and zero patience for being boxed in.
In Chinese astrology, Fire Horse years are considered dynamic but also volatile, bringing both opportunity and intensity. The last time this energy showed up – in 1966 – the world saw China’s Cultural Revolution begin, the Vietnam War escalate, and the civil rights movement gain strength in the United States. Major transformation. Rapid change. Systems breaking and rebuilding.
Not quiet. Not incremental. Bold.
What would it be like if we approached this year with that same boldness? Not reckless – but decisive.
The 20-Year Question
Here’s what I keep coming back to: transformation doesn’t happen on our timelines. It happens on its own schedule.
Twenty years ago, I chose independence over expectations. I didn’t know what effect it would have on me. I just knew I needed something bigger.
Now, looking ahead 20 years – to 2046.” What will matter then? Will I still be asking these same questions about transformation and timing? Or will the patterns finally be clear?
What would it be like to live with that kind of patience? To know that the work we’re doing now plants seeds we won’t fully see for 20 years?
Riding the Momentum
Letao Wang notes that “this year rewards fast thinking, but it punishes sloppy risk.” The Fire Horse doesn’t wait. But it also doesn’t forgive impulsiveness.
The invitation here isn’t to burn everything down. It’s to move with intention. To channel the fire instead of letting it run you over.
Feng shui master Thierry Chow points out that for anyone experiencing their “Ben Ming Nian” – when your zodiac year matches your birth sign – “big changes are coming.” But even if this isn’t your zodiac year, the energy is here. We all feel it.
So what would it be like to use this momentum? To make the decision you’ve been putting off? To step into something bigger, even if you can’t see exactly where it leads?
The Long View
Twenty years from now, what will you look back on from 2026?
Will it be the year you stayed comfortable? Or the year you moved?
I don’t have the answers. I’m asking the same questions you are. But I do know this: the patterns reveal themselves when you zoom out.
In 2006, I chose independence. By 2015, that choice had led me to leave television and start my own agency. By 2026, the work matters. Twenty years from now? I believe I’m going to be sitting by the fire in my New Hampshire lake house reading a great book with my dog next to me and my partner fishing from the dock. But then…who knows? No doubt it’ll make sense then too when I look back.
What would it be like if we all gave ourselves that kind of grace? To trust that the big moves we make now – the bold ones, the scary ones – will fall into place over time?
The Fire Horse doesn’t wait for permission. Maybe we shouldn’t either.
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About the Author
Dana C. Arnett is the Founder and CEO of Wicked Bionic, a Los Angeles-based communications and advertising agency since 2015. She works with government and private sector clients, specializing in strategic marketing and paid media campaigns. With over 30 years of experience in entertainment production and a decade building authentic connections between organizations and diverse communities, Dana is a recognized leader in culturally responsible marketing.
