Setting Goals With an Annual Life Review
If you've ever had a yearly performance review for your job, you
know it can be a tense experience that determines whether you
receive a pay raise or not. Your boss will likely have a
detailed checklist of your progress and success, as well as
notations on areas that could use some improvement.
While these reviews can be stressful, they are also helpful
because they offer a bigger perspective than you would
ordinarily see in your day to day job functions. You might
become aware of activities that are unproductive, limiting, or
even detrimental to your professional advancement.
You can also benefit from this same process by creating an
annual New Year review for your life. It can help you assess
progress in all areas of your life, address challenges and
obstacles, and come up with some exciting goals and plans for
the New Year.
The best time to do a review is during the last few weeks of the
year, but it can be done any time you want a fresh start. You
can choose to do just one session or several, whatever works
best for you.
Set the Mood - When you are ready to begin, first create
a calm, quiet atmosphere. Put on comfortable clothing and choose
a private area where you won't be disturbed for 30-60 minutes.
You can also light some scented candles and incense, and play
some soft music if you like. Grab a pen and notebook or journal.
Then take a few minutes to sit quietly and take some slow, deep
breaths. This will help you release stress and focus your
thoughts.
Review - Now you are ready to begin reviewing your life
over the past year. Did you accomplish everything you wanted to?
Were there areas that could have used some improvement? Give
some thought to these six categories:
1) Physical health and fitness (diet, exercise)
2) Financial wellness (earnings, savings, investments)
3) Spiritual growth (inner peace, meditation, prayer)
4) Mental health (positive thoughts, attitude)
5) Career (job, business)
6) Relationships (with significant others, children,
friends, family)
Ask yourself three questions about each of these areas, and
write your answers in the journal.
1) Which of my positive actions contributed to growth and
progress?
2) Which of my negative actions caused stagnation and lack of
progress?
3) What could I do better to improve my progress in the coming
year?
It is very important not to judge yourself harshly during
this process! An annual review is not about beating yourself
up or concluding that you're a terrible person. This should be
an unemotional, objective view of your life goals and progress.
By becoming aware of areas where you can take more control over
your life, you can create more success and abundance.
Plan - Now that you have a clear view of the past year
and ideas about what you could do differently, you can make
plans and set goals for the coming year. Again, look at the six
main areas of your life: Physical health, Financial wellness,
Spiritual growth, Mental health, Career, and Relationships. What
would you like to create for yourself in the coming year? Write
some specific goals for each category. Your goals should be
realistic, yet somewhat challenging. You want to dream big, but
not overwhelm yourself either. It can also be helpful to break
your bigger goals down into smaller increments. You can set 3
month goals, 6 month goals, 9 month goals, and 12 month goals.
Action Steps - This is a crucial step in the process.
Once you have your goals set for each category, think about the
action steps that will move you toward your goals. For
example, if you want to lose weight and get into better shape,
daily exercise would be an action step. That is something you
need to do every day (or nearly every day) in order to
accomplish your goal. Be specific with the action goals. Don't
just write, "eat healthy." Write down exactly which foods you
want to include, and which you want to avoid. Write down the
exact types of exercise you want to include, which days of the
week you want to do them, and for how many minutes each day.
Enjoy the Journey - Once you begin putting your action
steps into motion, it's important to understand that
self-improvement is a process. You won't change
everything overnight. By expecting too much, too soon, you could
sabotage yourself. Instead, keep focusing on the action steps
every day. Congratulate and praise yourself for keeping with it.
If you begin to slack off, be firm with yourself about getting
back on track, but again, don't beat yourself up. Simply refocus
on your goals and begin again. All positive actions will create
positive results, and as long as you keep trying, you cannot
fail.
Guage Your Progress - It can be helpful to keep
performing daily or weekly checks to be sure you are moving in
the right direction. Simply review the goals and action steps
you have set for yourself, and assess whether you are on track
or not. Again, keep this process unemotional and objective. If
you see areas that could use improvement, you already know the
steps to take to turn them around again.
Activities like this review process can be such a powerful tool
in our own development. No matter what we've achieved or haven't
achieved in the past, it's never too late to start over. Each
new day is a chance to invite more love, abundance, joy, peace,
and success into our lives. Simply by focusing our thoughts and
taking action toward our goals, we can create virtually anything
we desire.