Review and Renew

2018 is in the books, and everyone is looking forward to the New Year. I know that for many 2018 was a great year with many good memories. For some however, 2018 was a terrible year that they are ready to see go. Regardless how this year is viewed, it is important to end the year well so that 2019 gets off to a great start.

I am a strong believer in living life to the full (John 10:10). This requires reflecting on the past and using lessons learned to live better in the future (Haggai 1:5-8).

Most people live unexamined lives. The fruit of such living is a lack of progress from year to year. It is so important to do an annual review to learn the lessons from the past and plan for a better future.

Celes Chua has some great suggestions for an annual review.

1. Reflect on your biggest accomplishments from last year

It is important to spend some time determining the victories from the last year. This is important because our mind usually go to all the things that went wrong or did not happen. Negative thinking like this can hijack the entire process and prevent this from being a positive process that will propel you forward into the next year.

Look for events you may have celebrated, plans you have executed to success and projects you have worked to completion.

Some examples of this can be pounds lost, family victories, books read, etc…

2. Reflect on your biggest lessons learned last year.

Instead of focusing on things that went wrong, it is more constructive to consider what lesson you have learned from the past year. What have you learned in the last year that will have you have more success in the next year.

Micheal Hyatt suggests the following as a way to discover these lessons:

1. Consider what you wanted to have happen
2. Next, write done what actually happened
3. Then consider why it happened
4. Finally think through what has to change in the future

This exercise allows you to learn from both the good and bad events of the year. This is key to making progress year to year in life.

3. Evaluate how well the past year went

It is good to assess how the year was in general. Again the goal here is not to be too hard on yourself, but to honest take stock of how this year has impacted your life.

The best way to do this is not to say it was a good year or a bad year. Try to rate the year on a scale from 1 to 10; 10 being your best year ever and 1 being your worst.

We’ve all had some bad years where we did not achieve our best. We’ve also had some pretty amazing years that have shaped who we are. This will help you to keep things in perspective and gauge how you want to see the next year unfold.

4. Think through your roles or areas of importance

This is key before planning any goals for the next year. Even if you don’t connect goals to the roles you play, it is a great exercise to identify the areas of life important to you.

We all have areas of our lives that are important. Some are married, some are parent or caregivers of some kind. We all have financial obligations and vocational aspirations. There are many other areas you can highlight such as education or personal health.

For years I have focused on my personal life, my family, my finances and my professional roles.

5. Plan your goals for the next year

This is a great time to dream for the future. What it would take to look back on this year as your best year ever? What aspirations for the future do you have? What desired outcome would you love your efforts to produce? Once you have a list of desired outcomes, you must rewrite them as specific goals that can be achieved.

Use the SMARTER goal template. Your goals should be:

Specific – “Read the Bible” is vague, but “Read a chapter a day” is specific.

Measurable – This means include a number if you can.

Actionable – They should start with an action verb like walk, run, read not, “Be a better person.”

Risky – They need to be outside of your comfort zone. If a goal is too easy, it’s not compelling. If it’s too hard, you’ll just shut down and quit.

Time-keyed – How often are you going to do something and by when are you going to get it done?

Exciting – If you are not personally excited about your goals, it is tougher to stay motivated.

Relevant – They should relate to who you are. You can’t just copy someone else’s goals. A person new to running should not set out to run 10 miles a day. A person who reads the Bible daily will not be motivated to do the same thing. This is a habit not a goal.

6. Clarify Your Motivation

Many people write out their goals having the intention of getting them done but still fail. They fail for lack of motivation.

There are two things you can do to clarify your motivation.

1. List why each goal is important. What are the top 3 payoffs you will receive from completing this goal? This list will keep you motivated when you feel like quitting.
2. List your reward. How will you reward yourself for completing this goal? This is exciting and ensures you take the time to celebrate your victories rather than running ahead to the next task.

7. Resolve your obstacles

Knowing what went well and what did not from last year will inform you about the obstacles you will face in the next year. To achieve your goals you must resolve the obstacles you will face. Simple obstacles can be anticipated and planned for, but character issues require developing new habits.

The following exercise will help you to resolve the obstacles you face.

1. List any obstacles to each goal. What obstacles stand in your way? What has caused you to fail in the past? If you can anticipate any obstacles you will be better prepared when they come.
2. Think through any new habits you can develop to help you achieve your goal. The biggest challenge to achieving our goals is that they require us to change. If you do not change your actions from last year, you we receive the same results as last year.

8. Plan your immediate next steps

Break down each goal into steps you can put into practice today. Each step will build on the proceeding step or work together to achieve the goal.

For example if you want to lose 15 pounds by Easter you could have a detailed list:

1. Decide to go to the gym 3 days a week.
2. Decide how your diet must change.
3. Track your end of the week weight.

This is a great place to get advice from those who have had success with similar tasks. The key here is to be flexible with your steps. They may change with time, but they should each help you to get closer to your goal.

What are some benefits you gain from doing an end of the year review? How can this process better set you up for a year of great success and impact? Please comment below.