At the Year’s end

It’s the middle of December, and it’s about that time when we begin to take stock of the year that is nearly gone.  Soon we’ll be setting plans for next year, but for now, we need to decide how we think this year has gone.  If you set specific goals earlier this year, then you can check yourself against them now.  You’ll be able to see clearly what you accomplished and what you still need to work on.  

But what if you didn’t set goals at the beginning of the year?  Well,  you could set some “retrospective” goals (sort of like writing everything you’ve already done on your To Do list – you get credit for getting it done, but you didn’t actually have it on the original list!).  But that’s not ideal.

If you hadn’t gotten around to setting and writing goals and you don’t want to add to your To Do list, you might need another way to reflect on the year.  Because, whether you wrote goals or not, you likely still had accomplishments and achievements that are worth noting.  It’s instructive to look back and assess what happened all year and to actively remember the events of the year.  But those activities won’t make themselves obvious – you have to look for them! 

How do you take yourself on a journey reviewing the year?  You guessed it, ask yourself some questions.  What should those questions be? Here are a few.  Although it’s only a few, the answers will be instructive and tell you how you’re doing for the year. 

What is the best thing that happened all year?  What are the runners up? 

 

What did you do that you probably could have skipped?  What didn’t you do that you probably needed to include? 

 

What had you hoped to accomplish that you did?

 

What had you hoped to accomplish that you didn’t?

 

What did you do to take care of you?  Did it work?

 

What did you do that made you uncomfortable because it was (way) outside of your comfort zone?

 

What advice would you give yourself back in January, knowing what you know now in December?

 

What did you learn from all this?

The point of these questions is to meet the need to remember what you did, how you felt, what you should do next.  They are goals, just written differently!

There are, of course, other questions.  You will need your own that reflect your own ideas about what you accomplish in the year.  Spend a little time sussing out which ones work for you.  

What are some questions that you asked yourself to help take stock of the year?  Did you like the answers?  Let me know in the comments!