We’ve all been there. You’ve come to the end of a year, and you’re wondering what on earth happened. How did I get here? Where did my time go? Why didn’t I do more of what I wanted to do, and less of what I felt like doing? And then you feel guilty for not being able to remember everything that happened in your life this year.
But it doesn’t have to be that way! With a little bit of effort, you can look back over the course of a year and figure out what you did right, what you did wrong, what actions you should have taken, and the ones that you should have left alone.
When it comes to creating a strong strategy for next year, it’s important that you understand where things went well and where they went wrong. Here are three ultimate ways to examine the past year to achieve your goals next year.
Review Your Goals
Your goals are your path to the OUTCOME you were looking to achieve-don’t be so attached to the goal. Did you put your goals where you could see them? Or did you write them down and never look at them again?
Your goals have to be seen. Use your goals as a guide to help you measure your actions and your outcomes. Are you getting closer or farther away from where you want to be?
Were your goals realistic? Achievable? Maybe you set them too low or even too high. Were you focused on the right things or the wrong things?
These are some of the questions that you need to ask yourself and don’t be afraid to be honest. Build your foundation for next year based on your answers.
Don’t get lost in day-to-day life, work or business, so it’s important that you take time out of each week (or month) to reflect on where you are and where you need to go. If you need help with your goals watch our goal-setting video here: https://bit.ly/GuideToGoals
Identify Patterns
When you look at what has happened in the past as data you will see trends that might affect your strategy for next year.
Personally: Did you maintain your boundaries? Were there times other people’s priorities took over? Did you allow yourself to get distracted during breaks? Over the summer?
Work/Business: Did you see an increase in sales during certain months? Was there one tool you used that got you the most results? Did you implement something new? Are things that were working to grow your business stop working or stop being as effective?
How did that impact your outcomes?
How Did You Use Your Time
There are three ways we use our time: we invest it, we spend it, or we waste it. Can you see how you spent most of your time last year? Did the days go by and you did not know what you accomplished?
Did you keep your priorities in front of you-did you know absolutely what you would have to accomplish? Secondly, did you give yourself dedicated time to work on these priorities?
Did you invest in yourself? You must make time to build your skills and continue to grow as a person. Investing in yourself is also taking care of yourself-getting enough sleep, pampering yourself, or having an expensive dinner or lunch.
How much time did you waste? It is so easy to do with technology at our fingertips-our favorite shows are always within reach. There are so many ways to waste time and it does not have to be a “bad” way to use your time. Just know in advance that is what you are doing.
There are a lot of things that we have no control over in our lives, so take control of what you can control. You will have to be intentional about the steps you are taking toward your biggest goals. If you need to have more control over your time, you can download my Time Creation CheatSheet here: https://bit.ly/TimeCreationWorksheet
Take the time to see what you did right last year and do more of it. Invest the time to see what actions held you back and proactively plan to stop doing those things. Give yourself credit for your awesomeness and learn from your mistakes. Plan to make 2023 Your Best Year Ever!
Need help? You can download our FREE Goal Guide here: https://bit.ly/GoalGuideChecklist
