End of year review: Option 2
Alison Laycock
It’s that time of year again and no not just Christmas and all that has to offer but approaching the end of the year. That can only mean one thing, no not extra mince pies, put those down. It’s time for you to review your year so that you go strongly and positively into 2022.
Some people do this in their minds, a quick decision of whether it was a good year or not, others might prefer to discuss it with a good friend and get their view on it too whilst there will be some who allocate themselves some quiet time and maybe pen and paper to review the year. Whichever way you prefer, the important thing is that you do take time to look at the positives and the negatives of the year, your achievements and failures (which can be positives too) and the people in your life who have helped or hindered you.
Why is it so important? Well it can put things into perspective for a start. You may just quickly think about the last few weeks/months which may not have gone so well but if you take the whole year and list the successes, the good times and the developments both personally and professionally then you will see how much you have achieved. Having said that, it’s also OK for it to have been a hard year, maybe things haven’t gone to plan and you end 2021 sad or despondent. So, review it as a whole and then look towards 2022 and see what you can change and improve on. (We will cover the next step for 2022 in another blog).
First things first, let’s deal with 2021. So what can you have in the review? Here are some ideas.
1) Negatives/ things that haven’t gone well: Yes, let’s deal with this first and get it out of the way. So what hasn’t gone well and more importantly, be honest with yourself. There is no point blaming it on someone else, take responsibility for your part in any areas which haven’t worked out as this is the only way you can make it better next year. Give reasons not excuses!
2) People in your life: This will mean different things for each of us. Some of you may just focus on personal or professional life and others may see it as a whole package. That’s up to you. Who has helped you, positively influenced or inspired you, who encourages you through your endeavours and challenges you to do and be better? Have there been any negative influences in your life, those who have hindered you or made fun of you? This part can help you decide which relationships you want to take into the next year with you and others you may need to work on or decide to let go of.
3) Successes/ achievements/ positives: Whatever you want to call them, list them in all their glory and feel the sense of pride which goes with seeing all that you have accomplished this year. Why are these successes and how have you achieved them? Knowing the reasons or the people involved can help you enjoy more successes in the future.
4) Personal development: How have you changed this year? Have you developed in areas you set yourself targets in? Perhaps you have read more, meditated which was resolution or developed a relationship? Acknowledge everything even if you don’t see any improvement in yourself as it is good to admit it and plan for the future. Maybe you were too busy for friends and family this year and realise what you missed out on. Acknowledging that to yourself can allow you to make realistic changes so you don’t say the same thing this time next year. Perhaps your development has come in the areas of setting boundaries, settling into routines and continuing to pt one foot in front of the other. It isn’t all about making changes, big or small as often the development can be that you’re more content in where you are and that is huge!
5) Professional development: Have you developed this year? In what way have you progressed? Which courses have you attended or perhaps you have taken part in or led a project. All this is important to acknowledge even if you haven’t seen it as a focus this year it is still good to acknowledge who you have been and how you have been.
6) Resolutions: Did you make any resolutions? If so, how did you get on? Maybe you couldn’t complete some for whatever reason, maybe others you decided weren’t meant for you any longer and maybe some you will continue with or start in 2022. Make sure though that you only carry on the ones you want to carry on with and not what others want for you.
Done? Now whatever your review looks like, be nice to yourself. Go and take a long hot bath, drink a glass of your favourite drink, just basically treat yourself as that may have been a difficult thing to do. Whatever the outcome, hold on to the positives. You will have achieved some great things and developed no matter what you think and often this why it is good to do with a friend or loved one as they can point out the good things you may have forgotten or not noticed.