2003 - What Kind of Year Was It For You?
New Year's resolutions are a month away. It's not too early, though, to be getting ready for the New Year. Companies use December to check reality against projections. We should do the same. We should take stock of what worked and what didn't work in the past year. I've composed a list of questions to help you in this process. If you answer all the questions in this article, you'll be well on your way to a fruitful 2004.
What Worked in 2003?
- What did you accomplish?
- What worked for you? What career initiatives? Financial goals? Family connections? Health and fitness objectives?
- What brought you joy?
- Did you have time to have fun? To feel peacefulness and satisfaction?
What Didn't Work so Well?
- What plans or goals are leading you away from your true values, your true self?
- What is draining your energy and costing you peace of mind?
- What attitudes or behaviors might you have that are sabotaging your health? Your family? Your financial goals? Your dreams?
- What relationships are broken and need to be fixed, or discarded?
What Change Orders Are Needed?
Like any work in progress, we need to sweep away the clutter that is getting in our way, keeping us from focusing on what is truly important. Once you've identified the things that need to change, those things that aren't working for you, you'll need to let them go. Letting go of bad habits and attitudes requires self-discipline. It's very simple: unless self-destructive patterns are broken, there's no need to proceed with planning for a better life.
Sometimes we get the idea that once we've set a goal we must stay with it no matter what. That simply isn't true. If a bus is headed toward you doing 60 MPH, you'll swerve to get out of the way. The same is true of goals and patterns that no longer serve us. They simply must be cleared away. The way to do that is to write up an official set of change orders for yourself, then act on them one by one. Refer to the list you made above, what's not working, to begin your list of change orders.
Back To the Drawing Board for 2004
Once you've noted what isn't working and what you will change, you can proceed to the drawing board for some fun and creative planning. Here are some questions you may want to consider:
- What do I want to accomplish in this New Year?
- What will be my top three or four priorities?
- Are these in line with my values and my overall objectives?
- What support systems (people and know-how) will I need to have in place?
- What relationships will I mend and nurture?
- Where will I focus most of my energy?
- What must I do and who must I be to accomplish this?
- What will bring me joy, peace and satisfaction?
Take a Clue From the Chinese
Why not try naming the year? Instead of the year of the dog or the rat, you can have the year of fitness, or financial health or friendship. It's fun to create a year that is dedicated to a specific objective. I've found this be hugely successful. I named 1986 the year of growing my public relations business, and that focus kept me squarely on target. The result was a banner year.
Look Into Your Personal Crystal Ball
Here's another technique that works. Sit down right around New Years and write your predictions for the year, in the past tense. Date the predictions Dec. 31, 2004. For example you may want to write something such as this: This past year we had record growth in the company, with xx% increase in profit over 2003. This was the year my wife and I made that trip to Tuscany. This was the year I decided to tilt my career in a different direction, and I achieved 90% of my goals in that regard.
Once you've written your predictions, tuck them away to be read at the end of the year. You'll be surprised how many of those statements will prove to be true.
What I want for all of you is a joyous holiday season, followed by the best year of your lives!
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