I was listening to a friend and mentor of mine share his method of year end reflection and planning. I found it extremely helpful and wanted to share with you. Ray shared four “R’s” to use in looking back and planning for the future.
In each section I will provide the quadrant and then a few, but not all of the questions he suggests we ask ourselves. I hope you find this helpful.
Review
First, we review the past year. I have heard many ways this can be done. One person I know will look at his calendar and evaluate the use of his time. Using the calendar, if you or someone else keeps an accurate one for you, gives us an objective review to see trends in our life and the following questions Ray provides may help us in that review process:
- What is life pushing up? – this may be a reoccurring theme you see from your life
- What is life pushing out? – Things in your business or life are no longer needed or relevant
- What is life trying to push me toward? – maybe there is a reoccurring opportunity
Remember
One of my mentors at the end of the year scrolls through his phone looking at all the pictures to remember what happened in the past year. This helps him reflect and celebrate what occurred. As we move out of review to remember here are some questions that may be helpful:
- What is it that I need to celebrate?
- Who do I need to honor?
- Where do I need to breathe? – areas you need space and margin in your life
Release
Each year we have both good and bad experiences personally and professionally. We need to explore these and determine what we need to let go of. Maybe our calendar should be cleared of certain experiences or responsibilities. Possibly there is something we need to release emotionally. To help us determine what to release use these questions:
- What thing do I need to release? – a physical thing
- Who are the people I need to release? – relationships have a lifespan at times and if a relationship does not serve us, we need to let it go
- What are the activities I need to release? – maybe some activities are not serving us well anymore
- What commitments do I need to release? – look at what we need to say “no” to
Reset or Renew
This is the part where we are looking ahead. I remember playing my Nintendo Entertainment System as a kid and needing to press the reset button because of frustration. This is true for all of us. Especially after a year like 2020 we may have realized through forced shutdown that we need to set aside time to renew ourselves so we can lead ourselves and others from a healthy place. These are Ray’s questions that help us stay energized as we move ahead:
- Is my focus in alignment with my purpose? – if you don’t know your purpose, get clarity there
- What do I need to do to renew my energy physically, spiritually, and emotionally?
- How do I need to renew my environment? – office, home
This can be a difficult, but necessary process. Maybe this helps you or you want to adjust it. If you need help thinking into your results then connect with me and let’s talk. Reflect on this year and move ahead to make next year even better. Lead Well.
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