How did this year go for you?  5 questions to help you take stock and plan for next year

If you’re reading this newsletter, you probably faced or are currently preparing for a difficult transition. Wherever you are in your journey, how are you doing today? Are you willing to look at your year to give yourself credit for your accomplishments and be honest about opportunities to improve?

As the holidays close in and 2024 comes to an end, it’s likely that you’re juggling 1,000 tasks, emotions, responsibilities and stressors. I hope you will also take time to honor your successes. You made it to this point!

Wherever you are in your personal journey, can you gift yourself some uninterrupted time to reflect and plan?

Here are five questions I like to ask at the beginning of the year:

1. How would I rate last year? I try to do this without judgement – it isn’t about beating yourself up for things that didn’t happen or didn’t go as planned. Instead, try to use this question to see what comes up. What’s the first word you think of? Why? What are other words? If you’re finding they’re all negative, can you refocus and find even a few things that were positive as well? Finally, can you give your year a number on a scale of 1-10? Then ask yourself, what would you need to do to improve that number by 1, 3 or even 5.

2. What is one action you could take to be kinder to yourself this year? Ideas might include getting up 30-60 minutes earlier each day to do something for yourself; journaling; creating a mantra or Power Statement to remind yourself of your strengths; setting a new personal mission statement; creating (and enforcing!) a new boundary.

3. Imagine yourself at the end of 2025 and you are looking back. You say to yourself, “that was an amazing year.” What made it great?

4. Is there something you did this last year that you don’t want to replicate again? What can you learn from that situation as you move forward?

5. Who are you at your best, and how might you work toward showing up as that person more consistently? For help with this, download my free workbook. There are questions and a template to help you figure out what your “best self” looks like and how to keep yourself accountable.

Are there other questions you like to ask as you prepare for the new year? I’d love to hear how you answer these questions and what else you’re asking. Whatever you work on, I hope you’ll take the wins and be gentle with yourself on areas for improvement. We’re all works in progress, and you are strong and worthy.