As the year winds down, it can be worthwhile to look back at the months that made up this year—their highs and lows—and take stock of where you’ve been and where you’re headed in the new year.
Even if you’re typically a more forward-looking person, pausing to reflect on what you’ve enjoyed, learned, appreciated, and wished could have been better can inform your hopes and plans for the year to come. To jog your memory and organize your thoughts, here are a few ideas to get you started.
Review Your Journal
If you’re a journal keeper, this would be the best place to start. Page your way back to January and take a gander at what you were compelled to make note of this year. You might be surprised about how much you’ve improved in some area or how many things you accomplished, or you might notice areas of your life you want to work on next year. Perhaps there’s something you were able to overcome or a breakthrough you made.You might find fond memories and the key elements that made up the character of the year about to close. Whatever you find, allow yourself to take it in and understand what your life was like this year.
Review Your Calendar
Another great resource to review at the end of the year is your calendar. Take a look at the past year and the events, activities, obligations, appointments, and celebrations you took part in. How did you spend your time? Did you prioritize the aspects of life that you deem most important? What are you glad you dedicated time to? What would you like to spend more time doing next year?Review Your Photos
Your photos from the past year can illustrate the highlights of the year gone by. Every moment you felt compelled to capture can offer you some insight into what you appreciated, valued, and enjoyed. You’ll likely find moments you forgot about, others that you’re glad you captured, and plenty that you’ll treasure forever. Take the time to glance through a year’s worth of photos and take note of what a year it has been.Review Life’s Categories
If you think about life overall, you can divide it into overarching categories or themes that you regularly devote your attention to—things such as spirituality, family, friends, fitness, work, education, fun, finances, and home. Jot down your categories on a piece of paper and consider what your ideal vision of each looks like in your life. Then give yourself a rating for each category over the past year.You may find one category will need more attention than another in the coming year, or you may realize that the things you’ve been doing this past year have made another category a perfect 10. Utilize this framework to look back on the closing year and ahead to the dawning year for increased clarity and improved direction.
