At the end of every year, I look back and ask myself a few questions to acknowledge myself for everything I did and learned that year, before looking ahead at what I want for the next year. While everyone knows and talks about New Year’s resolutions, this simple step of looking back and reflecting is often skipped. Yet how can we plan ahead if we don’t know where we have been?
It’s actually one of the reasons we are not as happy as we could be. Happiness does not come from accomplishing goals. It comes from enjoying our journey towards our goals and acknowledging ourselves and celebrating each step of the way. While I encourage my clients to regularly acknowledge themselves for things they do, the end of the year is a great way to look back and celebrate what we did and learned that year.
I then look back at what I wrote at the beginning of the year and it’s interesting to see how my intentions got realized. At the beginning of 2019, I wrote that 2019 will be about letting my Champion (the opposite of my Saboteur/Inner Critic) be in the driver’s seat. And that’s indeed what has allowed me to reach some of my goals, such as creating my first online training course, creating more short videos with useful tips, taking on more clients and doing a lot more networking.
Here are the questions I ask myself to reflect back on the past year:
- What were your greatest successes and breakthroughs in 2019? What would you like to celebrate?
- What risks did you take this year that you are proud of?
- What would you like to acknowledge yourself for (give yourself credit for)?
- What was your biggest learning experience this year? What did you learn?
- What was your biggest disappointment or loss this year? How have you integrated it? What, if anything, is left to heal or let go of?
- Overall, what was this year about for you (what’s the title of this chapter in the book of your life)?
What was 2019 about for you?
Manuela helps heart-centered professionals who feel stuck or unhappy create a career they love. Download her free e-guide: “5 Massive Mistakes Even Smart Professionals Make That Keep Them From Creating a Career They Love”