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Any regular reader of the One-Year Tightrope and all who follow a lifestyle of planning know that reviewing is one of the most important activities involved in staying organized and productive. Reviews also have the ability to increase motivation both negatively (“I wish I would have…”) and positively (“I am so glad I…”). This is a how-to guide for performing an effective end-of-year review.

Step 1: Preparation

Prepare for your review by going to a quiet place, turning off your phone and television, breathing deeply, and focusing on the task at hand. Clear your mind of all other thoughts and stresses as if you are going to meditate (You are going to meditate on the year, after all). Make sure you are at peace before you continue so that you will get an objective, positive review, rather than one that is negatively affected by bad thoughts. Get out a piece of paper or open a new file on your computer. You will be doing some writing.

Step 2: What were your major achievements?

Begin the review by writing out major achievements and how you completed them. For example, if you got a promotion in March and had worked on getting it since January 1, write down that detail. Try to come up with as many major achievements as possible.

Step 3: What were your minor achievements?

I am certain that while listing major achievements, you recognized many minor achievements. List all of these underneath the major achievements to which they apply, or separately if they are not relevant. Perhaps you finished reading five books or can do a few more crunches than before.

Step 4: What did you learn?

Growth is an achievement all on its own, so write “Growth” as its own setting and below it, write everything you learned and accomplished applicable to your journey in life. Some examples may be understanding a complicated concept in your industry or figuring out your parenting style.

Step 5: How did you fail?

A review is not impartial without listing some negatives. Write down how you managed to fail and what you could or should have done better.

Step 6: How is this good?

Turn your negatives into positives by asking yourself what you can take away from your failures. Did you learn something? Do you now have motivation to do something better next time, after seeing the consequences of your poor performance?

Step 7: What will you do the same?

Was there anything you did this year that was absolutely brilliant? Perhaps you learned a new, positive activity or began a hobby that relaxes you and keeps you sane day in day out.

Step 8: What will you do differently?

Do not “undo” your failures, but rather try to think of how you can live your life better for the next year. Perhaps you will exercise more or try to go to bed by a certain time every night, dedicating your evenings to relaxation and re-energizing your mind. This is similar to your New Year’s resolutions, only now you have a guide to building ones that matter.

Step 9: Put it away

Contrary to popular belief, a list of goals does not necessarily work best when it is seen constantly. If anything, it can be a painful reminder of how far behind schedule you are. Take one goal at a time and work on it gradually, breaking it into small steps on a to-do list. As you finish, check it off and find a new goal. Keep it findable and review it often, but do not focus only on it, or you will become stressed.

What is your advice for completing an end-of-year review? Have you done one before? What are you proud of? What does yours look like? What are your goals for the new year?