My Year In Review
Reviewing my year seems like a practical exercise that will help me grow and learn. Most high performers seem to do some form of this, and although I’m not one, I thought it would be a good exercise that I can learn from. I’ve found multiple approaches, and I’m going to attempt the shorter ones in this post as I think I’ll never get around to doing it if I don’t tell myself it has to be done by Sunday. So, if you’re interested in the things I’ve learnt this year then follow along, but if you aren’t that interested, but want to give it a go, I’ll add some questions at the end of the post that can help you get the ball rolling.
I’m unable to give Tim Ferriss’ “Past Year Review” a proper go, as I didn’t have the discipline to put everything I did throughout the year into my calendar. This is a good habit to have and I intend to start calendarizing my weeks with more detail to be able to productively review my year in the future. Ferriss simply applies the 80/20 principle, from Richard Koch’s book to his year. Here is his process mentioned in his newsletter:
1. Grab a notepad and create two columns: POSITIVE and NEGATIVE.
2. Go through your calendar from the last year, looking at every week.
3. For each week, jot down on the pad any people or activities or commitments that triggered peak positive or negative emotions for that month. Put them in their respective columns.
4. Once you’ve gone through the past year, look at your notepad list and ask, “What 20% of each column produced the most reliable or powerful peaks?”
5. Based on the answers, take your “positive” leaders and schedule more of them in the new year. Get them on the calendar now! Book things with friends and prepay for activities/events/commitments that you know work. It’s not real until it’s in the calendar. That’s step one. Step two is to take your “negative” leaders, put “NOT-TO-DO LIST” at the top, and put them somewhere you can see them each morning for the first few weeks of 2021. These are the people and things you *know* make you miserable, so don’t put them on your calendar out of obligation, guilt, FOMO, or other nonsense.
This is a simple review that helps us start the year on the right foot. I have done my best to apply this review to my year, but I feel like I could do a better job with more effort in recording my year in my calendar.
Jim Collins, the author of Beyond Entrepreneurship 2.0 and Good to Great, has an interesting yearly review and daily habit. At the start of the year, he writes down the three things he wants to do that year, three he wants to stop or do less of, and three fun things he would like to do that year too. He constantly refers to these throughout the year and monitors his progress. Daily, he gives his day a score on a scale of 2 to -2 making a concerted effort to never have two negative score days in a row. He bases his life decisions on thinking that he only has ten years to live and applies this thinking to things he would like to do as well as things he thinks he should stop. This is a good way to keep yourself on track and be aware of whether you’re in a slump or riding a wave. Referring to your goals can keep you focused and help you stick to the path you set out for yourself at the beginning of the year.
The next review I came across was in Ali Abdaal’s weekly newsletter and these general questions are easier to answer. Ali lists three questions as the “bare-minimum” questions and then goes on to list about twenty more. I’m going to attempt to answer the “bare minimum” questions, the ones I don’t get to will be mentioned below if you want to give them a go.
When have you felt proud of yourself in 2020? What were you doing?
There are two main things that I am proud of in 2020 and they are the progress I have made in learning about videography and not drinking alcohol for the whole year. At the beginning of the year, I was complacent and hesitant towards investing in myself. I feared failing, with only wasted time and money to show for my efforts. In hindsight, finally taking that first step acted as a catalyst to continue to learn about the craft. I am happy with the progress I have made, and I know there is still so much to learn, but it doesn’t seem as daunting as before. Now, I am confident in my abilities and willing to invest in myself. Giving up alcohol has been one of the best decisions I’ve made, and I believe it contributed to the progress I’ve made in other aspects of my life. I can now see how I used to rely on it in social situations and how it clouded my thoughts and motivation. It took some getting used to, but I’m so glad I did it. For the time being, I don’t see a necessity for alcohol and intend to keep up the sobriety.
If you had to teach one thing you learnt this year (that would improve one’s quality of life) what would that be?
I’ve written about a few things that have improved my quality of life, but I think the biggest lesson I’ve learnt this year is the power of habits. In James Clear’s Atomic Habits, he breaks down why habits are important and how to ensure that you stick to them. Once I read his breakdown of the psychology behind sticking to habits, I’ve become more aware of when I’m slipping up and I’m also able to ensure that I stick to them by following the framework set out in the book. One of my new habits that has really changed the way I go about my day is waking up earlier than I need to. I used to roll out of bed, take a shower, eat breakfast and head to work. Now I wake up about an hour earlier than I need to, which gives me time to start the day on my terms, rather than feeling rushed.
What kept you up at night with excitement this year? Was it worth it? Would you want to do more of it?
Although this year didn’t bring many events or holidays, there were still a few things that kept me up with excitement. Most of them had to do with the progress I have made in videography. When I planned to shoot something, I would excitedly go over it in my head. I almost had my first paid gig, but that was unfortunately cancelled due to Covid. I was nervous but excited, and I felt like I was prepared. Looking back on this year has made me realise that I need to be more proactive and take more risks. Although I am nervous about it, knowing how it makes me feel makes it worth taking the leap.
There are so many ways to review your year and there is no right way to do it. I think it’s a helpful way to start a new year on the right foot and help you head in your intended direction. It’s practised by so many successful people, so I thought I’d give it a go. I hope you can take bits and pieces from the three examples I’ve mentioned and form your own yearly review. Below are the rest of the questions from Ali Abdaal’s newsletter.
Happy New Year!
More questions from Ali Abdaal:
How did you have fun differently in 2020?
How did you suffer differently in 2020?
What people/kind of people did you spend less time with, in 2020?
What people/kind of people did you spend more time with, in 2020?
What did you feel guilty for in 2020?
What 3 people are you the most grateful to in 2020 and why? How can you thank them? How can you find more people like this in your life?
What have you learnt about the way that you deal with uncertainty in 2020?
What new habits did you create in 2020? Which ones would you want to keep?
Did you feel you spent enough time with your family/significant other in 2020? How would you change this in 2021?
What things did you stop caring about in 2020?
What new thing did you spend a lot of money on in 2020?
What new thing did you spend a lot of time on in 2020?
What do you feel you’ve gotten a lot better at in 2020?
What did you rediscover pleasure in, in 2020?
When you felt at peace this year, what were you doing?
Which of last years goals did you not achieve? Why did you not achieve them? Will you carry them on to 2021 and if not why?
How much closer are you to your “by this age” milestones (if you have any)? Do you find yourself caring less or more about these?
At the end of next year, if you are drastically exceeding your expectations, what would you be doing?