5 Questions to Ask Yourself Before New Year
A quick look at everything you’ve done right, done wrong, and haven’t done.
December. It’s the time of the year where it’ll soon be another year. An awful lot has happened and we are too busy to catch up with everything. But every year I would sit down and take a look at how things went for me. This is how I do it, hope it helps you too:
In 2019…
What have you achieved?
Time flies, it really does. You may be too caught up in responsibilities and daily chores to realize what you have accomplished in the past few months. Surely you won’t miss out on big events like changing your job or moving to a new home, but there’s more to what you’ve achieved if you look closely at the following aspects:
-Well-being: This includes you physical and mental well-being. Do you think you’re in a good shape? Have you been moody or irritated lately?
-People: How’s your relationship with your family, friends, colleagues, and relatives? And every acquaintance you’ve met in 2019.
-Career or Study: How are you doing at work or at school? Or the place where you spend 1/3 of your day, 5 days of your week?
-Knowledge & Skills: Here I’m referring to knowledge acquired outside school or work. It could be just a workshop or a skill equipping you for your dream. E.g. Have you learned about cooking for yourself or eating healthily? Or have you finally started that coding class?
-Passion & Hobbies: We all have something interesting in mind that we wish to be doing. Are you making steps to actualize your goals yet?
-Your Surroundings: This could be your room, your home, or your community. Have you fixed the broken stuff at home or up cycled your old furniture? It’s important to live in an environment that you feel comfortable. Otherwise everything just won’t work out.
-Travel & Adventures: This refers to your physical footprints on earth. Yes, the internet is awesome, but we human beings should spend time exploring new places or new cities too. This could be places you seldom visit in your neighbourhood (e.g. hiking trails), or it could be cities you’ve never been to.
-Fun: Just some fun that you completely deserve! There’s no guilt in watching your favorite show or playing that addictive game (unless you’re overly obsessed and it messes up your life…)
Get a piece of paper and write down your accomplishments in 2019. It’s likely that you haven’t done things on every aspect, and that’s okay. We will work on it in the next question.
2. Anything you wish you had done?
Okay. Tell us about the things you should have been doing but you haven’t. Procrastination is the thief of time. The good news? You can have a better start in 2020!
Have you been exercising enough? Have you been giving enough time and attention to people you love? When talking about accomplishments, we often focus on external, materialistic rewards like money and qualifications. Spiritual, non-materialistic rewards like trust, relationships and self-identity are just as important to us. They’re usually the cornerstone for our long-term happiness and satisfaction.
3. Any failures and/or things you could have done better?
It’s time to reflect. Failure is inevitable; it’s a common thing in most journeys. It’s okay to make mistakes and to forgive yourself. But we will only grow up and learn from our faults and failed attempts when we take the time to reflect.
Whenever I look back at something I regret, I tend to lament, though I know it wouldn’t help at all. A better way to deal with mistakes and failures? Identify what should be changed and how things could be done in the future.
Think about the imperfections in your 2019. Remind yourself that the past has been written, but the future is yet to be. The purpose of your past is to gear you up for your future, not to drag you away from it. Read more about recovering from mistakes here.
4. What will keep you busy in 2020?
What commitments have you signed up for in 2019 that will keep you busy next year? It’s about time to get started. Watch out for the marked dates on your calendar and make solid plans on them. (Oh, don’t get too stubborn with plans either, improvise when you feel like.)
5. Ok, …what’s the plan now?
This is a tricky question. The best way to wrap up 2019 and have another awesome year in 2020 is to:
Step 1: Keep up with the good work from Part 1 [What have you achieved?]
Step 2: Add stuff from Part 2 [Anything you wish you had done?] to the plate
Step 3: Make up for the failures and imperfections in Part 3 [Any failures and/or things you could have done better?]
Step 4: And finally gear up for Part 4 [What will keep you busy in the upcoming months]
This will keep you occupied but productive, hopefully, happy and satisfied as well.
P.S. If you can, take the time and think through these questions once in a while. I do a quarterly review to make sure I’m making steps towards my goals and I’m constantly improving.
This practice tells me where I’ve been and where I should be heading to. More importantly, when I think of everything that has happened so far, and everyone I’ve encountered, I feel alive.
Happy New Year! Happy 2020!
