It is that time of the year again, and we will be discussing how to review your year or conduct your own personal annual review. An annual review is a process whereby you assess your year how it went, what went well, and what didn’t go well. This is a very necessary process, because as the year ends you look back on the year and you reflect and you ask yourself these important reflective questions like; what went well this year, what didn’t go well this year, what were my challenges, what would I like to improve on, what were the nice experiences that happened this year, and the bad experiences that happened in this year. In doing this, you can continue to grow and continue to live your life intentionally. It’s very important to us at Kidz & Teens For Christ that we grow together and we improve our lives from day to day and month to month. We will be taking you through a 7-step process for reviewing your year in preparation for the new year. So, let’s start the process;
Step 1 – Begin With Gratitude:
Begin your year review by looking back at the past year, what are you grateful for, what happened in the past year that really stood out to you that makes you feel grateful, that which makes you feel happy, that makes you feel joyful. Write them down this is very important because it helps you to begin your review from a place of happiness and joy. I know that this year may not have been all that you wanted it to be obviously like perfection really does not exist. So, this year most likely was not perfect for you, but what are the one or two things or probably 10 or 20 things that you are really grateful for in the past year, put them down.
Step 2 – Write Down Your Specific Achievements For The Year:
What were the specific achievements that you accomplished this year, what are your wins what goals did you achieve this year, put them down? Did you get to start a new class? Did you start or join a new group at school? Did you get healthier? Did you form a new positive habit? Did you break a bad habit? were you able to save money this year? We don’t know what it is for you just write whatever it is that happened this year that are goals that you achieved. It does not have to be big for anybody else as long as it’s big for you, as long as it’s something you’re appreciative for, as long as it’s a goal that you set and you accomplished it. Write it down.
Step 3 – Write Down The Goals You Could not Achieve:
We have started this whole process happily, but now we are getting deeper and so this may not be something you want to dwell on, but you have to take stock. As a result, the third thing you have to do is to write down the goals that you did not achieve. What are some of the goals that you set this year, but you could not achieve them, write those down be honest, be compassionate with yourself, remember that this process is supposed to be honest, but it’s not supposed to be a process that brings you down or brings your self-esteem down? Try as much as you can to be honest and be compassionate. Be kind to yourself, what are the things that you wanted to achieve that you didn’t achieve, write them down here.
Step 4 – Write Down The Challenges You encountered in 2021:
At this stage, we will be looking at some challenges that you faced this year. We are aware that this year for most people had ups and downs, so just write down the challenges you faced this year. What are some things that happened this year that were just challenging? Most of these challenges you were not prepared for, some of them you were able to handle some of them you may not have been able to handle them, just put them down so that you know them and you note them going forward?
Step 5 – Lessons Learned:
What are some lessons that you learned this year? what are some things that you would say that you learned this year in different areas of your life? like in your faith, in your career, in your family life, what are some things that you learned? some lessons that you want to carry through and remember as the new year begins? Write those down it’s really important for your growth and development as a person to always look back and reflect on these lessons. You always need to be learning, you always need to be growing, so it’s important to always keep picking lessons from your encounters. We experience things so that we do not have to experience them again if they are negative, so just ask yourself what are some things I learned from different things that happened to me this year? Some good things, some lots of good things, some excellent things, just write down lessons that you learned in different areas of your life whatever you can remember that you would like to carry on into the new year.
Step 6 – Positives You Would Like to Continue In The New Year:
Here we look at what are some things that you did in this past year that you’d want to take into the new year. Are there new habits you formed? Are there systems that you’ve put in place? Are there traditions that you have begun, routines that you’ve begun in your life that really helped you out in this past year and you would like to carry on into the new year? Be honest with yourself and be detailed, write those down
Step 7 – Areas of Improvement For 2022:
Finally, what are some areas that you would want to improve on next year? I feel like this is one of the most important parts of this review exercise. You need to ask yourself what are some areas that I need to improve on in the coming year, you may not have done as well as you wanted to do in this past year, but this is an opportunity to reflect on them. Do you want to improve your finances? Do you want to improve your relationships with people? Do you want to improve your public speaking? Do you want to improve your dedication to your faith? Do you want to improve your academic ratings? What do you want to achieve this coming year? Do you want to read more books? I mean it’s endless, do you want to save money? What are some areas that you would want to improve on in the coming year just write them down? These areas of improvement will help you to set your goals for the next year.
With this, you should be able to capture your entire year and you know and assess your year honestly and compassionately. Please note that the most important thing in this process is that you should be patient with yourself, you should also be compassionate with yourself remember that your life is not tied to your productivity or your achievements. Always know that you are amazing irrespective of whether you achieve the goals that you set or you didn’t achieve them and remember that as long as there’s life there’s really hope and if this last year was not what you wanted it to be well the last year is over there is nothing you can do about it now it’s to plan for your new year. 2022 is a clean slate and a second chance for you to correct and improve on 2021.
Happy New Year in Advance from All of us at Kidz & Teens For Christ!
