It might take you longer than 90 minutes, and maybe you could spend a little less time, but if you look at your calendar for New Year’s Eve and give yourself 90 minutes to do what’s next, you’ll be so glad you did. (and it will give you one more reason to celebrate).
Find a quiet and comfortable place to do this activity. You will need a pad of paper and something to write on. You may want your calendar and a cup of coffee or your favorite beverage. You won’t need the Internet or other technology, I promise. In fact, part of the value is disconnecting from your stuff and connecting with yourself.
This is how I suggest you spend the 90 minutes you have reserved.
1. Look back at last year (20 minutes)
Think about the events of the year, the achievements and disappointments. Take notes of what you think on your paper. Write down key memories of the year, new friends, and friends you lost or drifted away. There doesn’t need to be an actual process here, just spend time thinking and writing about the past year. Your calendar can be helpful in stimulating memories.
This is a pure review: not everything in your year was perfect, so it captures the fullness of the year: the joys and the sorrows, the joys and the struggles, the achievements and the disappointments.
2. Spend time in gratitude (20 Minutes)
Then focus on the big things in your life, the things you are grateful for. The year review exercise should give you a lot to be thankful for, and even if you had a particularly challenging year, chances are you’ve identified a number of things to be thankful for. But don’t stay with the last year! There are big and small things to be thankful for, all around us! Write them all down, allowing you to search and notice things, people, situations and emotions.
This time is meant to provide perspective and keep your emotions afloat as you prepare for the rest of the exercise. And if you stick to this, I guarantee you’ll feel great as you move to step three.
3. Looking ahead (20 Minutes)
Think about the year ahead. Take note of the things you’re looking forward to, whether it’s dinner with a friend or the vacation you’ve been planning. This can include both what you know the year holds for you and a list of things you’d like to see happen in the next twelve months. This is an opportunity to let your mind, heart and soul be free.
Use this time to project and describe the year you want to have. Remove the limitations and let the pen run on the paper. This list does not have to be perfect or complete. Write what comes to you in the order in which the words come.
4. Choose your focus word (20 minutes)
With the three entries you’ve completed, think more carefully about next year. Your goal now is to find a word that encapsulates your thoughts and feelings for the coming year. What word will move you and remind you of the feeling you have now? What word will help you create as much of the New Year as you just described? What word will help you focus on how to create better in the coming year?
There are no perfect words here; just start typing the words as they come to mind. At the end of the ten minutes, choose the one that is calling you. You’ll want to “try this word” and live with it for a day or so. Chances are, if it doesn’t quite fit, you’ll identify a new and better word in a couple of days.
5. Write a letter to yourself (10 Minutes)
This may sound strange, but do it. Take another sheet of paper and write yourself a letter. This is a letter that you are writing as if it were written 360 days from now. In other words, you are writing a letter to yourself about the year you are about to live!
Write this letter describing your accomplishments and the things you have done that have brought joy to you and others. Make this the most positive letter, a letter that you will love to receive. The goal is to receive it within a year and make it part of your reflection process next year. Put the letter in an envelope addressed to you and put a stamp on it, then give it to a friend to mail at the end of next December. Write on the outside of the envelope: “Do not open until New Year’s Eve.”
This is your exercise and my hope is that even if you adjust it, you will try. You may have also realized by now that you wouldn’t have to do it on New Year’s Eve, but I really suggest you do it then, psychologically it’s the perfect time to do it!
You may have expected me to mention goal setting, and while I’m a big fan, I didn’t specifically suggest it in this activity. However, this activity will be a great starting point for setting goals for the coming year. Take notes on this activity and you will have a great head start thinking about setting specific goals for the coming year, and with this head start get the job done soon.