Reset & Refocus

What has happened? 

Start the year by having a very quick review of 2024, using something very simple to just see the big things.  I would recommend the matrix below:-

Highlight/No Surprise

Highlight/Surprise

Lowlight/No Surprise

Lowlight/Surprise

Keep your answers very succinct and top level. 

Looking Ahead

My next suggestion is to print or look on screen at the whole year on a page.  There are some great templates from the website www.calendarpedia.co.uk Once you have the year in front of you, shade all the bank holidays and any days you have already booked for holiday.  With the year on a page look to see if you have spaced out your time away from work have you created a good balance throughout the year. 

Focus

A good starting point is to think of 3 words that will act as your compass as to how you want the year to play out and the areas you wish to focus on. 

These words are very much around how you want the year to feel, so for example could be, connected, fun, learning, stimulating, health, change etc…

Zoom out in order to Zoom in 

Business plans and objectives can be quite dull and stifling so start with some bold ideas and then bring them in.  For example, if you want to focus on the coaching side of your business give a big number of how many clients you wish to have by the end of the year. Then ask how that translates into number of sessions. Zooming in, what does that look like monthly, weekly and even Zoom right in and say what does it look like daily.  Then decide very zoomed in, what do the sessions look like in 2025? What changes will you make thinking about the review of 2024? 

Working Smarter

·      How can you be more efficient and streamlined in 2025? 

·      What meetings do you not need to attend and which can be less frequent or shortened?

·      Do an audit of where you deployed time and energy in 2024? 

·      Think about return on investment for you attending? 

·      Make every meeting 10 minutes shorter

·      Delegate more 

·      Change your mindset to think that everything is Effortless (courtesy of Greg McKeown)

·      Unsubscribe from emails that just fill your inbox

·      Do an audit of all the subscriptions you have and direct debits?

Working in a Positive Environment

Finally if you want the year to go well ensure you have set up a good working environment.  Does the space you work in, really work for you? Is there anything that needs an overhaul, new laptop, printer or even a new chair? 

Does the space you work in feel inspiring, are you surrounded by things that make you feel good?  Do you have any motivational tools as visuals eg. targets, objectives, quotes, pictures that you can look to as progress.

Declutter your desk and your office the space will give you more energy and you will feel lighter as a result.