Another year is coming to a close and itâs a good time to be thinking about how it went, and what youâd like to see in the coming year.
You may be realizing that time is short, and you still have some things to accomplish before the year ends. But how much can you get done with only one month left to go? By following these next steps, you might find you can end the year feeling not only accomplished, but also excited about whatâs coming next!
Here are 5 things you can do in December to wrap things up and get ready for a New Year!
Review and Reflect on Annual Goals
When you look back on the goals you set for this past year, youâll probably see that some were successful and some still need work. Or maybe some will be discarded altogether as no longer relevant.
Assessing what you accomplished can be a source of pride and motivation and things that didnât work out as youâd hoped might need more attention.
Adjust your plans accordingly. For example, you may want to continue to move forward to a new level with what you DID accomplish. Consider restructuring the ones that youâd like to try again. For others, you may just decide to delete them and pursue something else. Goals that are no longer important to you arenât failures, they just represent growth in another direction.
By looking over the past it gives you a broad viewpoint of where youâve been, and where you want to go.
Create a âBefore the New Yearâ Bucket List
It may be December already, but youâve still got all month to do something! Make a list of experiences or activities that you want to accomplish before the year ends. It doesnât have to be a long list, due to time constraints. In fact, it could just be one thing. And it doesnât have to be monumental, but itâs pretty likely you still have something you really wanted to do this year and just didnât get to it.
For example, was there something new that you wanted to try? Maybe a new restaurant you had meant to go to, or a new dish you had been meaning to prepare at home? Maybe there was some place you wanted to go, or visit a friend you haven’t seen in a while?
Other examples might be wrapping up some unfinished projects, or even indulging in a self-care treatment. If youâve been meaning to give yourself a little R&R this past year but just didnât seem to have time, set aside a whole day just for that.
Bucket Lists arenât just for leaping from a plane with a parachute, or climbing Mt. Everest. Bucket Lists are a way of keeping track of things that are important to you. Whether big or small, as long as it matters to you, is the main point.
Set a Monthly Resolution
Setting a long term goal, like New Yearâs Resolutions, can be useful for things with a step-by-step plan that takes time to create, but success with long term goals can sometimes be more difficult as motivation wanes. Something that you were very excited about at first can lose momentum when it drags out too long or becomes too challenging.
You still have time to try a short term monthly resolution, which creates a sense of urgency. When you know there is a deadline thatâs not that far away, you may be more inclined to get going and do it!
Faster feedback loops offer opportunities for more frequent reflection. While itâs still fresh in your mind, you can clearly see whatâs working and whatâs not, based on progress. Then you can make quicker adjustments as needed.
Monthly resolutions can make it easier to stay engaged in the process, achieving results in a shorter amount of time. December is a good time for finishing any last minute, end-of-the-year resolutions.
Declutter and Prepare for the New Year
Declutter both your physical and digital spaces. By clearing out the old, you start to make room for the new. When you remove clutter from your environment, it also helps to clear your mind. Your brain works overtime when processing visual items in a busy room. When you give your brain less distractions, you allow space to think about things that matter.
A few physical examples might be to organize drawers or closets, clean out your garage, or assess your wardrobe and see what you want to eliminate. When sorting through your things, one way to help you decide what you want to keep is to have three categories to choose from.
- Put it away
- Give it away
- Throw it away
If you want to keep an item, then put it where it goes. You are probably familiar with the phrase, âA place for everything and everything in its place.â Not only will it be more organized, you wonât have unnecessary items that youâre storing for no reason and youâll also know right where it is the next time you want to use it.
If the item in question is useful for somebody, just not for you, then put it into the pile of âgive it awayâ, and donate it to the appropriate person or organization that will be happy to have it.
Lastly, if you donât want it, and nobody else is going to want it, then why are you saving it? Throw it away. Going through accumulated things and making a determination as to their place in your life can make you feel refreshingly lighter.
The same is true for your digital devices. Delete unused or unnecessary apps or files. Unsubscribe from emails you no longer need. When you have less distractions to wade through on your phone or laptop, you may find your time and efficiency increases.
Visualize Your Goals and Plan for the Coming Year
Once youâve reviewed and reflected on the past year, wrapped up some loose ends, and cleared out spaces for new things, itâs time to start thinking about what goals you want to achieve next year.
Make a list and place them into categories. Some examples might be travel goals, physical goals, financial goals or career goals. Depending on your personal plans and interests, choose categories that fit best for you. Place your goals into the categories, and then narrow it down to about three in each group. Then put them in order of importance.
Draft a preliminary plan and write down the steps you would take to achieve them. The number of goals you choose are up to you but consider the other areas of your life and what other responsibilities and obligations you expect to have. Then create your list of goals for the coming year that can be realistically achieved.
Having both big goals and smaller goals can be helpful. Smaller goals may be achieved more easily and give you a sense of pride and momentum. Whereas larger goals may take more time, but can impact your year in a big way.
When your goals are set and you are ready to take on the new challenges, creating a vision board can help to keep you excited and motivated. Highlight each goal by finding words and pictures that depict the goals you’ve chosen.
For example, if visiting a faraway place is one of your goals, post pictures of that place or travel photos in general. For exercise goals, use pictures of the kind of body you want to have, words of encouragement, or exercise equipment.
View your collage of desired goals frequently.
Final Thoughts
December is the perfect time to wrap up the past year and start to plan your goals for next year. When you look back on how fast time went by, it can help put it into perspective. Life is a timeline. Once itâs gone, you donât get to go back and do it over again so make the most of the time you have.
This doesnât mean that you should cram a million things into the shortest amount of time possible. It means that time is valuable. And it’s limited. So think about what is most meaningful to you going forward into the new year and get ready for action!
