Every year I do a three-part review and planning process. I call it Review, Reflect, Forward. Today’s post is Reflect. It builds on yesterday’s Review post as I’ll be explaining what’s behind the numbers.
I sat down to attempt to do my annual review several times in the last week. Each time I did I immediately felt overwhelmed. I had no clue where to start and usually writer’s block kicked in and made me feel even more insecure.
This truth is, this year has been largely overwhelming. I have worked harder than I ever have before. Long hours. Through weekends. On holidays. You name it, it probably happened.
To be clear – I’m not complaining. I love the work I do and feel very lucky to have found what I love to do early in my career. I’m also very lucky to have some amazing people in my life who never cease to encourage me through all the ups and downs. I have done and accomplished a lot (see yesterday’s post). I’ve lost count of the number of people I’ve talked to who have marveled at how much I do given that I’m (mostly) a one-woman show. But I know the truth about it. I have been overcommitted all year. That is probably my single biggest lesson learned from this year and will greatly inform my work next year.
March 2015 will mark 2 years in business, January 2015 will be the 1 year anniversary of this website. I stand in complete awe of those facts and am so grateful for the amazing community of clients, customers, readers and colleagues who support and believe in my. I cannot say thank you enough!!
It may not come as much of a surprise to you, but what stands out much in my mind from 2014 are the stories that people share with me. I think it comes with the territory of this work, which is great. I’ve also found that the more personal stories I share, the more I receive in return. It is such a gift to be on the receiving end of so many amazing stories from passionate people.
It reminds me that stories are an essential element of our humanity. They connect us through shared experiences and emotions. It’s how we build community. Because of that, my enthusiasm for stories has only grown this year and I’m so looking forward to another year of storytelling.
Thank you for an amazing 2014!
p.s. if you’re looking for a tool to do your own review, I highly recommend Unravelling the Year Ahead. It’s a free workbook that leads you through the reflection and planning process. I’ve used it for the last three years and it has been so helpful!
