According to U.S. News & World Report, 8 out of 10 New Year's resolutions fail by February. Read more about why here.
In my post "3 Lies We Tell Ourselves About Getting Healthier", I confessed I'm not a big fan of resolutions in large part due to their high failure rate. Instead of waiting for the "right time" to start, habit change expert James Clear reinforces the idea of starting now and practicing the art of building and maintaining a habit when life is busy. One of the best parts about this approach is that "New Year" reflection and intention or goal setting can be done anytime of the year, not just on January first. Any day can be the start of a "new year". Whenever you decide to turn over a new leaf or start a "new year", here are 3 steps to help you reflect on the prior year and clarify your focus for the new year ahead:
Make a Highlight Reel
Reflect on the last year, and write down your most important moments. Don't just stick to the good stuff or what you might deem "Instagram-worthy". Be sure to list out experiences that encompass both the highs and lows. The goal is to make a list of the moments and experiences (good and bad) that left the biggest impressions and impacts on you.
I recently went through this exercise and used the photos in my phone to save time and help jog my memory. If you have an iPhone, you can zoom out to photos by month or year and then zoom back in by day as needed.
My Freedom Mastery Law of Attraction planner also has a month-end reflection page that prompts you to list your top achievements, fears or obstacles and insights gained at the end of each month. It also prompts you to rate your satisfaction in various areas of your life like finance, career, relationships, health, recreation and personal development using the wheel of life .
I used a combination of both tools, and the whole process took me about 20 minutes. You can use one tool or the other to cut down on time. Don't worry about the size of your list. Just go with your gut. There's really no wrong way to do it.
Reflect on Your Highlight Reel
Decide What you Want to Carry Forward and What You Want to Leave Behind