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Annual Review 2011

22 December

Hello and happy holidays to you!

I wanted to share with you my actual template that I’ll be using for my annual review this year. I’ve been tweaking my annual review for the past five years, and here is what has stuck, plus a few new gems.

Annual Review Template 2011
by Lisa Peake

1. Completing and Remembering The Year
Adapted From David Allen’s Productive Living Newsletter, here: http://www.davidco.com/newsletters/archive/1209b.html

You might think about your answers in relation to various areas of your life:

  • Physical
  • Emotional
  • Mental
  • Spiritual
  • Financial
  • Family
  • Community Service
  • Fun / creativity / recreation
  • Review your list of all completed Projects. If you don’t have a list like this, make one up.
  • Review larger outcomes – Areas of Focus, Affirmations, Goals, Visions, Missions, Purpose and Principles.
  • What was your biggest triumph this year?
  • What was the smartest decision you made this year?
  • What one word best sums up and describes your experience this year?
  • What was the greatest lesson you learned this year?
  • What was the most loving service you performed this year?
  • What is your biggest piece of unfinished business this year?
  • What are you most happy about completing this year?
  • Who were the three people that had the greatest impact on your life this year?
  • What was the biggest risk you took this year?
  • What was the biggest surprise this year?
  • What important relationship improved the most this year?
  • What compliment would you liked to have received this year?
  • What compliment would you liked to have given this year?
  • What else do you need to do or say to be complete with this year?

2. Releasing The Year
Adapted from an exercise as told by Alexandra DeFurio, photographer: http://defuriophotography.com/

  • Gather small pieces of blank paper, and a pen. Unlined junior legal pads work well for this, or post-it notes, or simply cut up pieces of printer paper.
  • Write one thing you would like to release or complete from the past year on a single piece of paper. Start a new paper for each new topic. Write as much as you wish to, and if you need multiple pages for one topic, go right ahead.
  • When you’re complete with the writing, gather and carefully dispose of all of the papers by burning them in the fireplace, or by shredding. This is similar to free-form writing, but with a special focus on releasing the past year.
  • Congratulations, you just took out the trash for a whole year.

3. Asking For Feedback
Borrowed from Les McKeown’s Predicatable Success blog, here:
http://predictablesuccess.com/blog/the-leadership-lesson-you-missed-in-2010/

  • Send the following email to a few of your colleagues, friends, mentors, coach, boss, and family members:

“Hello

I’ve just finished a review of what I did well, and what I didn’t do well in the last year. I learned a lot of valuable lessons which I’m looking forward to applying next year. However, I’m pretty sure I haven’t caught everything, and as you know me well, I’d love for you to help: would you please hit ‘reply’ and in one ruthlessly constructive sentence answer this question honestly?:

What’s the one big lesson that above all else you think I should learn from the past year?

Thanks!”

4. Creating The New Year
Adapted From David Allen’s Productive Living Newsletter, here: http://www.davidco.com/newsletters/archive/1209b.html

  • What would you like to be your biggest triumph of next year?
  • What advice would you like to give yourself next year?
  • What is the major effort you are planning to improve your financial results next year?
  • What would you be most happy about completing next year?
  • What major indulgence are you willing to experience next year?
  • What would you most like to change about yourself next year?
  • What are you looking forward to learning next year?
  • What do you think your biggest risk will be next year?
  • What about your work, are you most committed to changing next year?
  • What is one as yet undeveloped talent you are willing to explore next year?
  • What brings you the most joy and how are you going to do or have more of that next year?
  • Who or what, other than yourself, are you most committed to loving and serving next year?
  • Who in your world can you ask for help and support next year?
  • What one word would you like to have as your theme next year?
  • What quality will support you in creating your ideal year? (e.g. Trust, Honesty, Loving Discipline, Abundance, Focus, Creativity, etc.)
  • Schedule some time to create any Ideal Scenes, Vision Boards, or Affirmations that will support you in the coming year. Put it on your calendar. Make sure you will have any relevant supplies by then (markers, magazines, paper, poster board, etc.) Enjoy this special time of preparation and visioning with yourself.

As always, be sure to take the parts that serve you and leave out the rest.

Wishing you a year’s end full of graceful completions, loving connections and radiant joy. Talk to you next year!

-Lisa