Given it’s already February, for some of you it might be too late to ask this question! For others, it might just be the right time. January goes by quickly, especially if December wasn’t as restful as you needed it to be. We’re not robots automatically programmed to start the year strong. The season you’re in might not necessarily call for it either: I do believe some years are geared for rest and minimal pursuit.

If you’re like me, you’re still working on closing goals that began last year and require adequate time to execute. I’ve been careful not to assign too rigid a corporate annual planning mindset to personal endeavours: it can lead to unnecessary frustration and trying to force things to happen out of sync with their due season. In that respect, getting ready for 2025 is easy because I don’t have new goals to ideate, I’m continuing where I left off in 2024. What’s your situation and have you had time to reflect on what you need?

I shared a piece this past week on News24 aimed at helping Gen Zs create a framework for how to reflect on the past year so they design their new year for impact. You can read the article here . Since it’s behind a paywall, I wanted to share the salient points here as well because I also care that my fellow adults are thriving. We are building the world that future generations exist in: the more self-aware we are, the better we show up as leaders, parents and mentors. Swap the academic references for career / business so you can apply this to your life.

Excerpt from “Your Guide to Adulting”.

Practising Reflection

Let’s look at a framework for how to do this. When you review the week, term or year gone by, how does it make you feel? As you read your own words, what do they say about your state of mind?  The tone of language, choice of words, and ability to summarise your thoughts clearly give you clues about your true feelings and self-perception. Aim to do this with honesty, care and patience.

Take stock from every month of the past year so that you don’t fall victim to recency bias: this is when we allow the most recent issue to outweigh other events that happened before. For example, that looks like labelling an entire year 'terrible’ because a recent break-up is overshadowing all your amazing wins (connected to academic life or personal life) gained over several months. 

I challenge you to spend time considering the following questions as part of your personal review. This type of long reflection is better suited to an end of term or end of year review. Take your journal to a quiet spot to review the following topics.

1.    Action versus motion: have you been effectively acting on your plans or are you going through the motions? Action serves your mission. Motion fills time.

2.    Be invested: how much time are you spending working towards goals that you care about? Is this enough to get the results you are expecting? Goals should be academic, personal, health, social, and family-related so that you address all areas of your wellbeing.

3.    Catalyst: what’s happening in your life or environment that is most influential to how you have been conducting yourself? What do you think of how you are responding?

4.    Moving the dial: what’s one change you can make immediately (i.e. today or this week) that would positively impact your life? What stopped you from doing this earlier?

5.    Perspective: when you take stock of all your resources, what do they empower you to accomplish? Your resources include your talents, time, the environment, information and people you have access to.

6.    Thought quality: how prevalent is negative thinking in your life? What are your triggers (e.g. situations, lifestyle habits, feedback from others) and how will you manage your responses and dismissal of these thoughts better?

7.    Selling short: what opportunities have you missed to ask for what you need, and what did that cause you to lose out on? What stopped you? As you overcome those limiting beliefs, what steps can you take to make sure you don’t get in your own way again? 

8.    Dealing with change: at school, in your relationships and projects, how well are you coping with:

i.      The process of change within you and how that is being received by others? E.g. if you’re becoming more confident, how are others reacting and adjusting to this new you?

ii.     The process of change in others? How supportive are you being?

iii.    Changing external conditions? How adaptive are you being?

9.    Quitting: what have you walked away from this year and how do you feel about it with the benefit of time to review those decisions? How has your relationship with quitting improved e.g. how easily do you let go of “what could have been”? How does quitting affect what you think of yourself, if at all?

10. Gratitude: who and what are you most grateful for this year? In what specific ways have they positively impacted you? How will you share these sentiments and express your gratitude to the people concerned?

11. Preparation: what are you making room for in the upcoming year and what must you change in yourself and in your environment to capitalise on this opportunity? In what areas must you accelerate your learning and how will you define success privately and externally?

12. Confronting avoidance: what are the areas of your life, personality, and external responsibilities that you have been delaying resolving but are now ready to face? What support do you need to increase the likelihood of this being a worthwhile experience?

These are powerful “real talk” topics to review alone and with others who know you well. There will be some laughs and some sad moments as you recall everything that’s happened. It’s all okay.

Pat yourself on the back, you are doing your best! Every day you are blessed to be here, you have a new chance to do better. Make the most of it!

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Here’s to success on your terms in 2025!

In case you missed it, catch my 702 radio interview here:  https://omny.fm/shows/weekend-breakfast-702/book-review-your-guide-to-adulting-by-rumbi-munyar?in_playlist=podcast