Do you have a love-hate relationship with New Year’s Resolutions or are you someone who tends to skip out on doing a year-end reflection?
Trust me, you’re not the only one.
They motivate us. They put pressure on us.
We stick to them. We dump them after a week.
And sometimes we go year after year with the same resolutions– because no matter how hard we try, they just don’t last!
Felt this cycle before?
We feel so many emotions around resolutions because we often don’t have a clear insight into what we really need when creating these goals.
And to get this clarity, you first need to reflect. That’s where a year-end reflection can really help!
When you think back on your New Year’s resolutions from 2023, what did you stick to that made a difference in your life?
Even the smallest changes or mini goals you reach each day, week, or month compound into life-changing results.
Yet we often don’t appreciate these little wins that set us up for success!
There is power in reflection, but we don’t do it enough.
Our culture is hyper-focused on productivity and achievement, and it’s easy to go from one thing to the next without taking time to reflect.
So this year, I’m asking you to take time to pause, assess, and make changes in your life before entering the new year.
Because when you do, you’re setting 2024 up to be the best year yet.
A year-end reflection highlights your success and show you where you need to improve.
They force you to take note of your choices and think about how you could make better decisions going forward.
They also show you how you spent your time, energy, resources, and money over the last year– so you can consider how to invest those things in the year to come!
Without a year-end review, you’re prone to repeat mistakes and stay stagnant since you haven’t processed milestones or setbacks– and the emotions that went along with them.
And reflection helps us form a new vision for where we want to go next…
In other words, you don’t know where you’re going until you know where you’ve been!
How Do You Do A Personal Year-End Reflection?
An end-of-year review is my favorite way to set myself up for the best year yet.
Here are the steps I take when doing my end-of-year reflection:
1. Pick a time and place
Make an appointment with yourself and put it on your calendar.
Once you’ve set the time aside, don’t push it off!
Whenever and wherever you do your year-end reflection, make sure it’s in a space where you can be honest and vulnerable.
2. Decide who (if anyone) you want to reflect with
There’s no need to share your end-of-year review with anyone. But sometimes sharing your thoughts helps you process them better.
And having a trusted friend to encourage you and bounce ideas off of may be helpful. You can always first reflect with a loved one, then finish on your own.
3. Gather questions to ask yourself– and use mine below!
Plan out your reflection time. Take suggestions from my list of reflection questions here, or come up with some of your own!
Don’t feel like you can only write when doing your year-end review. One of my friends who is a professional dancer will dance her prayers. You better believe she dances her reflections, too!
3. Once you start your year-end review, use some of these reflection question prompts.
Starting with guided questions gets your brain flowing.
The key here is to brainstorm any ideas that come up related to each prompt.
Ready to Start Your Reflection to Cultivate YOUR Best Year?
It’s time to get started!
Come back to this page when you’re ready to dive into your reflection using my 12 thoughtful reflection questions for 2023 below.
1. What were your biggest wins in 2023?
Are there things that made you feel good? What filled your cup, or made you celebrate?
What gave you energy, motivation, success, or excitement?
2. What were your greatest lessons?
Reflect on moments that you’ve learned from. From work, something you read, something your kids or your family taught you…
Think about times this year that made you change, made you improve, or made you adjust your habits.
3. What did you try that didn’t work out?
And more importantly, ask yourself if the process of trying moved your thinking forward in a helpful way.
4. What simple pleasures have you especially enjoyed this year?
Reminisce on the little things. Maybe it’s your morning routine, or getting outside more. Maybe it’s the way you’ve made your coffee or your Friday night game nights.
Whatever small moments you can remember, think through them, noting all the positive feelings they’ve brought you.
5. What was one of the biggest pleasant surprises you experienced during this year?
Unexpected moments can make the biggest impacts. What happened to you, your family, or a loved one that sparked joy?
6. What was a new habit or routine you created this year that has improved your efficiency at home or work?
Take a moment to appreciate yourself and the work you put into staying consistent with a healthy habit or routine. You deserve praise on this one!
7. What did you face head-on this year instead of avoiding?
Confrontation isn’t easy. But when you finally face something you’ve been dreading, it’s worth celebrating.
Maybe you finally tackled your credit card debt or you faced a difficult conversation with a peer. How did this benefit you in the long run?
8. What do you want to experience more of in 2024?
What brings you the most joy? It could be a feeling or emotion, it could be an activity or experience. What do you see yourself doing more of next year?
9. What do you want to experience less of in 2024?
Think about what doesn’t serve you. Is it something at work? With your family?
Is it a thought or feeling?
Reflect on what may have brought you down this year, and how you can eliminate it in the new year.
10. What’s one personal goal you’d like to see progress next year?
Pick one goal for YOU, and think about how you will feel once you make it happen.
Then break it down. What are small daily, weekly, or monthly steps you can take to move you closer to this goal?
11. What’s one professional or business goal you’d like to see progress next year?
Reflect on your current professional life and think about what you’d like to accomplish in the next year.
Big or small, write it down so you can keep it in mind every day you get to work!
12. What’s one thing you want to clean up or let go of in 2024?
Letting go of what doesn’t serve you is the best way to make space for new beginnings, goals, and intentions.
List one thing to let go of (or a few) then CROSS them out, leaving them in 2023 for good!
Now, read over your thoughts and take the time to go through each of your reflection question responses.
What surprised you? And what intentions and goals will you create based on what you learned during your reflection?
Start 2024 Right!
I hope you feel accomplished and motivated after completing your 2023 reflection.
I love working through my reflections at the end of every year, especially once the chaos of the holidays winds down.
Reflecting really helps me look forward to starting my next BEST year!
And there’s so much to look forward to…
For me, 2024 looks like:
- A much-needed post-holiday detox
- Spending more in-person time with friends and family
- Fully recovering from my post-concussion syndrome (and faster than predicted!)
- Hitting the 1,000,000 women helped mark
- And all my new and exciting programs for 2024!
Starting the new year with my 14-day hormone detox is the perfect way to set my body and health up for the best year yet. My family and I have been gearing up for it, and I’d love to see you join the program, too!
The detox group starts in January, so hurry and sign up here.
Or you can get your detox kits here if you haven’t already done so! You can always just get the detox kit, and do your detox on your own time.
But beyond the detox and my health, supporting more women, and being more present with loved ones are at the top of my list.
I can’t wait for you to have your clear New Year’s intentions in mind.
So take the time to reflect using the prompts from this blog, and soon you’ll be ready to start 2024 on fire!
PLUS- once you’ve done your reflection, stay tuned for my next blog about my TOP resolutions that you can use to create game-changing habits for your best year yet…
Until then cheers to you, and cheers to making 2024 the best year of your life!
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