How to Do a Year-in-Review

You have to look back to plan ahead

The new year has already started but now is always a good time to look back in order to plan ahead.

For the past couple of years I have been conducting a year-in-review.

The process of cataloging my activities from the past twelve months feels energizing and gives me perspective on what worked for me and what didn’t based on actual events and not just my impressions.

I’m a historian so I love looking at the past to gain perspective on the present.

Here’s the simple process I follow to write my year-in-review—it might be helpful to you as you think about the year ahead.

Photo Credit: Anastasiia Rozumna

Step 1: Review your calendar

If you keep a calendar, go back and look at what you did. Examine your activities week-by-week and month-by-month.

Look at what meetings you attended. Where you traveled. What projects you worked on.

Make a bullet point list of what stands out to you. No need to copy your entire calendar. This is just the highlights.

For example, my January 2023 review looked like this:

January

• Participated in ASCH Conference (Dialogue on Race and Faith: Interracial Collaborations in Revivalist Abolitionism--DRF Group; Philadelphia)

• Moved to Louisville, KY

• Participated in King Center Beloved Community event (online)

• Started teaching at Simmons College of Kentucky

• Delivered MLK Week keynote at Belmont University

Step 2: Answer these five reflection questions

Now that you have a sense of what you did this past year, ponder the significance of those events. To help you formulate your thoughts answer these five questions for the year overall.

NOTE: I’m pretty sure I got these questions from somewhere else, but I didn’t note the source. If you know it please message me in the comments or via direct messages on social media.

1. What gave you energy this year?

When you peruse your list of monthly activities, what made you smile? What got you excited all over again? What made you pleased or proud?

Use these activities to let you know what you need to do more of this coming year.

2. What did you create this year?

Give yourself credit for creating. You actually did accomplish a lot and the evidence is in the projects or the objects that came from it. Take note of those artifacts of your ingenuity and celebrate them.

3. What hard lessons did you learn this year?

This question is tough but so informative. You undoubtedly endured some hardships in the last year. Some of them may have even come as a result of your own missteps and misjudgments.

Don’t skip over the hard parts of the last year because there are valuable learnings embedded in your trials.

Write down specifically how you grew and what wisdom you gained from the obstacles you faced.

4. How did you invest in yourself this year?

This question reminds us that taking care of ourselves enables us to care for others.

But we have to be proactive about gaining knowledge, acquiring skills, addressing our mental health, and becoming more evolved people.

How did you intentionally invest in yourself this past year? If you feel like you could do better, plan ahead for those self-investments this year.

5. What professional and personal connections did you make this year?

This question always reminds me to reconnect with the people I met during the past year.

Who did you encounter at that event, conference, meeting, or party that could be a potential collaborator or friend?

Send them a text, email, or even give them a call.

Dream of what you might create together and how you might partner in the new year.

Step 3: Imagine what you want to write in your next year-in-review

Now that you’ve looked back at last year, you have the information you need to plan for this upcoming year.

Imagine you’re writing the year-in-review for 2024. It’s been a fantastic year. What happened?

Write down what you’d like to be true a year from now. A trip you took, a collaboration you had, a project you completed, a relationship you strengthened.

You don’t have to go month-by-month. Just a few sentences or paragraphs that give a landscape vista of what you’d like to happen in the next year.

In the very act of articulating your desired outcome you become much more likely to achieve it.

This entire process is a time investment. It usually takes me 2-3 hours, and I often do it over the course of two or three sessions.

Take your time with it. Enjoy reminiscing on where you’ve been and frolic in the future that might yet be.

I can’t wait to see what you do and who you become. Happy new year!

What question or step in the process stands out to you? What other ways do you review your year and plan ahead? Let us know in the comments!