Posted by As the day turns to night, 2025 will have completed 80 days. That is as much as Phileas Fogg needed to make a full turn around the earth. What was it for you? Time for reflection?
The more I take time to reflect on the end of the month and the end of the quarter, the more I find value and focus in the process. Whilst it no doubt requires a few hours, the benefit it can bring is more than a few hours worth.
Making space for reflection is critical. Otherwise, we are just going through life like machines, hamster-wheel type.
Pick your moment
I am honest with you. This was probably the first time I did my month-end reflection before the month was even finished. I chose the 31st because it suited me, but as long as you do it within a couple of days before or after the calendar date, it still works.
I chose the morning of a Monday, counter-intuitively to my usual schedule. Monday mornings are quite a productive time for me, my brain is at full speed after not having put in a lot of focused time during the weekend. I also like to start the week getting quite a lot of my to-do list done, so reflection or journalling is usually not on the cards. However, Monday sounds like a perfectly good day to do a reflection exercise. After all, why apply my best brain power only to specific tasks when I can use it to analyse my own portfolio life with all its areas and complexities?
Put it on paper
I have said often how big of a paper person I am but I can’t stress enough how journaling or any sort of analysis will look different on paper and as you have the ability to scribble along. I used my journal, as that is also where I keep my yearly goals and my monthly targets, but you can use whatever format suits you. If you are more visual, go for an A3 poster with post-its. If you are more artistic (I wish) grab some extra stationery to apply some ticks and crosses across the different areas under review.
Do get it down on paper somewhere you can later review, re-read before closing and have that extra engraving that your vision can bring.
Have a structure
It is helpful to have a structure or format so you are not second-guessing yourself each time you do this. The last thing you need is to be wondering about the right format or questions each time you do it. You want to start easily and with the least amount of friction. What works for me?
- An intro with a general feel for the month. Size does not matter, it is about registering the overall feeling (because sometimes that feeling will change when you do this review)
- Divide into focus areas – for me, these are family, work, self, charity and friends. I am not strict about the order in which they show up. The reality is, that the order in each month will also be revealing
- In each area, list out the achievements. Remember, this list is about ensuring you do not get to month end with a feeling life is passing by you
- Recognise as needed where you wish you had done more
For a usual month, I would go straight into planning the next month. With the positive vibes of such a review, you feel more energised to plan the following month and also realistic about what you can and cannot do.
Be proud, not modest
When I first started my month-end process, I was in a high state of overwhelm. I constantly felt like I was not doing enough and there was more I wanted to do. As I started bullet journaling, I gained a better sense of what I could and could not do with my time, and therefore, I developed this month-end process as an add-on to help with my mental misconception. It started as a list of achievements – my way to offer a pat on the back to the part of my soul that was never satisfied. And it turned out that it worked in programming my brain to think differently about all I was indeed doing. I had real difficulty back then in recognising the stuff I was getting done because there was so much I was leaving behind. But by working the list way, I became more realistic with my expectations and, I must say, slightly proud of myself.
Levelling up: the quarter review
At quarter-end, I take this reflection to a different level and become a little bit more critical and methodical. Here is how:
- I pick up my goals written at the beginning of the year
- For each of my (6) goals, I write what I have done and what I have not done
- I make sure to look at the key activities and success metrics I listed out as part of my goal-setting
This quarter, I had not realised how, on balance, some goals were left behind and some goals took centre stage. It’s ok and part of the overall balance of life. And it now gives me an opportunity to decide whether to adjust or not.
The practice of self-reflection can be a deal-maker for your career or business:
Research shows the habit of reflection can separate extraordinary professionals from mediocre ones. We would go so far as to argue that it’s the foundation that all other soft skills grow from. – Don’t underestimate the power of self-reflection, HBR
Be critical, but kind
When I moved from the month to the quarter-end process, the goal was no longer to just pat myself in the back. Side note: whenever I add one of these processes into my life, I experiment, tweak, and importantly, do it gradually. It is only when something becomes second nature and fully embedded in my day-to-day that I consider piling in a new habit.
So when I decided to add a quarterly reflection, I knew I wanted this to be different from my proud list.
The quarterly review became an opportunity to reflect on my specific goals and what I thought I would do throughout the year. When I first started, I was quite off. But over time, this process brought the goals more front of mind and made me more aware of bringing in some of my targets into the format of a to-do list for the following month. It also allowed me to be critical about what did and did not get done without as much emotion, instead focusing on metrics. I was tough but kinder to myself than my usual tendency would be.
Look forward
At the end of the day, you can’t spend all your time looking back. With confidence in what you have achieved and a realistic assessment of where you are vs your goals, you can plan your month and, if you would like, your quarter. We may have the tendency to try to catch up with all we did not do in the first month of the quarter, but let’s face it, April only has 30 days!
“You can’t connect the dots looking forward; you can only connect them looking backwards.”- Steve Jobs
This morning, I sat down to write down what I was going to target for April with a sense of control in the different areas. Even in those I know, I achieved a bit less like the charity or my physical fitness. Again, small adjustments will always work better than big bang, because, at the end of the day, all goals are at play and competing with each other for time. As connected as they are, time is finite.
PS – At the charity, I have also implemented a weekly review. I had done it in Covid and re-implemented last year at a time when there was just so much to do that it was hard for us to feel like we were making progress. It was a life-saver for me and the team and we are keeping it looking forward. It can take just 10 minutes but it is a key moment to take stock and plan the priorities for the following week.