Closing Out A Year and Beginning A New One

Take Pen to Paper: Edition 66

Hello, my Pen to Paper friends.

We are closing out another year, and you know what that means. Yes, it’s time for a performance review.

At the end of last year, I suggested you choose a review method and summarize the results into three areas: celebrations, thought-provoking questions, and a quide for the new years’s goals (Read that newsletter here.)

So, how did I do?

In this newsletter:

1. A performance review.

2. Lessons learned.

3. What’s to come.

365 Days Become Water Under the Bridge

This past year, I tried Gretchen Rubin’s “Happier Trifecta” approach to goals.

In January, I started listening to her podcast Happier for all the details: choose a word for her year to come (I was already doing that), think of the same number of goals corresponding to the year (23 goals for 2023), and the Happier annual challenge which also incorporates the same number in a daily activity. Within the trifecta, goals can overlap, and some can be for fun!

Here are my results. (I’ll spare you the details.)

My word for the year was “connect.” I wrote about it here. This deserves a 🎉big celebration 🎉. I loved having this word and feel like I worked hard to live up to it. With this word to guide me, I:

• Joined a weekly art class. I see the same classmates every week.

• I formed a writer’s group.

• I worked hard to be a better listener.

• I started conversations and asked questions. (Even with strangers.)

Here is the breakdown of my 23 goals:

• 9 accomplished. My biggest were publishing this newsletter every week and a long overdue update on our will. 🎉🎉🎉

• 3 were almost accomplished. For example, I walked the Midlothian Mine Trail with my granddaughters, but two-year-olds do not walk fast. We meandered quite a bit.

• 11 fails. No details needed. I didn’t even get close on those.

I can live with a 50% success rate.

The Happier annual challenge was to get outside every day for 23 minutes. I’ll be honest. I didn’t even try to keep up. I average walking five days a week. Rain, ice, and temperatures below 40F keep me in.

I enjoyed the Happier trifecta approach to goal setting. I’m doing it again this year.

What did I learn about myself?

My review made it easy to identify celebrations (noted above) and lessons to carry forward.

I learned I enjoy sharing my stories in writing. I can rise to the challenge of a weekly newsletter. I’m considering a second newsletter that will concentrate on journaling.

Another lesson that the year continually reinforced was how important family and friends are to me. From wandering Scotland with my husband to wandering the trails with my granddaughters, staying connected with long-time friends, and making new friends through my newsletter, these connections make me happy.

I learned two lessons specific to goal setting that may be helpful to you..

Make your goal specific and measurable. (I should know that as an educator.) What does “go to bed earlier” mean? I did not accomplish that goal.

Some goals should be fun, even easy! Why not work towards the things we enjoy?

It’s important to remember goals are motivating, but the process of working towards them and the lessons we learn are what count. Only I can determine if I’ve been successful. The same is true for you.

Did I have a successful year?

Absolutely! I had fun, and I learned. I’m happy with the results.

What will 2024 bring?

In most ways, you are in charge of what 2024 will bring.

My 11 unaccomplished goals helped me identify goals I want to continue working toward and goals that were not for me.

For myself, I’ve decided to continue on my path of sharing gratitude and good, and put more work into my health and physical well-being.

Have you reviewed your 2023?

Photo by S.G.S. Abel

7 Days, 7 Thoughts on Gratitude and Good:

1. I am grateful for the many opportunities to connect (or re-connect) with people this year. Choosing the word connect for my 2023 Word of the Year, helped me form positive habits that will help me continue to connect. 🔌

2. It’s good to reflect on your past thoughts, words, and actions. It’s only through self-knowledge that we improve. 🪞

3. A quote: “I learned you are not just your moment-to-moment thoughts and feelings. You are an accumulation of everything you did before. The person you are today builds from the person you were the day before: when you ate, what you learned, how you slept. You have to take care of yourself and others.”  - Jordan Foisy

4. I’ve shared the link for Gretchen Rubin’s podcast before. Here it is again! 🎧

5. With a site like this good news generator, I may not need to write my “7 Days, 7 Thoughts on Gratitude and Good”. (Feel free to weight in on that by leaving a comment.)

6. Here is some good news on a global level.

7. Instead of a Word of the Year, how about choosing a song to inspire you in 2024? Then, use The Eternal Jukebox to listen to it over and over. 🎶

Thank you for being a subscriber and reading my newsletter each week! Take the time to celebrate your successes!

🎇Happy New Year! 🎇

💚

Susan

The new year is a great time to start thinking about gratitude and the good in life, so share this newsletter with someone who would enjoy it!

How do you reflect on your year? I would love to hear it.

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