{ THE LITTLE BLACK BUDDHA }
LOOK BACK TO MOVE FORWARD BY AHLIA TILLMAN KITWANA
PERFORM A PERSONAL YEAR-END REVIEW Performing a year-end review is important to help you gain perspective as you stride into 2021. Reflection is still worth it, especially if very little went your way this year. In a year when nothing went as planned or expected, you can still reflect on what went well and what didn’t. I encourage you to do a personal year-end review. Yes, a boat-load of unexpected circumstances arose. A lot of what we experienced this year was disappointing, depressing and traumatic. AND there were also some really amazing moments and wins --- good things did happen in 2020, you just have to be open to that side of the coin too. Some of the good that occurred may have been the result of strategic, intentional and deliberate planning and pivoting. Some of it may be well timed serendipity. There were other moments that were a result of the universe reminding of its all-encompassing goodness and creative energy. We can still look back at our lives in 2020 objectively IF we are willing to take ownership of how we proceed. This is part perspective, part intention and part objective honesty. Assuming responsibility for the problems that exist in our lives and accepting reality as it is are choices. How we proceed once we’ve assumed responsibility is also a choice. I wholeheartedly agree, 270
that the options and choices we have right now are far from perfect or ideal. However, if you have time to read this post, you likely have the freedom and privilege of choice. YEAR END REVIEW It is quite likely that next year, 2021 will be similar to this year in that there will still be a pandemic that will impact the way we live. The biggest difference between 2020 and 2021 is that you will
REFLECT ON THE PAST YEAR To start your year-end review, look at each month and identify your Wins & Learning Opportunities for each month. Look through your planner, journal, photos, social media — wherever it may be that you captured snapshots and moments of the past year… Reflect, look back to see where you are going. This review is a little different than the 2019 year-end review, this year, we are adding in gratitude. Pull out a notebook or journal and get started. What are you grateful for? L e a r n i n g opportunities WHAT TO CONSIDER
have a better idea of what to expect. It is quite likely that the choices we will have will be far from ideal, but they will be our choices to make. For now, let’s just do a quick review of 2020 • What went well, or better than expected? • What didn’t go well or as planned? • What we can learn from our experiences? • How can we improve our outcomes moving forward?
CENTRAL NY WOMAN ONLINE : JANUARY/FEBRUARY EDITION 2021
• Did you notice any patterns that pop up? • Did you notice certain people around/ involved with good choices or bad decisions? • Any activities that showed up over and over again? Why? • Were there any changes in your relationships? • Big travel? If you traveled, how did it differ from previous years? • Were any plans thwarted? How did you adapt or pivot your plans? Or did you just let them go? • Did you learn new skills? • Where did you draw the most inspiration from? • What was your biggest challenge? • What was your biggest accomplishment? • What did you do to adapt to live through a pandemic? How will you