Reviews are an essential part of goal setting. Regular reviews are so important because they put you in control of your goal setting process. It is a good opportunity to look back on what you have achieved and to plan ahead.
Why?
The main objective of reviews is to see if you are on track with your goals or if you need to adapt your path. When you look back you can learn from the past. You see what worked and what did not work.
You can also see your progress and your successes. This is quite important. If you only look ahead towards your big, ambitious goal you only see what you have not achieved. This can be demotivating. Therefore, take some time to celebrate your successes. This will boost your motivation.
The review will also help you to see where you stand right now compared to where you have started. Does it feel right? If you do not enjoy your journey the price might be too high. Find ways to have fun with your goals.
And, of course plan for the future. What are next steps, actions and milestones for your goals?
Learn from the past, enjoy the present and plan the future.
What?
The best way to go through the review process is to answer a few questions. Here come our suggestions.
- What are my most important goals right now?
- Are my goals still relevant and important for me? If so, why?
- What worked well? Can I keep this or make it even better?
- What did not work that well? How can I improve?
- What did I enjoy on my way? Do I enjoy my journey?
- What did I not like that much?
- What has the biggest impact on my goals? How can I enhance that? What else can have great impact?
- What has only minor or no impact on my goals? How can I eliminate or reduce that?
- Did I accomplish any goals already?
- Are there any new goals that might be worth pursuing?
- Do I have a clear plan for all my goals?
- Are the next action steps for my goals clear?
- Do I have or know all the resources I need to achieve my goals?
- Can I get support? Whom can I ask?
- How will I reward myself for progress or successes?
Feel free to adapt or to add your own questions. Depending on your answers to these questions you can come to one of the following results:
I Am on Track
Congratulations. Keep going, plan for the next steps and enjoy the journey.
I Am Not on Track
Find out why and what you can do about it. Maybe there are some obstacles, maybe a lack of motivation, other things to do, or you just do not know what to do next. To have a look at the goal setting process or to use the VidaGoals app might help you to get back on track. Also, talk to your supporters or friends and ask them for help.
My Goal Is Not Relevant Anymore
If, for whatever reason, you find out your goal is not worth pursuing anymore this is a valid and important insight. In this case and after due consideration, you can drop this goal from your list. Ideally you learned something from it. Then go ahead with your other goals.
When?
It is important to review your goals in regular intervals. We recommend the following frequencies.
Small Reviews
We recommend to review your most important goals at least every two weeks. Just take 15 minutes to see where you stand and to plan the next steps. Write down the results. This will help you to commit, to stay on track and it is motivating too.
Medium Reviews
More or less every three months you should do a bigger review. This is a time frame where you can make quite some significant progress. We recommend planning your goals in 90-day chunks. You can see if you have achieved your milestones and adapt if necessary.
Big Reviews
Then, there are the bigger more strategic reviews. You might want to reserve half a day for this. This sounds a lot but it is absolutely worth it. Maybe also invite your supporters.
How?
No matter how you do it, take your time and find a calm place.
You can use your journal and go through the questions above. Or, if you like the electronic option more you can use our free VidaGoals app.
We also recommend The Year Compass. On this site you can download free booklets to review your last year and to plan your next year.
You can download the booklet from the site as PDF, print them and then find a quiet place to fill in your answers. Alternatively, you can fill in the PDF on your laptop as well. We recently got this recommendation and tried out The Year Compass ourselves. It is a thoughtfully designed booklet for reviewing your last year and planning your next year. You will gain valuable insights after you filled in all your answers.