Have you reviewed your life performance for 2009?

I started doing this from past 2 years. Similar to the performance review you do in your company.......I started documenting goals, reviewing periodically and assessing the status at the end of the calender year for my life goals ........... for the year.

When i ended my 2007.........i knew it went well some part which i over focused on........ but didn't knew what went wrong or what went right. I was very clearly unclear about if i have hit the balance in all all sphere of my life for the year.

In that quest I ended 2007 with list of goals for 2008. I ended up in 25 such items ....from learn Meditation to buy another property........ from going for North India trip to learn south Indian cooking. Than I segregated them under 5 categories. Money, Health, Family, Life style & Career-personal. AT the end of the 2008 i didn't do all but i knew what i didn't do well and why I didn't do them well. It became very powerful tool for me to understand my Career direction, My work life balance and my life.

That understanding lead me to planning for 2009. When i looked into my 2009 on how I performed i feel good as I know what i did well and what i missed.............more importantly if those goals are relevant now. Overall I felt i did well. Not exceeded but achieved.

Rule No 1:

1. Ensure it is done on paper or in your computer . Excel is good enough.
2. Make it very clear and specific. No emotional words and no negative wording.
3. Keep the list well under 12.

Steps to follow:
1. If this is first time you are doing this . Than start with list of all you did/achieved in 2009.
2. After finishing the what you did with 2009. Start putting your goals for 2010.
3. Ensure to number them .
4. Use next column to categorise them. Under heads which will ensure you are covering all part of your life...money, career, family, Personal, Health, life style etc.
5. Check if the list is balanced .
6. Check if you feel strongly about each of them.
7. Though it is realistic to keep the list within 12......at the same time don't limit your self and keep going even if you end up with 100. Than work towards prioritising them and bring out the top 10. After all we are planning 1 year of your life and not the life itself.
8. once you are ready with "your" list. Read it out loud to yourself .
9. Than take time ( appropriate time!) to talk to your spouse/Children/Parents..........if they have any one of "their goal" for you to achieve next year for them. Take it and add it with appropriate wording which make it your own. Ensure to read it out to them .
10. I also recommend you to share your goals for next year with your spouse/Children/Parents depending on which stage of life you are in and who matters most and who can contribute to your goal .

Don't ever forget:
“I have come to a frightening conclusion.
I am the decisive element in MY WORLD.
It is MY personal approach that creates the climate.
It is MY daily mood that makes the weather.
As a individual I possess tremendous power to make a person's life miserable or joyous.
I can be a tool of torture or an instrument of inspiration.
I can humiliate or humor, hurt or heal.
In all situations, it is MY response that decides whether a crisis
will be escalated or de-escalated, and a child humanized or de-humanized”
-Quote inspired by Haim G. Ginott