How to Plan an Amazing Year Ahead

It’s getting to be that time when we start planning for the coming year and all the amazing things we are going to accomplish. The only problem, is where do we start with that plan? What if you have a business? Can you do both in one shot? I’ll be answering those questions in this article. 

Note: With any journey, you are on an adventure through life and business so I’ll be referring to it that way throughout this article. Besides, not everyone likes the words goals or resolutions, so I’ve devised my own words. Feel free to use them!

Your Personal Year Plan 

Let’s begin with your personal year plan. You are going to be working on both areas (or just this one if you don’t have a business) and you are at the center. So, it only makes sense that we should start here. The very first thing you want to do with any planning is set aside time to do just that. Schedule those days into your calendar and set a reminder. 

Reflect on the Previous Year

The first thing you should do is reflect on the previous year. If you don’t have a journal, then try to think back to how it was during the year (month by month if possible) and answer these questions. 

1. How did you spend your time the previous year? 
2. What did you learn?
3. What did you discover about yourself? 
4. What do you have to be thankful for? 

Choose three things you consider wins for the year. These are your accomplishments and things you should be proud of. Now choose three things you feel you need to work on, these are learning opportunities. 

The point of this is to see where you were when you started last year and how far you’ve come since then. You may find some eye-opening results as you look back. 

Create a vision for the new year

Now that you know how your last year was, and what you did well, and not so well, it’s time to create a vision for the new year. If you were to picture your ideal year with no obstacles, what would it look like? What would do? What would need to happen to make that ideal year a reality? Let’s see if we can reach that reality. 

Your Why

As you think about your ideal year and what goes into it, think about WHY you want that reality. What makes it something you would want to strive for? Write this down at the top of a sheet of paper or notebook for you to refer back to when you need it. 

Life Areas

There are various areas of your life that you can take a look at and I would suggest really looking at each of them. See where you are now and where you would like to be at the end of the new year. Write down that destination on a sheet of paper with the category as a header. 

1. Health- Physical & Mental
2. Professional/Career/Work
3. Financial
4. Relationships
5. Spiritual
6. Emotional
7. Educaiton
8. Living Environment
9. Habits/Routines/Learning
10. Fun/Travel/Leisure

Set Your Top Destinations

Once you’ve got your sheet complete, it is now time to choose 2-3 top “destinations” (or goals) to strive for throughout the year. You can certainly try for all of them, but for this exercise, let’s focus on your top 2-3. If you are having trouble, try to focus on the destinations that are critical to your vision. What would impact that vision the most? 

Develop Your Adventure

So, you’ve envisioned the perfect year, you’ve created destinations you’d like to get to and you’ve chosen your top three destinations. Now it’s time to develop your adventure to reach those destinations. Create stepping stones for each activity you need to do to get to the specific destination, then break that down into activities you can do quarterly, monthly, weekly, then daily steps. 

The idea is that your daily steps when completed will fulfill your weekly steps, your weekly steps will fulfill your monthly steps, your monthly steps will fulfill your quarterly steps and your quarterly steps will fulfill your yearly destination. 

Keep in mind that you want to keep your steps and destinations as SMART as you can. (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic, and Time-Bound)

Routine

When you get to your daily steps, plan to place these activities within your routines. You may only do the activity once or a few times a week. Weaving them into your routines will ensure you’re working toward your destination all year. Creating habits that become easier as you move along the path.

Schedule 

As you are working through your routines, a schedule will add to your success. Enter your steps into your calendar (and where you keep your routines) and set reminders so you don’t forget. Add any other important dates, meetings, deadlines, birthdays, anniversaries, holidays, appointments, and other activities to your calendar. Work around your life where it’s most convenient. There are some things that are needed, like family time and self-care. Don’t jeopardize one thing for another. Find a way to work around those things you already have in place to fit in what you’d like to achieve. 

Celebrate Your Wins

When you reach those points (that first week, each month, each quarter, and your final destination) celebrate! Each one of those is a milestone you were trying to reach and though there may have been some obstacles, you were still able to meet them. So take some time to celebrate reasonably. You’ve earned it. 

Review Your Progress

Every week, month, and quarter review your progress. See how far you’ve come, what still needs work, or if anything needs adjusting. Just because you start on one path, doesn’t mean you can’t end up on a different one with the same destination. 

Take note of what’s working well, and what isn’t. Make plans to get back on track. Jot down your milestones and how you celebrated. This will encourage you to move forward. Keep up the good work and overcome the obstacles that appear. You’ll be glad you did. 

Tips

• Make a vision board. You’ve created a vision statement, why not a visual to go along with it? 
• It’s not the best to be thinking about failing, but if you wish, create a plan B and C in the event your original plans fall through. 
• Create a Not-to-do List ~ Itemization of habits and activities that will impede on your success. Things like No caffeine after 3 pm, No TV after 8 pm, and No staying up past 9 pm. 
• Allow for flexibility. Things will not always go right and you’ll find obstacles along the way. Learn to roll with them and continue on to your destination. 

Your New Year Business Plan 

This will be a basic business planning session. I’ll not be getting into financials or some other areas, just your steps to reach your main destinations for your business. 

Reflect on the Previous Year

As with a personal year plan, you want to reflect on the previous year of your business. Look back at the months and see what went well and what needs improvement. What did you learn about your business this past year? What about your business are you thankful for? 

Your Vision

Review your vision for your business. Is it still applicable to how your business is now? Your business may have changed since you created your first vision statement and may need to be revamped. If not, continue with what’s working. 

Think about these questions as you review your vision statement. I will not only re-solidify your why but also allow you to look ahead in the future. 

• What caused you to start your business in the first place? 
• Why did you start? 
• What did you see when you looked at the future? 

Knowing the answers to these will help you put a strategy in place to reach your destination. 

Set Your Top Destinations

From looking at your previous year and your vision for the business. Where are you now and where would you like to be at the end of the year? What are your destinations? Write out your destinations for each area: Business as a whole, Financials, Marketing, Customer Experience/community, Products/services, etc. Your business is yours and you know which areas need work and which are doing well. I’ll leave it to you to use the same format from above to create your destinations. 

Once you have those destinations, again choose your top three that meet your vision. Keep your budget in mind as some things may need funds and you want to be prepared for that. 

Develop Your Adventure

You now have your top three destinations that correlate with your vision. Now it’s time to develop your adventure to reach those destinations based on your resources and your capabilities. Create stepping stones for each activity you need to do to get to the specific destination, then break that down into activities you can do quarterly, monthly, weekly, then daily steps. Use your calendar to mark down deadlines and activities with reminders so you stay on track. 

The idea is the same as above. Your daily steps when completed will fulfill your weekly steps, your weekly steps will fulfill your monthly steps, your monthly steps will fulfill your quarterly steps and your quarterly steps will fulfill your yearly destination. 

Again, Keep in mind that you want to keep your steps and destinations as SMART as you can. (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic, and Time-Bound)

Know when to say ‘No’

As new ideas come to mind, you’ll need to filter which ones you don’t have the time or resources to accomplish right then. Resist the urge to try implementing the new idea even if you do have the resources. Check your business and see if now would be a good time to introduce the new idea. If not, write it down and wait for the right time. 

Keep your goals in mind as you make those decisions and you should be able to make a wise decision on how to proceed. 

Celebrate Your Success

When you reach those points (that first major activity, each month, each quarter, and your final destination) celebrate! Each one of those is a milestone you were trying to reach and though there may have been some obstacles, you were still able to meet them. So take some time to celebrate reasonably. You’ve earned it.

Review Your Progress 

As the year moves forward make changes where needed and monitor your progress to your destination. Every week, month, and quarter review your progress. See how far you’ve come, what still needs work, or if anything needs adjusting. Just because you start on one path, doesn’t mean you can’t end up on a different one with the same destination. 

Take note of what’s working well, and what isn’t. Make plans to get back on track. Jot down your milestones and how you celebrated. This will encourage you to move forward. Keep up the good work and overcome the obstacles that appear. You’ll be glad you did.

Tips

• Make a vision board. You’ve created a vision statement, why not a visual plan to go along with it? Businesses can benefit from vision boards as well. 
• Create a plan B and C in the event your original plans fall through. It’s beneficial to be prepared in the event something doesn’t work. You’ll have a plan on how to proceed. 
• Allow for flexibility. Things will not always go right and you’ll find obstacles along the way. Learn to roll with them and continue on to your destination.

Final Thoughts

Whether you are planning the new year for personal reasons, business, or both, I hope this article gave you some direction and ideas on how to proceed into the new year. What are your destinations for the new year? Share yours below!