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According to a study by Workhuman, only 31% of companies still conduct annual performance reviews. While more frequent feedback can be helpful at work, don’t ditch the yearly practice quite yet. Reviewing the year on your own can be a powerful exercise in personal growth and development, says Leo Babauta, author of Zen Habits: Mastering the Art of Change and host of the Zen Habits Podcast.
“People who are high performers or who are trying to do well in their job tend to look forward—that’s why New Year’s resolutions are a big thing,” he says. “We like to set big goals for the coming year because we’re excited for what is ahead, but we don’t always like to look back.”
Looking back can be messy because we have to acknowledge where we fell short. If we skip this step, however, we miss out on valuable insights, says Babauta.
“I have found a lot of gold looking at what I can learn from what I did or didn’t do,” he says. “If you just look forward, you won’t get any better. You’ll just keep getting stuck in the same patterns over and over.”
Gather Information
It can be hard to recall everything that happened over the past year. Babauta makes it easy by conducting his own monthly reviews. Assuming you haven’t done that, go month by month, remembering anything you can.
“Look over your calendar,” suggests Babauta. “Maybe you took a trip, went to a conference, or held a meeting about a project. A calendar is a great data.”
Messages you sent to others may also trigger memories, says Babauta. “It’s great if you held check-ins with someone such as a weekly accountability chat,” he says. “Or you can scan through the subject lines of your emails.”
As you’re gathering information, look for your strengths and weaknesses. There are likely places where you fell short and could be at risk of having the same thing happen in the coming year, says Babauta.
“Release any of the negativity that you might have, like harsh self-talk,” he says. “Find out what you can learn from it. You can improve upon it if you learn something from it.”
Then highlight the good that you did. “We rarely celebrate ourselves; we usually focus on fault,” says Babauta. “What are you really proud of that you accomplished? What worked that you would like to continue to do going forward?”
Use the Insights to Set Goals
As you review your year, create three lists: things that are important for you to change going forward, things that are important to keep the same because they worked well, and things to let go of entirely.
Use what you’ve uncovered to set goals. Babauta likes to break down big goals into monthly milestones. For example, if he wants to set an income goal, he breaks the number down into monthly or quarterly goals. Then, he sets up a structure that will help him achieve the goal, such as joining or starting an accountability group where he states his goals for the next month.
It’s also important to schedule frequent planning sessions for yourself to check in with your goals. It could be daily or weekly, but make sure you’re reviewing your progress. “Writing the goals is great, but it’s possible to write it and forget about it for the rest of the year,” says Babauta. “You need a way to remember it every day.”
While Babauta takes most of the month of December to conduct his own personal review, it’s possible to complete the process in a week. “Break it into chunks,” he recommends. “It’s overwhelming to do this all at once. The more time you can devote to the process, the better.”
What You’ll Gain
Even if your manager holds an annual review with you, holding your own is empowering, says Babauta. “You might think, ‘OK, great. Someone else is going to give me a review,’” he says. “A risk to that is you will still get caught up in your same patterns. Break out of patterns not only for [your manager] but also for yourself. You don’t want to be doomed to keep repeating the same thing.”
Another reason an annual self-review is important is because it becomes an act of personal accountability.
“It’s great to be a follower where someone else is reviewing you and telling you what they think, but this process is taking a proactive leadership position in your own life,” says Babauta. “It doesn’t only have to apply to your job; you can do a performance review for your personal finances, your health, and your relationships. Even if you’re getting reviews from someone else, look at what is true for yourself as opposed to just taking in someone else’s external feedback.”
A self-review will likely bring up things you’d prefer to forget. In fact, Babauta says that’s often why people avoid doing it.
“Know this is going to be uncomfortable,” he says. “Accept it and embrace it. This is really an act of self-care.”
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