Mid-Year Reflection – TPW303

We’ve just finished the first half of 2020 and have turned the corner into the second half. It’s been a year unlike any other I’ve experienced in my 6 decades and at this midpoint of the year I’ve been thinking about that, and you, a lot. 

A mid-year pause to reflect on an extraordinary year

How are you feeling right now? Are things going well, or are you and your family struggling? Perhaps emotionally, physically, or financially?

At this mid-year point, I thought it would be a good time to pause, reflect, and regroup. It’s something I do every year, and for me, it’s even more important now.

We talked about this several years ago, in episode 95. As I said then, a mid-year review is my way of pausing to make sure I’m on the right track for the year (while there is still time to adjust my course) and heading in the direction of accomplishing the right things by year-end. During this mid-year review time I can:

• Regain focus and awareness. Reviewing my goals helps me to evaluate where I am and where my intention is focused. It’s easy to get lost in just getting from one day to the next. Taking the time to do a mid-year review gives me the opportunity to refocus if I need to. 
• Evaluate or re-evaluate my goals. Do my goals still make sense? Or do I need to adjust my goals and strategy?
• Get back on track. If I’ve gotten sidetracked from my goals, I can look at everything again and focus on why I set those goals in the first place.

The process for doing my mid-year review is pretty straight-forward. Again, please refer back to episode 95  for a little more detail.

The first half of the year

To start, begin by carving out a little time when you can think. Sit down with a pen and paper and take a look back, then a look forward.

Thinking back over the first half of the year, January through June, what went well? That may seem like a hard question given the current events, but it’s good to have a positive mindset. Take out your calendar or journal and look back over what you did, what events you attended, places you went. What do you feel good about and can celebrate? What worked?

Even in the most trying times, we can find something that went well.

On the other hand, what did you plan to do that didn’t happen and why?

With all that has happened this year, our reason for not accomplishing our goals can be attributed to the Coronavirus and quarantine measures. But think a little deeper than that. What about the Coronavirus prevented you from accomplishing a goal or working on a project? Maybe there is a deeper reason, like your ability to stay on task and focus due to all the world events going on at this time, health concerns, financial problems, etc. These worries can really affect your motivation and ability to accomplish things. 

Being distracted by things going on around you doesn’t mean there is something wrong with you.

Think back over all you planned to do and ask yourself if you want to try that plan again. Is this goal still important? Is it still worth pursuing? It’s okay to rethink and re-evaluate your goals. During the first half of this year, many of us have had a change in our priorities. This is a good time to lay a foundation for moving forward in a positive direction.

The second half of the year

After you finish looking back over the previous six months, it’s now time to look forward.

Think about how you want to feel for the next six months. Where do you want to be at the end of 2020? Remember, if there was a goal that you hoped to accomplish in the first half of the year, but just didn’t get it done, you still have an additional six months left to do it.

Right now, it’s easy to become discouraged or feel as if things are out of control. However, one thing you can control is how you feel. Strive to feel at peace with yourself and others. Focus on feeling grateful, encouraged, and optimistic.

Think about the little things in your life you can control, such as finding a good book to read, choosing one area of your home or workspace to tidy, purge, and clean, or go for a walk. These are things that can help you stay focused and assert a little control.

Also, choose a goal for the next six months that is something you can control. Maybe something related to progress in your career, a home project you want to complete, or a course you would like to take.

If you are someone who is feeling strong and on top of things right now and making good progress, maybe reach out to someone you know who is struggling to cope.  

Before I finish my mid-year review, I make sure I’ve answered these questions:

• What are the two or three things I want to complete before the end of the year? 
• How am I going to accomplish them? Who can I ask for help? What resources do I need? 
• What am I going to take off the table or defer to next year to help me focus on these two or three things? 

What do you think? 

Are you doing a mid-year review? Will you share a goal you’re going after for the second half of the year? Please share your questions or thoughts in the comments section below this post or on The Productive Woman’s Facebook page, or send me an email. 

Resources and Links

• Doing a Mid-Year Review – TPW95

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Join me in The Productive Woman Mastermind

Are you interested in joining a small group of like-minded women to share mutual support, ideas, encouragement, and accountability so you can finish the year strong? After a hiatus for the past year, I’ll be launching a new TPW mastermind group starting in September. TPW mastermind groups are paid groups, facilitated by me personally. The new group (or groups!) will start in September and will meet via Zoom one hour a week for 12 weeks. Visit TheProductiveWoman.com/mastermind to learn more, listen to brief testimonials from past mastermind participants, and find the link to the short online application. Email me if you have questions after you’ve reviewed that page. Note: I only accept 5 women in each group, and the September groups are filling up already, so I’d love to hear from you soon. 

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