It’s a cliche, I know, to say I can’t believe it’s almost a new year already. That said, I’m not one to dwell too heavily on the past. I find a lot of entrepreneurs get caught up in reflecting on the past so much, they use it as an excuse not to make progress on plans for the future.

“I didn’t do this.” “I really struggled with that.” “I tried to do three challenges and they all failed.”

Those aren’t helpful thoughts. Those things are all in the past and you can’t change them. In other words, don’t use your past to beat up on your future.

Instead, I like to pause, be appreciative of what I’ve learned, and keep moving forward. These three things are what I believe every entrepreneur should do before setting yearly plans. They’ll help you see how far you’ve come and create future success for the following year.

You can do these three things at any time. After all, a new year begins whenever you intend for it to begin. There’s nothing magical about January 1st!

Celebrate

I believe there are always things to celebrate in your life and reasons to have a celebration, even if it’s a small moment of gratitude before making progress on your next goal.

I wasn’t always like that, though, and my mindset coach helped me to see that I was missing a crucial step in planning and goal setting. If you skip the celebration, it’s all just a sea of moving the needle.

Yes, you have to put in some focused effort to reap the rewards. And you absolutely should take a minute to enjoy those spoils before you move to the next thing!

In a post last month, I outlined three things to celebrate in your business (they aren’t all what you think they are!), questions to ask yourself for more in-depth reflection, and ways to celebrate.

You’ll be thankful you celebrated these things before you create a yearly plan because you can acknowledge your journey and thank yourself for making the effort to get to where you are today.

Envision

Another thing you must do before setting goals and planning for your next (best) year is envisioning what you want that year or those goals to look like. If you don’t know what you’re aiming at, how will you ever succeed in getting there?

Success Tip: Set a timer for 5 minutes and call up feelings of past success and confidence. It’ll be easier to envision future success.

Envisioning could look like journaling, meditating, creating a vision board, or a little of all three! I personally journal first, then make a vision board. There’s something about putting pen to paper and writing by hand that allows me to tap into the deepest things I desire. It’s how I was able to manifest my dream car in seven days!

Plan

Finally, you have to plan for these things! I know, it seems weird to plan before you create your yearly plan. You’re getting into the energy of gratitude and expecting to have what you desire. You’re planning on having everything you’re building into your yearly plan.

Here’s the thing: You don’t always have to know how, but you have to be open to the possibility of seeing the very next step open up for you. This step is about creating a detailed plan with intention, even if you don’t know the exact how you’ll receive it all.

As humans, we love knowing what’s going to happen next. We want things to be actionable, specific, and exactly as you expect them to come to you. That is rarely how things come to us!

Admitting what you want and being willing to see all the possibilities is the first step. Then, you can break it into action steps and a yearly plan.

For example: I really want a puppy. So, what do I need to do in order to have that? First, I have to be open to the idea of what it would be like to have a puppy in my home. Then, I can make more detailed plans. I don’t have to worry about how I’ll teach the puppy to sit. And I do need to understand the next steps along the way.

We did all these steps (and more) during my one-day virtual Vision & Goals Workshop on Friday, November 15, 2019. 

When you registered, You got a BONUS Intentional Vision Planner with the exact framework I use to create my own vision boards and templates that you can easily fill in. That way, you can get a head start on these three steps so you can start your yearly plan with intention and ease.

Then, together we’ll set your path for continued growth and progress.