Close out your 2018 journal
I don't know about you, but when the year is over, I get super excited about what the next year will have in store for me. Forever the optimist, I can imagine a million possibilities for myself, my family, career, business, travels, etc. Just writing that gives me a giant smile.
One of the greatest lessons I learned in 2018 is to celebrate more. Not just the successes, that is too obvious. Celebrate the failures. Every one of them. Reflecting on each and recalling how I handled each one, what lesson came from it, and how I bounced (back, forward, sideways) for the better.
As you plan for the new year ahead, it's important to reflect on the previous year.
Are you "raising the roof" in celebration for crushing those BIG annual goals? Which goals need to continue to take shape and go into this next year's journal?
Looking at each month's progress and habit trackers - what did you accomplish and what blocked you from that success when you didn't?
What habits became just that, and which ones were hard?
Any lists that you filled up, like favorite movies, or checked boxes on like books to read?
All of these areas shape you as an individual contributor to your life and teach you things about your inner strength and commitment to your world - your character, attitude, and grit. All important things to consider when creating your next journal!
Here are some questions to ponder as you gear up to begin your 2020 journal:
When creating your journal, which layouts did you like the most, what markers were the best, and what didn't work?
What do you wish you could have done differently? Anything you want to incorporate in 2020 that you didn't do in 2019?
Carry all of this into your next journal.
Before too much time passes though, I encourage you to take some time and close out your 2017 journal. Some things that you could consider when doing this:
Make sure your Index is up to date
Highlight key pages in the Index
Clip each month together, making easy sections to flip through
Are any pages worth bringing into your new journal (special numbers, places to travel, etc)? If so, take a photo and print it out. Attach with washi tape.
Look at your Year-at-a-glance calendar - do all of the special dates carry forward?
Any Future Dates that need to move into your next year?
Take a look at your inspiration pages, anything important to take out
Write the date range on the spine, this makes it clear what’s inside when sitting on the shelf
Snap a photo of the Index and bring that into your next Journal, it will be handy when looking for things from the previous year
Join me on January 1st, 2020 as we kick off another round of #30DTAOL so start planning this first year of the new decade!
Leslie Grossman is the founder of Stitches By Leslie, Inc. and the creator of the patent pending Journal Mate. For more information, reach out info@stitchesbyleslie.com