By Monica Sampson

Found at Wikimedia Commons – Photo is in the public domain

Congratulations on  your 2016 successes! You’re getting ready to cross the finish line and head into a brand new year.

Newness is inspirational! Newness is powerful! It makes you feel hopeful, as you may be feeling with 2017 only days away. Yet, just because the year, a relationship, job or house is new doesn’t mean that you’re in for significant, rewarding change. Your personal 2016 successes point to what you’re set to achieve in 2017.

Because of this, before you sit down and map out your 2017 goals, review your personal 2016 successes. Look back at your personal successes in 2016 with honesty. You won’t benefit now or in the future if you lie to yourself.

What are your best 2016 successes?

Following are specific questions you can ask yourself as you take a look back at 2016. Don’t skim over the questions. Also, consider your long term personal goals when you think about the questions.

• Did my happiness and peace expand during 2016? If I struggled with feeling stuck or stagnant during 2015, did I have fewer days or instances where I felt that way in 2016? Why?
• Was I faithful to my own mind stillness and mind awakening exercises in 2016? After I wrote down that I would meditate for at least 15 minutes a day at the start of 2016, did I do that? Did I sit still for at least 10 minutes after morning and/or evening prayer? Why not (again, be honest with yourself)
• My financial savings grew in 2016 (yes or no)? Also, how did my saving grow? For example, did my savings grow because I spent less. Did I build personal wealth because I switched my accounts to lower interest accounts or worked another job?
• Or did my savings grow because I experienced more business growth. I generated more personal wealth because I invested in my IRA more or got a raise at work or a combination of these or another activity?

Other ways you got on track in 2016

Your health is a direct connect to your energy. What health related changes did you make to position yourself for greater 2016 successes? Can you say that your:

• Health improved for me spiritually, mentally and physically (yes or no)? Why? Did I exercise more, lost 15 pounds, eat more raw vegetables, cut back on my sugar or salt intake and/or cut back on worrying?
• I followed my dream and started my own business in 2016? This is one of my big 2016 successes, as I’ve wanted to operate a business since I was 15.
• Thanks to partnering with the right marketing agencies and sales specialists, I grew my company’s bottom line by 31%, one of several 2016 successes? If you work for an employer, how did you help the area that you work in grow? (If you’re not interested in helping the business that you work for to grow, why are you staying at that organization?)

More areas that impacted your 2016 successes

It may take one to two hours to complete the review of your 2016 successes. Don’t rush yourself. As you continue your review, ask yourself the below questions.

• Instead of giving myself dozens of reasons to stay at a job I know I don’t like and know that I don’t find fulfilling, one of my 2016 successes found me applying and interviewing for a new job. I applied for jobs in my passion field. I even worked an internship in my passion field to give myself enough experience to nail a permanent, full-time job in the field?
• One of my 2016 successes saw me saying good-bye to a toxic, abusive relationship. I also enrolled in a course at a community college, joined a book club and started keeping in touch with family and friends at least once a week to replace the relationship with more positive connections with others (yes or no)?
• I got the help that I needed for a challenge that I’ve been dealing with. I stopped lying to myself and gave myself a chance to heal, so that I can be happy?

The above questions are general, in nature, covering personal relationships, work, finances and spiritual, mental and physical health. Because there are many facets to the experiences that you have in this world, it’s smart to review each area of your 2016 successes.

If you conduct a review of your 2016 successes before you map out your 2017 goals and the steps that you will take to reach those goals, you can spot areas that you need to focus on. You may also see just what held you back in 2016. You can also spot your strengths.

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