Quick, it’s the end of the year, time to get s**t done!

I am known as the person to get s**t done. I often get presents saying this and I think, are they telling me to get stuff done or praising me for being so productive? Whatever the interpretation, I’m known for getting things done, and at the end of the year in particular. 

November to December is always the craziest in my household. We’ve just had Diwali, then it’s Thanksgiving and Christmas and in between the two we have three children’s birthdays, and office and school parties. And, of course, work—tidying up before the end of the year, trying to hit targets, doing taxes, dealing with financial planning. I know the exhausting pace of the last two months of the year as well as anyone.

My craziest year end was December 2018, when we sold the business. Leading up to the sale, we continued to run the day-to-day operations and made sure the financials stayed where they needed to be, but we also had to deal with the actual sale. We were answering due diligence, negotiating contracts, and dealing with regulatory approvals.

Amongst all of this were the three kids’ birthday parties, the office parties, the school holiday parties…and of course that was the year I organized a family Christmas trip for 12 people. I mean, that month I definitely got s**t done. 

But on a personal level, I’ve come to realize and appreciate that when you have the reputation of getting things done, it’s easy to be the dumping ground. And there’s a difference between just getting s*** done and getting useful, rewarding, things done. Endless work emergencies, other people’s agendas, or even just the everyday schedules of kids, family, and admin can really suck up your whole day and take you off course. So, instead of just embracing the day-to-day chaos and taking the blows as they come, I try to be more focused about what I take on. 

Each December I spend time thinking about the year nearly done, recapping on what worked, what didn’t, and what I’ve achieved. Then I look at the year ahead. And I start planning.

It’s that time right now and I’m just about to do a strategy session with my coach and a marketing guru, to create a plan and a vision for the year to come. I’ll turn that bullet point plan into a vision board for 2022, with tasks for every month, week, and even every day. I do the same thing each year, starting at a high level then drilling down so that every goal is divided into manageable chunks.

However hectic your end of year is, I’d recommend spending a few hours considering what you’d like to achieve in 2022, and how you can implement it. It’s exciting to see a plan of action for your goals. It makes you accountable, and it helps you value your time. 

Below are a few tips for creating a vision board and plan like mine. But if it’s your first time making a plan, and you’re nervous about it or unsure, you could also try the 1:4:1 method, which I heard about on Jay Shetty’s podcast, 7 of My Best Time Management Habits to Help You Do and Create More in Less Time. The 1:4:1 method is 1 big goal: 4 weekly goals: 1 task per day. That’s it…it’s brilliantly simple. 

If you do the 1:4:1, just make sure you write your plan down and print it out so you can see it and feel inspired by it each day.

If you want to dig a bit deeper then this is what I do:

Action 1: Start with the big picture. Think about each aspect of your life that you have a goal for and categorize them into headings or boxes. My categories include each business entity or client, each charity/non-profit/campaign, and headings for the children, for the family, and for me. 

Action 2: Under each category look at what you want to achieve—the positive and the negative. You might want to do less admin, work out more, raise funds for projects, obtain x more clients in one area or reduce them in another. Set everything out. Then start drilling down on a few action items. At this point, your plan is still fairly big picture, rather than the day to day, but it’s the start of an action plan. 

Action 3: Start thinking about what you could do to achieve your goals week to week and month to month. Look at how you’ve allocated tasks over a 12-month period. 

Then do what I do and sit on it for a few weeks to make sure your plan looks and feels right. Come back and tinker with it. In the new year start your actions—day by day, week by week— completing the tasks you’ve created.

So, before you end the year stop just getting s*** done and take a moment to reflect and get planning. Getting ready for the year ahead takes around an hour a day for a week. It’s time worth investing. The results can literally be life changing.

If you'd like to talk more about getting ready for 2022, drop me a DM on here or follow me on Instagram. But whatever you do - please take a bit of time to focus on YOU.