My Review of Annual Reviews

Several years ago Chris Guillebeau inspired me to do a personal annual review . I am a lover of spreadsheets, measurable goals, and to-do lists, so I found his approach to goal-tracking fascinating. I gave it #AllTheStars. (To read more about his approach, visit his site , where you can download an Excel template).

Of course, I now have a whole Google workbook of detailed annual reviews with tabs for each year. They're color-coded! They have formulas! It's all very fine and normal. Totally. Everyone loves spreadsheets like I do... right?

Honestly, it’s fun for me to look back annually at what I thought was most important, what I valued, and what I achieved. It serves as sort of a condensed journal. I put in quips for myself, reminders, and kudos. I set little rewards for myself for completed tasks. I marvel at the ways in which I can manipulate its data. I giggle quietly at my little personal data nerddom.

Then, of course, the past two years of creating and accomplishing “goals” were (as we have said ad nauseum) unprecedented.

I lost my mom in 2020 to ovarian cancer, and a week later seemingly everything shut down. I wasn't too concerned about "keeping a food diary" or "learning Python". I was trying to figure out if I could donate my mom's unused surgical masks to my friends working the front line in hospitals. I was checking Twitter frantically and wondering if I was living in the upside down.

My 2021 word of the year? Survival.

My 2021 lofty goals? To keep my family, friends, and colleagues safe. To attend therapy. To turn off the TV and stop doom-scrolling by 11 PM.

As I sat reflecting on 2021, I again recognized the immense privileges I had to even make these goals. On top of that, I was able to meet roughly half, which was nice. And, they included more than 2020's goal of showering regularly (though every once in a while that still seemed hard_.

I didn't do everything. (Looking at you, "monthly" date nights and 10K race.)

But I did do some things. (Woohoo Excel class! Great job running for 1 hour without stopping!)

This year? I’m setting more reasonable, meaningful, and tangible goals. How about you?

Instead of “Lose 20 pounds”, it’s “Track how I feel in my body and write down specifics about what works and what doesn’t.” Thanks, Maintenance Phase podcast for opening my mind this year to the pitfalls of wellness trends and anti-fat bias.

Instead of “Read 12 books”, it’s “Curate GoodReads list and choose 20-30 that seem most appealing, then check them out from the library. Allow yourself to give up on them if they bore you to tears. Read most nights before bed.” Reading is fun.

Instead of “Go to therapy”, it’s “Put time on my calendar for written reflection. Actually work on the exercises my therapist gave me. Stop pretending I'm fine all the time.” No one is fine all the time.

LinkedIn’s automated message system suggested I write an article about a goal I have for 2022. Is there a skill I want to learn? Sure. Are there personal or professional milestones I am working towards? Yes, of course. But I’m not sure on the all of those specifics yet.

On the one hand, I have 60+ courses saved in my LinkedIn Learning. I get excited about the possibility of learning new things, and it's a great distraction from a world on fire. Sixty, though, Rachel? Sixty? Maybe focus that a little.

On the other hand, I want to be more intentional about how I spend my time. The past two years have jolted my sense of how short life is, and how valuable my time is--- not just my money.

So… I’m still working on establishing my official list of goals for 2022. And that’s okay. Check back with me at my quarterly review in March, maybe I'll have it all figured out by then. #2022Goals ;-)