Writing an Annual Review

Every year, I sit down and write an annual review. It is one of the most valuable exercises I do for personal growth. It forces me to reflect on what happened, what I learned, and where I want to go next.

Most people set New Year's resolutions without ever reviewing how the previous year went. That is like setting a new destination on your GPS without checking where you currently are. An annual review fixes that.

Why Write an Annual Review?

• Clarity. You get an honest picture of how you actually spent your year versus how you think you spent it.
• Gratitude. When you list out everything that happened, you realize the year was fuller than it felt in the moment.
• Pattern Recognition. Over multiple years, you start to see patterns -- what consistently makes you happy, what drains you, what you keep putting off.
• Better Goal Setting. Goals grounded in reflection are more realistic and meaningful than goals pulled out of thin air.

How I Structure Mine

I break the review into categories to make sure I cover all the important areas of life. Here are the categories I use:

1. Work and Career

• What were my biggest professional accomplishments?
• What projects am I most proud of?
• What skills did I develop?
• What would I do differently?

2. Health and Fitness

• Did I maintain consistent habits around exercise, sleep, and nutrition?
• What worked? What did I drop?
• How is my mental health compared to the start of the year?

3. Relationships

• Who were the most important people in my life this year?
• Did I invest enough time in the relationships that matter?
• Did I make new meaningful connections?

4. Learning and Growth

• What books did I read?
• What new skills did I pick up?
• What changed in how I think about the world?

5. Finances

• Did I hit my financial goals?
• Where did I spend more than I should have?
• What investments (financial or otherwise) paid off?

6. Fun and Experiences

• What were the highlights of the year?
• What trips, events, or experiences stood out?
• What brought me the most joy?

40 Questions to Ask Yourself

Inspired by kepano's "40 Questions to Ask Yourself Every Year", I use a set of thought-provoking questions to guide deeper reflection. Each question is designed to surface insights that you might miss with a simple "what went well" approach.

Some of my favorites:

• What was the best thing that happened to you this year?
• What was the biggest lesson you learned?
• What are you most grateful for?
• What would you do differently if you could redo this year?
• What are you most looking forward to next year?
• Who had the biggest positive impact on your life this year?
• What habit are you most proud of building (or breaking)?
• What did you spend too much time on?
• What did you not spend enough time on?

The full list lives in my Annual Review Notion template, which you can grab for free.

Tips for Writing Your Own

1. Set aside dedicated time. Block 2-3 hours in the last week of December. Do not rush it.
2. Go through your calendar. Your calendar is the most accurate record of what you actually did. Scroll through each month and note the highlights.
3. Check your photos. Photos are great memory triggers for experiences you might have forgotten.
4. Be honest. This is for you, not for anyone else. Do not sugarcoat or skip the hard parts.
5. Write it down. Thinking about it is not enough. The act of writing forces clarity.
6. Keep it. Save your annual reviews somewhere you can revisit them. Reading past reviews is one of the most rewarding parts of this practice.

When to Do It

I usually do mine in the last week of December, before setting any goals for the new year. Review first, then plan. The review informs the plan, not the other way around.

You do not need a fancy template or system. A blank document works just fine. What matters is that you do it consistently, year after year.