Dear reader,
Happy New Month! 🎉
We’ve just finished the first half of 2024 and have turned the corner into the second half. It’s been a year unlike any other and at this midpoint of the year I’ve been thinking about that, and you, a lot.
A mid-year pause to reflect on an extraordinary year
How are you feeling right now? Are things going well, or are you and your family struggling? Perhaps emotionally, physically, or financially?
At this mid-year point, I thought it would be a good time to pause, reflect, and regroup. It’s something I do every year, and for me, it’s even more important now.
I have talked about this few years ago, I said then, a mid-year review is my way of pausing to make sure I’m on the right track for the year (while there is still time to adjust my course) and heading in the direction of accomplishing the right things by year-end.
During this mid-year review time you can:
Regain focus and awareness. Reviewing your goals will helps you to evaluate where you are and where your intention is focused. It’s easy to get lost in just getting from one day to the next. Taking the time to do a mid-year review gives you the opportunity to refocus if I need to.
Evaluate or re-evaluate your goals. Do your goals still make sense? Or do you need to adjust your goals and strategy?
Get back on track. If you've gotten sidetracked from your goals, you can look at everything again and focus on why you set those goals in the first place. The process for doing this mid-year review is pretty straight-forward.
The first half of the year
To start, begin by carving out a little time when you can think. Sit down with a pen and paper and take a look back, then a look forward.
Thinking back over the first half of the year, January through June, what went well? That may seem like a hard question given the current events, but it’s good to have a positive mindset. Take out your calendar or journal and look back over what you did, what events you attended, places you went. What do you feel good about and can celebrate? What worked? Even in the most trying times, we can find something that went well.
On the other hand, what did you plan to do that didn’t happen and why? Think back over all you planned to do and ask yourself if you want to try that plan again.
Is this goal still important? Is it still worth pursuing? It’s okay to rethink and re-evaluate your goals. During the first half of this year, many of us have had a change in our priorities. This is a good time to lay a foundation for moving forward in a positive direction.
The second half of the year
After you finish looking back over the previous six months, it’s now time to look forward.
Think about how you want to feel for the next six months. Where do you want to be at the end of 2024? Remember, if there was a goal that you hoped to accomplish in the first half of the year, but just didn’t get it done, you still have an additional six months left to do it.
Right now, it’s easy to become discouraged or feel as if things are out of control. However, one thing you can control is how you feel. Strive to feel at peace with yourself and others. Focus on feeling grateful, encouraged, and optimistic.
Think about the little things in your life you can control, such as finding a good book to read, choosing one area of your home or workspace to tidy, purge, and clean, or go for a walk. These are things that can help you stay focused and assert a little control.
Also, choose a goal for the next six months that is something you can control. Maybe something related to progress in your career, a project you want to complete, or a course you would like to take.
If you are someone who is feeling strong and on top of things right now and making good progress, maybe reach out to someone you know who is struggling to cope.
May the next six months be filled with amplified fortune and bliss.
Yours truly,
OO.