Reflection + Planning
I love living in a place with seasons.
I can't imagine living somewhere that's always tropical and sunny no matter what the season. When the days get short and cold I appreciate the natural rhythm of a little bit of slowing down and hibernation. This year especially, I've become a little bit of a winter hermit. Bundled under my blankets reading my book or working.
I also appreciate that this time of year gives me space to contemplate the past year and look forward to the next year. I have a variety of different New Year exercises that I like to do as part of this process. Some of them involve reflecting on the previous year and the successes and failures of that year. Other pieces are forward-looking, with intentions and goal setting.
I hope that you take a chance to do some of that in your own life, both personally and as a business owner or a nonprofit manager.
Both sides of those exercises give us information and perspective that provides clarity. Clarity allows us to make good choices moving forward and be in the spot we want to be in next year.
Part of what I love in working with clients with Missoula Bookkeeper is the opportunity to give clients solid information about the financial performance of their organization or business that they can use in the future. And it also tells the story about where you've been and your history. I think that's such valuable information to have and I hope that you feel that way too.
For the first quarter of 2025 we're trying something a little bit different with our social media. We are going to focus on some of the core values of our business and how they relate to what we offer clients, as well as how you can look at your own business through the lens of that value. The value we chose for Q1 is clarity. We're going to talk about finding it, using it to look to the future and how it benefits you and your business. We also hope to bring in a couple of experts that can provide their perspective on how to find clarity and what your next steps are once you have it.
If you haven't had a chance to do some reflection on last year and planning for 2025 I would encourage you to spend a few hours doing that this month. Here's a few different exercises that I have done, either this year or in the past, if you're looking for a little direction.
Do a SWOT Analysis (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats). We did this as a team in our staff retreat last summer. There are lots of great online templates for this.
New Year’s Intentions BINGO card: Fill a bingo card with one goal or intention per square and reward yourself when you get a bingo. (You can download a really cute one here.)
Vision board: I used Canva and Pinterest to do a digital one this year. You can also track down some magazines, poster board and art supplies to do one the old fashioned way. You can see mine here.
Word of the Year: Choose one word to be your guiding principle or inspiration for the year and lay out some goals or intentions with that word in mind. Put the word above your desk to keep you on track. Tammi just did a great one and I think you can still get in on the replay here.
It is also a great time to get your finances under control or check in to see if you should make some adjustments in the coming year. If you are already a client and would like to meet to go over your books, schedule a meeting here. Not a client? You can book a consult to find out about monthly bookkeeping services or just ask your burning questions.
Excited to see what 2025 brings for your business and how Missoula Bookkeeper can be a part of your journey!
