My 2018 Annual Review & 2019 Goals

For as long as I can remember, I have set aside time at the end of December, or early January, to reflect on the previous year. However, it’s usually been somewhat of a haphazard process with no real direction. Over the last couple of years, I have started to do a more intentional annual review. Here are my thoughts on 2018 and what’s in store for 2019.

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Before I begin, I should give credit where it is due. I am following James Clear’s annual review format, which focuses on three areas from the past year: what went well, what did not go well, and what I learned. I was also inspired by Chad Allen’s annual review.

In addition to sharing my 2018 review, I’ll talk about my plans for the coming year.

What went well in 2018?

1. I relaunched the Born to Create podcast. It was originally an audio blog, but I decided to add episodes with an interview format. Why? Because it gives me a platform to learn from other people and add value to others through audio. However, podcasting is not for the faint of heart. It’s time-consuming, and some people find the technical hurdles to be a challenge. If you have ever thought about starting a podcast, I recommend checking out my interview with Steve Stewart, podcast producer.

2. I spoke at a number of events. This included a men’s retreat, a writer’s event, and the Missouri Christian Convention. Every time I speak, I think to myself, “I need to do more of this!” It is always fun and energizing to connect with people in person.

3. I moved into a new role in my day job. Since 2004, I had been the primary Professor of Worship & Music at St. Louis Christian College. I have wanted to transition out of that role for the last few years, and last year the college was able to hire a new professor to update and oversee the program. My new title is Professor of Communication Arts, and my courses focus on speaking, writing, film, storytelling, and new media.

4. I played drums on our church worship team. I went through an extensive audition process and played several weekends. This experience scratched a musical itch I had been feeling for some time. It felt great to have a musical creative outlet.

5. I became more involved in the local business community. I attended several meetups and luncheons, resulting in many great connections. This experience fueled my desire to grow my business and take myself more seriously as a businessperson.

6. I helped more writers than ever before. More people than ever before have reached out to me for help in writing a book. All of them were first-time authors who wanted to know how to get started. I’ll be thinking more about some type of course, group, or other means of helping first-time authors on a more structured basis.

7. I attended the Tribe conference. I had not planned on attending Tribe, but was able to attend because a very generous donor gave me their unused ticket. (You know who you are—thank you!) Attending Tribe was a major highlight of my year. The speakers were fantastic, I made a number of new connections, and felt inspired and challenged to keep writing.

8. I met weekly with my Monday morning mastermind. This group has been going in one form or another for several years. With the exception of holidays and a few other times, we meet online every week to talk about our goals and work through life problems. It is truly one of the most rewarding parts of my week.

What did not go well in 2018?

While I did have some wins in 2018, I had some misses as well. Here are the main ones:

1. I wrestled with self-doubt seemingly more than ever before. I regularly battled self-limiting beliefs. Can I really do this? Can I finish the next book? Do I have what it takes to make my dream a reality? Or am I just another middle-aged dreamer who will never accomplish anything significant? When you have those thoughts, it’s easy to recognize that they are lies. However, they can still impact you emotionally. I have come to understand that the most powerful words we speak are the ones we speak to ourselves.

2. I didn’t pay much attention to my health and weight. I was stuck at the same weight for almost the whole year. When summer hit and the weather turned nice, I started to do more jogging and lost about 10 lbs. However, I quickly gained it back when I stopped exercising.

3. I didn’t finish writing my book. I had every intention of writing and released Born to Create last year. However, it’s such a big project that it felt overwhelming, and I didn’t get it done. (Why does it always seem easier to help other people accomplish their goals than reach your own?)

4. My business made less money than the previous year. I lost a couple of freelance writing clients, and I did not have a good system for pitching and securing new business. It’s as simple as that.

5. I wrestled with a lack of clarity about my business. I have made a little income from a lot of different things. However, you can’t focus on several things—you must focus on one thing to grow a solopreneur business. I had a lot of difficulty pinpointing what my “thing” is.

What did I learn?

I would describe 2018 as a year of mostly “floundering.” But rather than beat myself up over my failures, I’m going to learn from them. Here are the most important takeaways from a very “meh” year:

1. I must get clear about my business. This means I need to nail down my audience and the services and products I’m offering. That’s why I’m reading Clarity Wins by Steve Woodruff. It’s proving to be super helpful so far. The pursuit of clarity is also why I have recently joined a paid mastermind, where I’ll take part in group coaching and be challenged to become the best version of myself.

2. Systems and habits are critical for success. I attribute my biggest failures of 2018—particularly with writing and health—to a lack of systems and habits. I had goals, but no systems to ensure the accomplishment of the goals. I’m working my way through James Clear’s excellent book Atomic Habits to help me establish better habits.

3. Your community, in large part, determines your success. The people you spend the most time with are the ones who will determine your thought patterns, expectations, and mindset. That’s why I’m much more intentional about spending time with the right people. I believe that masterminds are critical for your creative success, which is why I’ve doubled down on my participation in these groups.

4. I now know what I don’t know. I think the root cause of much of my floundering in 2018 was because I had not changed my mindset from that of a hobbyist to that of a business owner. There is a huge difference between someone who blogs and podcasts just for fun, and someone who wants to create a real business around writing, coaching, speaking, consulting, etc. My eyes have been opened, and I now know what I need to learn to begin the journey toward building a successful business.

Goals for 2019

Three major goals for 2019 are: launching Born to Create, getting down to a healthy weight (which involves losing 50 lbs.), and building my business to a true part-time income.

However, I’m not focusing on annual goals as I usually have. Instead, I’m following the system described in The 12 Week Year by Brian Moran. The reason is simple: a year is too long of a time scale to give you clarity about what you should be doing on a daily basis. The 12 Week Year is a goal-setting system that helps you achieve more in a shorter amount of time by helping you focus on just a couple of short-term goals.

So in the first three months of 2018, I have three simple goals:

• Lose 20 lbs.
• Write the  first draft of Born to Create.
• Make $5,000 in side income.

I have developed weekly tactics and habits to support these goals. Although 2019 has just started, I can already feel a difference in my attitude and focus for the year by honing in on just three goals. I’ll stick with the 12 Week Year system for all of 2019 and see if it helps improve my success.

I should also mention that I have been using the Full Focus Planner for about a year and a half. It’s a quarterly planner that helps you set and achieve goals, and I’m looking forward to using it in conjuntion with the 12 Week Year.

I hope this has been helpful in encouraging you to reflect on the previous year and consider what you want to achieve in 2019.

I’d love to hear your thoughts! What are your wins or challenges from 2018? What goals do you have for 2019?