Only 8% of people reach their goals each year.
EIGHT PERCENT!
Why is this number so low?
Perhaps the most important is the lack of a goal plan and evaluation system.
Cue the personal mid-year review.
This process allows you to reevaluate your goals, create a fresh new goal plan, and put together an evaluations system that works for you.
By doing so, you will be among the 8% of people who reach their goals!
So, how is a personal mid-year review done? What are the amazing benefits? What do you need? Let’s find out!
This post may contain affiliate links where, at no additional cost to you, I may receive a commission if you use them. I only recommend products I use, trust, and adore. Please read my disclosure policy for more information.
Why You Should Do a Personal Mid-Year Review
I’ve already hinted at why a personal mid-year review is so beneficial, but let me spell it out for you.
This review process will help you evaluate your current goals, recenter your focus, realistically change your goals as needed, and set up a system to conquer each one by the end of the year.
There are several other great benefits as well, including decreased anxiety, increased motivation, increased focus, and decreased wasted time.
Convinced? Good, me too. Let’s take a look at the tools that might help you in this process.
Top Planning Supplies
There is just something about new planner supplies that just pumps me up!
Are you that way too?
Collecting your favorite supplies and snagging a few new items is a great way to get you in the spirit of planning and goal setting.
Here is a list of supplies I SWEAR by:
- The Olden Chapters Goal Printable Planner: This is the ultimate goal printable planner! With over 25 different workbooks, calendars, trackers, goal worksheets, and more, this planner includes everything you might need to reach each and every goal this year. It is perfect to help set you up for success during your personal mid-year review.
- The Olden Chapters Ultimate Student Printable Planner: I was never able to find a paper planner that perfectly fit my needs, so I created my own! This planner includes over 50 great planning layouts, student worksheets, financial planners, project trackers, and so. much. more. Plus, because it is a printable, you can print off any page as many times as you want! Check it out!
- The Olden Chapters Project Planning Freebie: Another great resource (and completely free, I might add!) is my Project Planning Freebie. This includes a project planner dashboard and a complete project planning checklist to help ensure each of your projects are planned to perfection.
Related: Master the Project Planning Process in 10 Easy Steps!
- A5 Filofax Binder: Hands down, my favorite binder to put my planner pages into is the Filofax A5. I prefer the Malden style, but they also offer a great Original binder and a Finsbury binder (plus more options seasonally…).
- Bullet Journal: Alongside a planner, many people turn to a bullet journal to jot down their everyday thoughts and ideas. Many have also created a great planning system with it as well! This system is outlined in Ryder Carroll’s bestselling book.
- Coleto Pen and Refills: Every planner needs a great pen. The Coleto Pen is my current favorite! It is a multi-pen that offers four different colors to use, all at your fingertips.
- Zebra Mildliner Highlighters: Another planning must-have is a highlighter set, of course! These help ease your color coding process and allow you to highlight important events or tasks. Zebra Mildliners are, hands down, my favorite go-to highlighter, as they are much milder than regular highlighters and offer two different-sized tips!
- Colorful Page Flags: Page flags help you index important pages and easily navigate through your planner. Cheap must-have planning essential!
- Washi Tape: Finally, washi tape is my planning supply obsession. It is colorful tape that you can easily write on, allowing you to decorate your planning pages, flag multiple dates on a calendar, and more.
How to Complete a Personal Mid-Year Review
Now that you know both the benefits of and supplies for a personal mid-year review, let’s dive into the steps required to do so.
RIGHT NOW: I recommend you pull out a sheet of paper to take notes on. For all the steps you wish to complete, physically write them down to create your own personal mid-year review checklist. Or, if you’re really serious about setting your goals, snag this amazing goal-setting planner, it will walk you through the process!
0. Set Aside Time to Complete your Personal Mid-Year Review
The process of completing a successful mid-year review requires a bit of time.
However, it is WORTH IT!
In fact, some suggest that for every one minute you spend planning, you save ten minutes in the future. Wild!
So, pull out your calendar and block off a chunk of time (or multiple chunks of time) to complete your own personal mid-year review.
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1. Reflect on the Previous 6 Months
The first step in any personal mid-year review is to reflect. This will help you evaluate where you started, where you are now, and where you want to go in the future.
Mid-Year Review Journal Prompts:
- What did I accomplish? What am I most proud of?
- What are my top 3-5 favorite memories?
- What tasks and projects did I not complete? Which of these do I want to push forward into the next half of the year?
- What are my goals for the year? How close am I to reaching these goals?
- Which goals do I want to continue to pursue? Which goals do I want to ditch?
- How did I reach the goals I accomplished? What can I learn from this?
- Why did I not reach the goals I haven’t accomplished? What can I learn from this?
- What habits helped me reach my goals and ideal life?
- What habits did not help me reach my goals and ideal life? How can I stop these habits?
- What kept me motivated? How can I increase my motivation for the rest of the year?
- Right now, what brings me joy in life?
- Right now, what do I dislike doing? How can I rid of this?
- How can I improve balance in my life? Think of each category: health, spiritual, relationships, personal, travel, financial, career, home, business, etc.
- Overall, what did I learn over the last 6 months that I can use in the future?
- Overall, what do I want my next 6 months of life to look like?
- What are 5 things I am grateful for these past 6 months?
- What are 5 affirmations to help me in the next 6 months?
Pro Tip: Streamline this process every quarter by using these simple quarterly reflection worksheets.
2. Complete a Brain Dump & Task Migration Excercise
Now that your thoughts are flowing, it is time to complete a brain dump exercise.
Pull out a fresh new sheet of paper and a pen, set a timer for 10 minutes (add more time at the end if you need it), and begin writing everything that comes to mind. Go as fast as you can, it doesn’t have to look pretty. Empty your brain onto paper!
Really focus on the next 6 months. What tasks do you need to get done? Projects? Goals? Habits?
Check your calendar. What events or deadlines are coming up that you need to prepare for? Is there anything missing from your calendar you need to add?
What comes to mind when you think of each area in your life? Think: health, spiritual, relationships, personal, travel, financial, career, home, business, etc.
Next, move on to your current, master, or ongoing task and project lists. What needs to be migrated into the second half of the year? What can you delegate or remove?
Once your brain is empty, get out of your chair and check all of your hotspots for scribbled notes, unread mail, etc. Check your planner, desk, fridge, calendar, phone, old to-do lists, etc.
3. Reconnect with your WHY and Long-Term Goal Plan
Next, reconnect with your personal WHY and long-term plan by completing the following sub-steps:
- Revisit and revise your Personal Mission Statement
- Check off completed and schedule any potential items from your Bucket List
- Check off completed and list what current goals you are pursuing from your Long-Term Goals List
4. Revisit and Revise Current Year’s Goal List
Using notes from your reflection, brain dump, and long-term plan check-in (steps 1-3), take a detailed look at each of the goals you’ve set up for this year.
Check off each goal you’ve accomplished. Be sure to schedule a time to celebrate these wins!
Then, take a look at your remaining goals. Are there any that are no longer relevant? Remove them.
Are there any that are too easy? Make them more difficult.
How about any that are unrealistic or too hard? Make them a little easier.
What new goals do you wish to accomplish before the end of the year? Add them to your list.
Finally, narrow down your goals to a list you REALLY wish to pursue and make sure each of your goals is SMART: Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic, Time-Bound.
Note: If you haven’t created your goals for the year, here is a quick-start guide, and here is a goal brainstorming workbook to help you out.
5. Update and Create a Goal Attack Plan
Next, it is time to create a foolproof plan to reach your goals before the end of the year.
In order to do so, I HIGHLY recommend estimating your available time, setting up milestones, and breaking your goals down into bite-sized chunks.
Let’s take a look at how to complete each of these steps:
Estimate Your Available Time
The best way to ensure you have set up realistic goals is by estimating the amount of time your goals will take you and comparing it to the amount of time you have available.
Here are the steps you can take:
- Take a look at your goals. Estimate how long you think each goal will take you to reach (in hours). Add up these hours to get a total estimate of the time you need to reach your goals this year. This number is your estimated goal hours required.
- Print out a blank set of monthly calendars for the rest of the year. Cross off any half or full days you know you will not be able to work on your goals. Think about: holidays, anniversaries, activities, events, meetings, vacations, birthdays, weekends off, etc.
- Sketch out your current weekly schedule. Think about: sleep schedule, morning routine, commute, meals, work, afternoon routine, and evening routines.
- Using your weekly schedule, evaluate how many hours per week you have free to work on your goals. This is your weekly hours available. Be sure to take into account any goals that have already been accounted for. Example: If you have a goal of reading 1 book per week, you can probably listen to books during your commute time.
- Return to your monthly calendar and begin adding your weekly hours available number to each week on the calendar. When you run into a crossed-off day, be sure to decrease your weekly hours available for that week.
- Add up each of your weekly hours available for the rest of the year. You now have calculated your total hours available.
- Compare your total hours available to your estimated goal hours required. Modify your goals until these numbers nearly match.
Set Up Goal Milestones
Now that your goals are realistic, it is time to set up goal milestones.
Individually take a look at each goal and list each major milestone you will reach before making it to the finish line. Bonus points for adding deadlines!
Goal Milestone Examples:
Example Goal 1: Finish saving $70,000 for a down payment by the end of this year to set me up to purchase a home next year.
- Milestone 1: Have $62,000 in my down payment savings account by September 1st.
- Milestone 2: Have $66,000 in my down payment savings account by November 1st.
- Milestone 3: Have $70,000 in my down payment savings account by December 31st.
Example Goal 2: Become a state-licensed professional in my field by the end of this year.
- Milestone 1: Study for 75 more hours for the state exam before October 10th.
- Milestone 2: Take and pass the state licensing exam on October 10th.
- Milestone 3: Submit licensing application before November 1st.
- Milestone 4: Become a state-licensed professional in my field by December 31st.
Example Goal 3: Compete in my first half-marathon on November 25th.
- Milestone 1: Run 5 miles at race pace by September 1st.
- Milestone 2: Run 8 miles at race pace by October 1st.
- Milestone 3: Run 13.1 miles at race pace on race day, November 25th.
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Break Down Your Goals into Bite-Sized Pieces
This is probably the most important step, so don’t skip it!
Return to each goal one more time. Using your milestones as a guide, create a plan of attack for each goal.
In order to do this, you can turn each goal into one (or more) of the following:
- Habits: These are repeatable tasks that can help you reach your goals. They can be either daily, weekly, or monthly tasks, such as drinking 8 glasses of water a day or exercising 3 times per week. Be sure to add all of your habits to a Routine List.
- Tasks: These are tasks that do not require several steps to complete. This might could include tasks such as registering for a half-marathon race or applying for a promotion. These tasks can be added to your Master Task List.
- Projects: These are large projects or outcomes that require several steps to complete, such as purchasing a home or completing a class. Each of your project sub-tasks can be added to your Master Task List. For more information on project planning, check out this simple guide.
- Future List: In addition, you might want to consider keeping a Future List. This is a place where you can store any goal, task, project, habit, or idea to be considered next year (or sometime later).
Pro Tip: Easily break down your goals by using this clever goal break-down worksheet.
Project Planning Free Printable
It is likely that most of your goals can be turned into a project, with additional tasks and habits required if necessary.
The easiest way to break down your goal project is by following the project planning process, which can be done by snagging this free project planning checklist and project planner page.
Simply print a copy for each goal and get started!
Related: Master the Project Planning Process in 10 Easy Steps
6. Setup a System for Success
Let’s take your Goal Attack Plan one step further by setting up systems for success.
There are several ways to do this.
Some of my favorites include setting up a weekly schedule template, master task list, routines list, motivation system, and obstacle plan.
Let’s take a more detailed look at each method. Be sure to pick your favorites and use them within your goal-setting system (or, if you’re like me, use them all).
Create a Realistic Weekly Schedule Template
If you completed the time-estimator exercise (within step 5), then this step will be easy-peasy.
Simply take your estimated weekly schedule and fill your free hours with chunks of time dedicated to working on your goals.
Personally, I love using my online calendar for this. I just simply create a new calendar titled “Weekly Schedule Template” and fill my schedule until it is full, making sure to add in blocks of time for my goals. This way, I can simply turn on this calendar during each weekly planning session.
Organize Your Master Task List
A master task list is simply a list of every single task you need to complete.
This includes both tasks related and unrelated to your goals (including project sub-tasks).
One of the easiest ways to organize your Master Task List is by using a spreadsheet.
This way, you can keep a lot of information in one place for easy reference using columns.
Here are some column category ideas you might want to consider:
- Task Name
- Category (health, career, finance, etc.)
- Goal Association
- Project Association
- Due Date
- Week to Work on Task (Week 1, Week 2, Week 3, or Jan 1-7, Jan 8-14, etc.)
- Priority
- Estimated Time Required
- Notes
Pro Tip: My favorite way to use the Master Task List is by utilizing the Week to Work on Task column. This way, each of my bite-sized goal pieces are broken down by week, allowing me to create a simple weekly task list throughout the year.
Setup Productive Routines
Remember when you turned your goals into habits, tasks, and projects?
Well, go back and make a list of each of the habits.
Then, using these habits, take some time and create a routine list for each of the categories:
- Morning Routine
- Afternoon Routine
- Evening Routine
- Weekly Routine
- Monthly Routine
Track Your Goal Progress
One of the best ways to measure your success is by utilizing goal trackers.
This might involve using habit trackers (like these fantastic printable trackers), goal thermometers, or simple to-do lists.
The key is to make sure you use them! Add them to your daily planning list to ensure you never forget.
Create a Motivation System
There are several ways to maintain motivation throughout the year. Here are some of my favorites:
- Set weekly, monthly, milestone, and annual rewards (tip: create an ongoing reward list)
- Create a motivating vision board (learn how to create one that actually works here)
- Take progress photos
- Journal about your progress on a regular basis
- Find an accountability partner
Related: Game-Changing Motivation Tips and Strategies That Work Like Magic
Create a Plan to Overcome Obstacles
You can create a plan to ensure you overcome any obstacle that might hinder your goal progress.
To do this, take a few minutes and jot down a list of every obstacle you think you might encounter.
Then, next to each obstacle, create possible methods to overcome the obstacle.
Here are some examples of obstacles and overcoming methods:
- Social media distraction decreasing productivity: Delete social media apps from your phone
- Rainy weather making outdoor running difficult: Indoor at-home workouts on rainy days
- Holiday activities and gift-giving making it difficult to meet savings goals: Research creative, cheap, and free ways to enjoy the holidays on a budget
- Becoming unmotivated: Challenge yourself to look at your vision board every morning (or create a new one if it isn’t working)
7. Schedule Your Next Goal Reviews
The final step in the personal mid-year review process is to schedule your next goal review sessions!
Simply add your reoccurring goal review routines to your calendar (and Master Task List) and don’t forget to review your goals when the time comes!
Here are some common goal review processes that you might want to consider:
- Weekly Goal Review and Planning Process
- Monthly Goal Review
- Quarterly Goal Review
- Mid-Year Goal Review (the blog post you’re currently reading)
- End-of-the-Year Goal Review
Here is a handy printable goal review checklist to help get started!
Tips for a Successful Personal Mid-Year Review
Here are some useful tips and tricks to help you during your mid-year review:
- Don’t rush through the process, take your time
- Get in a good headspace before you begin
- Set the mood (turn off distractions, turn on a focus playlist, etc.)
- Use a planner to keep your thoughts and plans organized (this is the one I use)
- Save this blog post for easy reference
- Make the process fun by using colorful pens, washi tape, and other fun items listed at the top of this post
Goal Setting Series
This series of goal-setting blog posts was designed to help you set up a game-changing goal-setting system, one step at a time.
- How to Create a Personal Mission Statement and Why It’s So Important
- Discover How to Create a Motivational Bucket List (+50 Ideas to Get You Started)
- The Ultimate Guide to Long-Term Goal Planning
- How to Create Short Term Goals in 12 Easy Steps: An Ultimate Guide
- Create the Perfect Vision Board in These Simple Steps
- How to Complete a Monthly Goal Review
- Steps for a Successful Quarterly and Yearly Goal Review
- 12 Secretes to Ensure You Reach Your Goals This Year
- The Ultimate Guide to Goal Setting and Achieving
Planning Routine Series
Maintaining productivity throughout the year can be difficult, but it doesn’t have to be! By implementing simple planning systems, you will get more done than you ever imagined.
- An Ultimate Guide to Daily Planning: How to Get as Much Done Each Day As You Can!
- The Perfect Weekly Planning Routine to Skyrocket Your Productivity
- This Monthly Planning Checklist will Help You Reach Each Goal This Year
- Everything You Need to Know about Quarterly and Yearly Planning
- Complete Guide to Planning – Everything You Need to Know
Top Goal Setting Books
One of the best ways to ensure your goal-setting process is successful is by investing time into your personal development.
The best way to do this is by reading goal-setting books.
Here are some of my favorites to get you started…
The Compound Effect: Jumpstart your Income, Your Life, Your Success by Darren Hardy
If you haven’t read this book you are seriously missing out. It is a complete game-changer and should be sitting on everyone’s shelf. This Wall Street Journal and New York Times Bestseller covers the powerful yet surprisingly simple principle that little everyday decisions will either help you achieve greatness or end up in disaster naturally and how to steer them in the right direction. It covers how to win at everything, abolish bad habits, maintain motivation, and more. It is an absolute must-read!
Your Best Year Ever: A 5-Step Plan for Achieving Your Most Important Goals by Michael Hyatt
As the title suggests, this is book covers a phenomenal 5-step plan that guarantees you set and reach the most important goals in your life. It covers tips that help you when you get stuck, how to quit-proof your goals, and so much more. As an added bonus, it is a quick and easy read!
Measure What Matters: How Google, Bono, and the Gates Foundation Rock the World with OKRs by John Doerr
This New York Times Bestseller explores the secrets of the famous and wildly successful goal-setting system of Objectives and Key Results (OKRs) that has been proven time and time again to be effective. This system ensures you maintain focus and stay on track until your goals are being met!
Goals! How to Get Everything You Want – Faster Than You Thought Possible by Brian Tracy
This is a fantastic book that helps distinguish the people who reach their goals from those that just dream of having a better life. It then dives into a simple yet powerful goal-setting method that is incredibly effective. Tracy also focuses on specific goals in different areas in life, such as finances, health, and family. A fantastic read!
Related: 21 Life-Changing Books You Must Read in Your 20’s!
That’s a wrap! Wow, I just threw a TON of information at you. Don’t stress, this process is supposed to help you. So, take your time and go through it slowly. Remember, for every one minute of planning you complete, you will save around ten in the future! So, I promise, it will be worth your time and energy. Happy planning!
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