Guidance On Writing Your Annual Review

“Life can only be understood backwards; but it must be lived forwards.” ― Søren Kierkegaard

The review structures in Trigg form a key element of our process and beliefs. Setting carefully considered intentions before living mindfully is central to the ethos that powers Trigg. Using poignant reflection and review junctures in a significant manner can bring about much needed balance, calm and mindful personal growth. 

Here is a quick overview of how we undertake our own annual review and who might benefit from the process. 

Who: Anyone can undergo a review of their actions and intentions. Our lives are evolving to be more complex and draining than ever before. Giving yourself the space to pause, examine and assess what elements are working and what is damaging has become a valuable and precious process. Your ability to love other people is based on your ability to love yourself. Consider this process as going on a crazy date with all the different facets of your life.

What: Your Annual Review is a place of reflection. Using hindsight and distance from activity we can extract more objective observations from the successes and setbacks we encounter in everyday life. It is the process of using journalling to recognise more profound insights about ourselves. By changing the pattern of thoughts we aim to access a different depth of information that relates to how we wish to conduct our lives. 

Where: All you need is a notebook or paper to explore your memories. We find that using pen and paper helps dislodge different thoughts than when using electronic devices. However anywhere will work. You just need to find a home for your reflections. 

When: Whenever suits you. Try and find a few small bursts of time when you’ll have the best headspace. We find setting aside an hour a day for a few days between Christmas and the start of the new year works well. Repeat sessions helps your subconscious to dig around even when you are engaged with every day tasks. You’ll be surprised what pops out when you reopen you review document.

Why: There are an invaluable amounts of reasons to focus on this process. Failures are a great teacher, so even digging back into your most painful mistakes will have value.

Here are just a few areas where reviewing and reflecting will enhance your sense of wellbeing:

• Increased gratitude
• More focus
• Increased accountability around your intentions 
• Recognising bad habits or negative behaviour patterns
• Richer insights into what made you happy, angry, calm or anxious
• Greater self awareness
• Better perspective on actions after a period of growth
• Healing when considering a painful event or episode

How: There are no rules. Make this process your own ritual. This is what works for us: grab a piece of scrap paper or start a new note in your phone, and spend the time between now and next week to explore what happened over the last phase and how you want to learn from that experience.

We suggest four very broad categories for you to explore in order to cover the wide spectrum of modern day life.

Spend a few days reflecting on what were your successes. Then dig deep and be honest and consider what were also your setbacks over the last period.

Don’t be afraid to cast back even further into history to find some juicy teachings. Then slowly start to figure out what are your most sacred intentions that lie ahead.

SELF might seem daunting. It is hard to deconstruct yourself over a cup of tea in 10 mins. Yet within self alone you could be focussing on how you express yourself and conduct your outward character, your health, your beliefs, your sense of spirituality and connection to others. It could be more profane: these reflections could be about how you use money and what impact that has on you and those around you.

This is also an area where you can tinker with the flow of your values and principles, the focus of your beliefs, or perhaps how you manage your thoughts, ego or anxieties. 

You can write anything you want in these pages. This blog is simply a call to action.

We have found in the past that it is easy to act hastily, write lots down quickly and blot your jotter. Create the space for your thoughts. Think about what has made you most happy, most sad, most angry ….

• Who or what nourished you the most?
• What have been the most profound or uncomfortable lessons?
• What habits have held you back?
• What habits would be desirable to have a better existence?
• What risks did you take and what did they bring?
• When were you most free or present in the moment?
• What would you do differently?

Then don’t be scared to play boisterously with these thoughts. Magnify some, delete others. Imagine you are sketching out the framework of a chapter or even the whole story arc of a vivid story. 

What new elements do you need in your life? Why do we even need these fresh things? Why did you find yourself particularly happy recently? How can you maintain or even amplify this happiness? 

Playful Reflection Techniques  

There are many ways to gather ones thoughts and memories. Below are a few structures and techniques to help you dig up the gold of the past.

Writing

Journal: Set a timer and write and write to access deeper thoughts.

Letters: Pen a letter to your former self asking for memories.

Gratitude: Write out all the elements in your life for which you feel gratitude.

Paper circle: use small bits of paper to surround yourself with notes. From the profane to the sacred. Arrange them in an arc in whatever way makes sense to you.

Memories:

Diary: Flick back through your calendar to dislodge facts

Phone: Scroll back through your photos, feeds or texts to remember events and emotions. 

Apps: Programs like Coach and To Do are helpful for tracking back also. 

Lists: Dig back through all your task lists, your to dos, your fridge notes and post it notes. 

Speaking & Sharing

Coaching: Develop a relationship with mentor or counsellor 

Dictaphone: Ask yourself questions. Talk to yourself out loud

Confessions: Let go with a friend

Inspiration

Gratitude Box: Create a place where you can drop yourself mindful notes as the year progresses 

Meditation: Return to your actions and thoughts in whatever way works for you.

Walk: Take a turn in nature and let the memories bubble up on their own accord.

Singing: Find or write songs to air your most emotional experiences. 

Dance: Use movement to trigger and relive the past. 

New Intentions

The very obvious mirror to this review journey is your reaction to them. For every action there is a reaction, and this is never more true than when considering your response to all these realisations. 

Start to evolve a set of intentions for your next phase that is powered by the wisdom you have just laid down. Get into the rhythm of using your annual review as a mirror to your hopes and plans for what comes next.

The Trigg Life Mapper has a space at the start for new dreams and a goals. 

Rebirth & Rituals

Once you’ve completed the review then consider undertaking a rebirthing ceremony to release yourself from this phase and begin again. It is time to purge and get empty.

To read our experience of making ceremonies in order to accept, surrender and further rebalance  then click here.

Trigg has various guiding structures that will help you reach each of the goals that you write in this front section. 

To find out more about Trigg click HERE