Last year I offered up a year in review post, and i’m doing it again this year. Only this time I can actually tell you what I did and didn’t accomplish in the year gone by that I’d set out to do – and I can also add to the list what I did accomplish beyond what I’d “previewed”.
So here goes…
- I will write at least one book, but more likely two…or even three. I did indeed accomplish this goal, and delivered two books in 2012 – (PRE)PRODUCTIVITYIST: the book and the recently-released The Front Nine: How to Start the Year You Want Anytime You Want. The latter was published by Diversion Books, which means I published my self and got published in the same year.
- I will build an office in my yard with a lot of help from my friends. Didn’t happen. I’m working away in the master bedroom still, and I think that when I do have an office it will wind up being in the confines of my home as opposed to a garden suite.
- I will turn 38. The office will be my birthday present to myself. I did turn 38. The other thing – as mentioned above – did not occur.
- I will attend more conferences in a year than ever before. I made this happen in 2012, attending WordCamp Victoria, Northern Voice, IdeaWave, BlogWorld NYC, MacWorld|iWorld, the transmission GLOBAL SUMMIT, and the World Domination Summit.
- I will think about quitting Facebook thirty-eight times, but will not actually pull the trigger. I did not think about this very much at all, mainly because I didn’t feel it was worth thinking about. (I did quit Foursquare and Instagram, though.)
- I will do less stuff more better. Including writing. I think I done did that.
- I’ll get better and spending time with my kids, which is an area that can always be improved upon. I’d like to say I did this, but I don’t think I did. With the writing of the book and in only my second year of full time self-employment, I missed the mark on this. And while I don’t want to kick myself over it, I am even as I write this.
- I will write a song. Nope.
- I will do more talks in a year than ever before. I hit this mark, mainly through facilitating my own Ready Retreat workshops. Otherwise I would have equalled 2011’s total.
- I will work on a script for the first time in a long time. And I will complete a script for the first time ever. The book took precedence, and it won out. No script this year.
- I will take my wife on a trip. Another thing I’m kicking myself over. But our time will come.
- I will buy more clothing that does not have the prefix “T” in it. I did buy less t-shirts, and my wardrobe did receive a bit of an upgrade as well. Now I just need to get in better shape!
- I will read a lot more books. I definitely did. And I have the Goodreads stats to prove it.
- I will actually read my Instapaper queue regularly. Not so much. That said, I have less in it now than ever before, so there’s that.
- I will buy better stuff because I’ll buy less stuff. This includes care products, subscriptions, alcohol, food and clothing. I took care of business here as well. I bought some nice bourbons and whiskeys this calendar year, and made sure I followed through on this in other areas as well. (Regarding the bourbon and whiskey, you need only listen to a few Mikes on Mics episodes to hear “proof” of that.)
- I will buy gifts for others well in advance of the time they are needed. I started off well on this front, but fell flat at the end of the year.
- I will write at Vardy.me more regularly than ever before and will keep up with my other projects. I kicked this up a notch early in the year and then again when the blog morphed into what you’re reading now – Productivityist.com. I’d say I did my best in this area.
- I’ll continue to help Lifehack.org grow. I definitely did this up until I left Lifehack at the end of October.
- I’ll floss daily. I flopped here. I think I need to floss in the shower or something to keep this one going next year.
- I will cut waaay back on the pop. To almost nothing. I did this…sort of. I received a Sodastream for my birthday and the sugar and caffeine content in the syrups they offer a about one-fifth of those found in what I was drinking. I’ve toned down because of that, but not anywhere near nothing.
- I will eat better – adopting a slow-carb or Paleo diet is part of that process. I’ve been hit-and-miss here. I can’t really evaluate this on the whole because I haven’t been exercising very much, so I’d say that my eating has been largely better than my physical activity. Much room for improvement on both fronts.
- I’ll connect with my out-of-province niece and nephews more regularly. I got better with this in 2012, but I can do much better in 2013 and beyond.
- I’ll keep making friends online, and may even make a few “not-friends” along the way. I definitely made mroe friends online in 2012, and kept the “non-friends” to a minimum (to be honest, I don’t even recall what I meant by that phrase).
- I’ll have a banner year. Done.
What else did I do in 2012?
- I connected with myself a whole lot more.
- I got better at saying “no” to things I either didn’t have time for or to things that really didn’t resonate with me and what I want to be doing.
- I killed Eventualism.
- I became more aware of my “whys” than ever before.
- I partnered up with Craig Jarrow to assemble the Kickstart the Year bundle.
- I made things happen – and far more right than wrong.
Speaking of reviewing the year gone by, Michael Schechter and I talk about what each of us does as one year comes to a close and another one is set to begin. You can check out that episode here.
Next up will be my preview for 2013…a year that’s not only around the corner, but a year where I believe I will turn another corner.
How did 2012 treat you? Share your moments and thoughts in the comments below. I’d love to hear from you.
