Fourth of July, 2014.  It is a couple of days past the mid-year point in the year, but a wonderful opportunity to take stock.  Yesterday, I sat alone for a few hours to reflect on the first half of 2014 and to consider the second half in light of my thoughts.  I broke my session into components for business, for my writing and speaking (and this blog), for my family, and for my physical and spiritual well-being.

My review consisted of three parts:

• What I accomplished (or, in some cases, what I did not accomplish)
• Comment and reflection
• Specific actions for the second half of 2014

I’ve always taken time occasionally to reflect on the past and think about the future.  Each year-end, I make time for personal planning and reflection and I do so at various times throughout each year.  However, I can’t recall spending a multi-hour personal planning and review session at mid-year, which is so obvious.  Why not?  Possibly because there’s another half of the year to keep on keeping on or to get back on track.

Accomplishments or Not?

Taking time to actually write down what I accomplished during first half 2014 was interesting and satisfying.  What I know is that I am in better shape to tackle the second half of 2014 after this personal mid-year review.  I have a better understanding of how I spent my time and of what I accomplished.  All things considered, it was a pretty good first half.  The act of writing down specific accomplishments was refreshing and encouraging.  Interestingly, some of my most satisfying accomplishments were not really expected at the beginning of the year.

I know I didn’t advance some things to my planned level.  But I also have a better understanding of why I didn’t, if I didn’t.  I know what got in the way.  A couple of things on my list of accomplishments took enormous time, so I can’t be too hard on myself for falling short in a couple of other areas.

Comment and Reflection

This was the most interesting and illuminating part of my review session.  I just made a number of bullet-point comments and observations about my first half results in each category of reflection: business, family, writing and speaking, and physical and spiritual health.  In some cases, I was critical of myself.  In others, I had to pat myself on the back just a bit.  In all cases, I just wanted to be honest with myself as I reflected on the year-to-date.

Specific Actions for Second Half 2014

This portion of my mid-year reflection was the most exciting.  While I have fallen short in a couple of areas, there is time to get back on track.  Interestingly, there were a couple of things that seemed very important at the beginning of the year that, with the perspective of the first half, are no longer on my list.  I simply won’t worry about those items anymore.  That frees me to work on other things.

So all in all, those few hours yesterday were enlightening, refreshing, helpful, and motivating.  Try it yourself this weekend or even this coming week.  You’ll be surprised at how much your mid-year review will help you keep this year in perspective.

If you need further perspective or motivation, read this post by Terry Brock.  I read it on a break in my own mid-year review.  The affirmation was nice.