✨End-of-Year Wrap-Up #1 - Reflections✨

Is it possible that 2023 unfolded exactly as it was supposed to?

Could it be true that you couldn’t have designed this rollercoaster-of-a-year better if you had tried?

These are the questions I'm asking myself as we wrap up one heck-of-a-year.

Here's how mine unfolded:

Eighteen months after moving to Israel (with a thriving business), it became clear that my business was no longer working for me anymore.

What happened? What changed? Could I get that spark back?

In January 2023, I decided to take a business break and figure it out (total privilege move, I know).

Never could I have imagined then that the “pause” would turn into the better part of a full year, one riddled with obstacles and hardships.

Now, it’s December and I’m reflecting and wondering how this year could mean anything other than... failure.

I mean, how can I call myself a small business expert and not do much business for an entire year?!

As I’ve watched December 31 creep up on the calendar, this is what I’ve pondered.

Now, why am I sharing this with you?!?

Because the revelations I’ve had in sitting with this question, in processing this slow and emotionally grueling year - some of it planned and other parts completely unexpected - are profound and may benefit others, like you.

As you reflect on the past year, how do you feel about your business? Are you unsure of how to frame the results, as I was these past few weeks?

Maybe you’re examining the numbers: how much money you brought in, how many consult calls you had, how many clients signed on to work with you, what kind of growth they achieved, and how that reflects on you.

These are all very natural aspects of business to analyze at this time of the year.

But they don't tell the full picture. 💛There are other equally important markers to review as well.

If the numbers don’t tell the story you hoped to write, it doesn’t mean that 2023 was a flat-out failure (I know from experience!).

There’s another whole layer to end-of-year reflection that you’d be missing out on if you stopped there! A process that is so much deeper, one that will reveal your greatest growth, change your perspective of who you are and what you’re capable of, and help you discover what’s possible in 2024.

You ready for it?

🫖Make a cup of your favorite warm beverage and find a quiet, cozy place to plant yourself for a few hours... and reflect.

• What are you celebrating?

• What did you prioritize?

• What are you proud of yourself for?

• When did you permit yourself to do something hard, scary, new?

• How do you feel about the year?

• What do you need to forgive yourself for?

• What did your business make possible this year?

• What are you ready to grieve, mourn and release?

• What challenges arose? What personal growth did you experience as a result, and how does this serve your business moving forward?

• What lessons did you learn?

• Who showed up in your orbit that made things brighter for you?

• How did you show up for your people - clients, community members, etc?

• What client feedback are you cherishing?

• When did you feel in flow in your business?

• What do your business “results” say about you as an expert in your field?

There’s SO MUCH to glean through this process about your strength as a person and the strength and potential of your business, regardless of what the numbers say.

I’ll be sharing some of the lessons and insights that were revealed to me in my next email.

But for now, I’d love to hear from you after you engage in this process… How does it feel to measure your business against ALL of these areas rather than just the money side of things?

Comment below and share away!