Yayyyyyy, performance reviews! I can’t wait to talk about my performance with my manager during my annual review! Says no one. Unless you’re taking steps to get a raise and/or a promotion. In that case: Make. That. Money. Climb. That. Ladder.
But for many of us, performance reviews suck. From spending hours writing your self-assessment (because you didn’t keep track of your accomplishments) to navigating how to receive and act upon constructive feedback, performance reviews are one of the things standing in the way between us and the holiday break.
Despite this, I wrote not one, but TWO self-assessments. One assessment for my job, and the other for Not Much Talk! Based on the main categories of content that I write about on this blog, (wellness, travel, personal development, finance and investing, and career) I’ll share my wins, what I need to improve, and actionable steps I’ll take to improve.
Personal Development
Wins
- Wrote in my journal on a regular basis
- Practiced yoga every week
- Finally, took a robotics class
Needs Improvement
Over the years, I’ve taken classes to learn how to sew, cook, bake, and understand/speak/read Spanish and Japanese. But I have not developed expertise in any of these. Cooking comes close, but there’s still a lot to learn.
Next Steps
Pick two of these skills to develop further and create a plan to develop expertise in these two areas (eg. taking a class)
Travel
Wins
Traveled to 14 cities in 6 countries
Needs Improvement
Change the way that I travel so it’s less chaotic. I tend to bounce from one country to another every few days. This, by itself, is not a problem. It’s that I tend to fly between countries, which adds a lot of stress and extra work.
For some of my trips, I experimented with finding things to do once I was in the city, instead of researching months ahead. This resulted in a lot of wasted time and me leaving some cities feeling unfulfilled.
Next Steps
For my next international trip, I’ll select countries close enough that I can take the train between them.
I’ll resume planning nearly every minute of my trips. I’ll even schedule some time to “be spontaneous” and explore the city. Embrace my inner control freak!
Prioritize shorter tips to cities that are closer in order to save time, money, and energy. This is a great opportunity to visit more US cities.
Food
Wins
- I’m making my own kombucha
- I’ve experimented in the kitchen weekly, which has led to new recipes for my personal recipe book
Needs Improvement
Didn’t take as many cooking or baking classes as I wanted. I’d love to take a class at least once per quarter. I even thought about enrolling in a pastry program, but the programs near me cost about $25,000 USD (whomp whomp).
Next Steps
Choose from these options (unless I come up with better ideas later):
- Hire a baker to teach me, similar to having a private tutor
- Create my own curriculum and schedule to self-educate with books and online videos
Finance & Investing
Wins
- Finalized my investment strategy (more on this in another post)
- Set up and consistently used spreadsheets to keep track of my expenses and investments
- Invested in stocks (outside of my retirement accounts), retirement accounts (I’m still skeptical of these), and more
- Created an additional income stream (yessssssss!)
Needs Improvement
There’s so much to learn when it comes to investing (eg. retirement accounts, real estate, certified deposits) and I need to dedicate more time to educating myself
Next Steps
- Create a schedule for implementing my investment strategy which will include a timeframe for learning more about and experimenting with each type of investment
- Plan for how to set up my next income stream :birdman hand rub:
Career
Wins
- Enrolled in a health coaching program, which I will complete in a few months
- I’ve been blogging about twice a month (since September) to share my travel, wellness, and career learnings
Needs Improvement
The amount of energy that I put into my health coaching training and writing for this blog, is the same energy that I need to put into telling people about what I’m doing, learning, etc. No one will know about my work or how I can help them, if I don’t talk about it. Here are some ideas:
- Update all social media accounts with my health coach training and a link to my blog
- When I introduce myself, I’ll talk about the blog and health coaching
- Proactively reach out to people and companies I’m interested in working with, to pitch potential collaborations
Next Steps
Block time and dates on my calendar so I know when to focus on my health coaching training, blogging, obtaining clients, etc. Being on a schedule is going to help me make consistent progress without feeling overwhelmed
Gratitude
I hope that by reading my [abbreviated] self-assessment, it will inspire you to do your own, or at least, take a few moments to reflect on this year. This is not an opportunity to beat yourself up about what you said you were going to do, but didn’t do. This is another opportunity to celebrate yourself! And I say another opportunity because I hope you are celebrating yourself and your accomplishments on a regular basis. This is also a great time to express gratitude for yourself and the people who helped and supported you.
So, cheers to us, to our 2018 accomplishments, and what we will accomplish in 2019!
What are your 2018 wins? What will be your 2019 wins?
