With a lot of the subscriptions services like Spotify and Peloton sending out a personalized yearly recap this time of year, it made me think about doing one for myself on everything that I have done and accomplished. It is easy this time of year to feel burnt out and not realize everything you have achieved over the previous year. Here's a quick overview of how I break down the year:

Goals:

Review any goals that you set for yourself for this year. Don't worry if you did not do that. Start next year! It is proven that if you write something down you are more likely to achieve it. I personally write down 3-5 goals on a sticky note that I would like to achieve and put in on the bottom of one of my monitors so it is a daily reminder. 1-2 goals tend to be related to professional goals and the others are tend to be something like number of books I would like to read or how consistent I would like to be with working out. If you have never set goals for yourself start with 1 and if you achieve it quickly set a new one for yourself.

Work:

Review the work that you have completed this year and write down some of your biggest accomplishments. I did this by looking over the Jira tickets that I have completed this year. They don't need to be big in terms of complexity. It could have solved a critical problem or just made your life easier (developer experience is critical). You might surprise yourself and come across something you had forgotten about.

Growth:

Review activities that you did to make yourself a better developer, leader, or human. Too often we just focus on work output when evaluating our performance for a year. We also need to take into account new skills we developed, trainings we attended, or courses we took. This could include structured classes, YouTube videos, or community events that you attended virtually or in person. Everything we learn, no matter how small, has taught us something.

Mentorship:

If you were in a position to mentor other engineers, include this when thinking about your previous years accomplishments. It may seem like some small and trivial to yourself but to them I am willing to bet it was very impactful. I say this because I have been both a mentee and mentor. Taking time out of your day to help another person grow in their profession is something that that you should be proud of.

Community:

Review the community events that you participated in over the course of the year. They don't need to be tech-related. Did you participate in a local sports league and help foster and grow the community? Did you volunteer for a nonprofit? Did you help a neighbor out? Did you help friends or family members? Did you speak at an event? Did you volunteer at a school or program for students? You get the idea that there a so many activities that are great for you and the community.

Personal Time:

Think about the times during the year that you were able to get out of your normal day-to-day grind. This does not need to be some extravagant international trip. This could be something as simple as taking some time off and exploring your city or just hanging out around the house and reconnecting with yourself. One of my favorite ways to do this is to go on walks with my dog and observe how carefree he is and how happy he is to just be outside.

Parenting:

I should state that I don't have kids and I am not a parent. However, if you are a parent that is no small task and you should be proud that. Raising a decent human on top of everything else life demands from us is quite the achievement in itself. Definitely add this to your list of accomplishments for the previous year!

Conclusion:

Hopefully after spending some time reviewing your accomplishments you will feel like a total badass and realize how much you achieved the previous year. If there are things you did not get to or want to improve that is ok. You could make those goals for next year! I firmly believe that we are always growing and becoming better versions of ourselves. Cheers to 2023 and great start to 2024!

How do you review your year's performance? Leave a comment and let me know!

Personal year in review