I don’t make New Yr’s Resolutions as a result of they don’t supply a chance for reflection. And, if I’m being trustworthy, I don’t persist with them. For over thirty years, I’ve built-in “reflection rituals” in my skilled work on a day by day, weekly, quarterly, and yearly foundation. For instance, I’ve a day by day reflection ritual of strolling a couple of miles a day to suppose away from screens.
Rituals can increase our private productiveness as a result of they permit us to focus and attain our objectives with out distraction. Rituals may also be utilized by groups within the office to enhance effectiveness. (There’s a entire ebook dedicated to the subject, “Rituals at Work.”)
My New Yr’s Reflection Rituals
- Evaluation the Yr: I exploit a instrument known as the “Yr Compass, a free downloadable booklet that gives a set of structured reflection questions that enable you to look again and forward. Since I do that yearly, I additionally have a look at what I wrote the earlier yr.
- Begin A New Skilled Journal(s): For so long as I can keep in mind, I’ve stored an annual skilled journal(s), utilizing a variation of bullet journal approach. I name it my “To Do, To Executed, Don’t Do, Reflection Record.“ I exploit it for annual planning and objective setting.I additionally use it as a mirrored image because the yr progresses. I’ve weekly and month-to-month look forward rituals, however not simply duties. I mirror on my themes for the yr and habits to enhance.
- Replace & Evaluation My Work-Life Concord Plan: In my workshops on private and organizational wellbeing, I assist nonprofits enhance their private resilience. This yr I’ll proceed my dedication to artistic actions together with “Journal as Altar,” and calligraphy with fountain pens. I may even proceed my concentrate on my bodily well being, notably my day by day strolling ritual with a step objective of 15K.
- Establish “My Three Themes”: I do a mix of Peter Bregman’s theme for the yr, and Chris Brogan’s “My Three Phrases.” Chris Brogan’s approach is to pick out three phrases, however I modify it by articulating key themes. I exploit the themes to information my skilled work and writing. I’ve used Chris Brogan’s approach for over a decade and located it very useful in maintaining me centered.
- Write A FutureMe E mail: I exploit a website known as “FutureMe” to write down an electronic mail to myself post-dated a yr from now, a apply I’ve been doing for a couple of years now. I simply obtained my 2023 electronic mail.
2023 Yr in Evaluation
Right here’s what I realized from trying over my 2023 skilled accomplishments:
Generative AI for Nonprofits: Allison High-quality and I revealed and launched our second ebook collectively, The Sensible Nonprofit: Staying Human-Centered in Age of Automation in 2022. In 2023, I continued to current keynotes, ship sensible workshops utilizing generative AI for nonprofit productiveness, and write articles. Our article, “8 Steps Nonprofits Can Take to Undertake AI Responsibly,” revealed within the Stanford Innovation Evaluation was listed because the ten high hottest articles of 2023.
Coaching & Facilitation: I’ve maintained an energetic schedule of main workshops, facilitating retreats, and presenting. Whereas the vast majority of work was carried out just about, I did enterprise again into in-person occasions. I facilitated a number of peer studying teams, together with Educating Tuesdays for trainers with John Kenyon for the Mother and father Heart workers, and quite a few workshops for the Resilience Initiative on main with empathy, utilizing generative AI for private and group productiveness, and moral and accountable AI use.
Office Wellbeing: I revealed “The Comfortable Wholesome Nonprofit: Methods for Impression with out Burnout,” with co-author Aliza Sherman a couple of years in the past. The ebook was nicely obtained and was #1 on Amazon’s Nonprofit Books many occasions. By means of my work with the Resilience Initiative as a coach, workshop chief and facilitator, I’ve continued to ship capability constructing to nonprofits on these subjects, with a spotlight of how generative synthetic intelligence will help enhance productiveness and work expertise.
Distant and Hybrid Facilitation Workshops: I’ve continued to achieve workshops on digital and hybrid facilitation approaches, together with asynchronous and versatile facilitation. I even have been coaching facilitators on tips on how to incorporate the usage of generative AI instruments for assembly design and facilitation to help their work.
Board Service: I proceed to serve on the advisory boards of Management Studying Neighborhood and Wake.
Giving Circle: I helped co-found and am co-leading the San Jose Enterprise Girls for Good Giving Circle. I realized so much about Giving Circles from Philanthropy Collectively and am presently serving on the advisory committee for the WeGive Summit and my present work with the Invoice & Melinda Gates Basis Higher Giving Summit group.
Writing: I’ve been writing Beth’s weblog since 2004. That’s twenty years! The previous few years I’ve not revealed as a lot as I’ve within the early years however I proceed to curate content material and share concepts through my LinkedIn profile and infrequently LinkedIn Lives. I hope on the event of the twentieth Anniversary of my weblog, I can return to common publishing right here.
My Three Themes:
This yr I’ve chosen the next three phrases or themes to information me into 2024:
Generative AI: I’ve been researching, writing, and main workshops on nonprofits and AI since 2017, however that is the yr for Generative AI and incorporating it into nonprofit work successfully and ethically. Constructing on the nonprofit capability constructing work on AI I accomplished in 2023, I’ll proceed to show nonprofit workers and leaders the sensible expertise on getting began with generative AI for private and group productiveness – conferences, collaboration, and getting stuff carried out. In 2024, I’m additionally delivering workshops on the accountable and moral use of generative AI for fundraising and advertising and marketing in addition to how facilitators can combine into their apply.
Iterative: One of many issues that I’ve realized this previous yr of utilizing generative AI instruments is the necessity to experiment and inch your method into incorporating into your workflow. I hope to share a few of these experiments in future weblog posts – a lot in the identical spirit as once I began my weblog to share social media practices within the early days.
House: I’m attempting to maintain my life and work easy and never overthink or over complicate. I’m attempting to create more room by not overscheduling and attempting to do an excessive amount of.
The very best a part of these rituals is that trying again reveals you what you have got completed and helps you start a brand new yr with renewed dedication to non-public {and professional} progress.
What are you making a brand new or renewed dedication to do?
