What does it mean that the annual review?

An annual review assesses the year as a whole and sets direction for the next.

Example: You spend a full day in December reviewing your year. You discover that the three accomplishments you are most proud of were not on any plan you made in January — they emerged from opportunities you almost said no to. Meanwhile, the two goals you set with the most confidence both stalled by March, yet you kept them on your list for nine more months out of guilt. The annual review makes this visible for the first time. You enter the new year not with resolutions but with a strategic thesis built on evidence about who you actually are and what actually works for you — not who you imagined you would be twelve months ago.

Try this: Block a full day within the next two weeks — not a half-day, a full day. Go somewhere you do not normally work. Bring your calendar, journal, monthly and quarterly reviews from the past year, and nothing else except what you need to write. Run the complete annual review protocol described in this lesson, including all six parts. Produce a written Year-in-Review document and a one-page strategic thesis for the coming year. This is the most significant single review you will do all year. Treat it accordingly.