Happy new year, friends!
Did 2024 fly by for you like it did for me?
I'm making 2025 more intentional, more authentic, and more adventurous.
This year is different. I have a plan.
Over the years, I've been a big fan of Shane Parrish and the Farnam Street blog, so I was excited when Shane shared his powerful Annual Review Framework for 2025. It's a straightforward set of exercises to gain clarity and create a plan for the year ahead. If you're into creating a successful 2025 for yourself, keep reading.
In his framework, Shane shares a key insight that jumped out at me:
"Success is simply knowing what you want and getting it."
It sounds obvious, but so many of us drift through life without defining "success" for ourselves. Step one is articulating what matters most to you. For me, it's quality time with my wife, impactful work, health, and personal growth.
From there, the framework has you honestly audit what's working and what's not, set 3 key focus areas (and eliminate distractions), and identify small steps to build momentum. I love the emphasis on leveraging your unique strengths and designing systems to minimize weaknesses.
The "easy mode" concept is one of my favorite parts. When I first started working as a software developer, I would regularly stay late at the office, skipping workouts and resorting to takeout and free snacks. My code was buggy, I was irritable in meetings, and I dreaded coming to work.
But when I started protecting my sleep, meal prepping healthy lunches, and blocking off deep work time, my productivity and code quality soared. Even better, I started feeling energized and excited about my projects again.
Look for opportunities to put your day on easy mode and you'll be astonished at the impact.
I highly recommend checking out the full Annual Review Framework PDF from Farnam Street and blocking off a few hours to work through it. Their site also has phenomenal resources like The Great Mental Models and How to Decide 2×2 Matrix to help you upgrade your thinking and decision making.
Your mission, should you choose to accept it:
Schedule 2 hours this week to define your vision of success for 2025 and identify the 3 core focus areas that will help you achieve it. Protect that time like your life depends on it - because the quality of your life actually does.
Let me know how it goes for you!
