As 2015 closes in, streets and houses are adorned with colourful decorative lighting, there’s an ambience filled with musical anticipation and festive holidays are finally starting. It seems like everything is coming to an end for 2015 and for those of us who have struggled hard over the past twelve months, we’re looking forward to a fresh year in a week’s time or so. 

While it is energizing to renew goals that we missed and look forward to a new start, what better time than the now to look back into the past twelve months and do a thorough reflection of what you have experienced, gone through or achieved so that you can identify your wins and lessons learned.

It has been a habit I’ve cultured over the past ten years to do a review exercise on my personal and professional progress over the years.

Basically, my year end review exercise can be broken down into four steps:

• List down what I have done, experienced or significantly achieved
• Identify what I enjoyed, am good at and have been doing well
• Identify what I lack, challenges I faced and those I should not have done (room for improvement)
• My focus for next year

We get so caught up in the daily tasks and urgent to do lists that we seldom slow down to reflect how much we have done. Similarly for myself, I have been so busy over the year but I felt like I had not achieved much. This exercise helps to bring clarity on our achievements, our weaknesses and lessons learned.


Some of my wins included getting hitched to the most amazing guy I've met. He cares for me and supports my dreams.

Also, I travelled to several new cities and widened my view of the world (at least in Asia). Besides increasing my responsibilities with the change in my marital status now, I have also put more on my professional plate.

On a higher note, I discovered my passion in working with girls to build themselves up as confident and beautiful individuals.

This brought me on to a more challenging year ahead with broader and deeper work to do! It has been an exciting year but also offers more opportunities to improve myself on a personal and professional scale. Besides maintaining my workout routine, I am also embarking on a journey to a healthier lifestyle to go vegetarian full-time, to attain greater milestones in my emotional connection with myself as well as to build better relationships with people I care for.

2016 is already looking so much more exciting for me. But before that, I need more clarity and clear action steps to achieve more wins in the next twelve months.

Life is a continuous journey to keep on improving ourselves and working on what we stand for.

How about you? What were your wins in 2015 and what can you get better at in the next year to make it more exciting? What's your focus for 2016?

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