Mid year reviews are one of the best ways to save yourself a bunch of time and energy …

I don’t know about you but life is different in our home in the summertime, than it is in winter. Each season in nature has their own specific characteristics, their own rhythms and energy.

Like nature, I break my year into quarters and focus on making progress seasonally. In winter we bunker down, sleep more, and tend to soak up the sun instead of hiding out from it. That’s us right now!

Mid Year Review

There’s something special about mid year being winter. The cool change that alerts me to slow down, to rest and recharge from all the activity of the warmer months. And I love that about being ‘down under’.

It’s the perfect time to dive into a mid year review! Each quarter I like to do a little reflection to check in on how things are progressing. They are great times to highlight any changes that need to be made to improve your progress towards your goals.

But the mid year review is special. I think of it as a combination of monthly and end of year reviews.

You’ve not only got a bunch of months momentum and progress behind you, but you’ve got a whole half a year to dig into something new!

There’s plenty of time to get back on the horse if you’ve found yourself waining. And oodles of time to work on a new idea or opportunity.

Follow my simple 3 step system for a mid year review you’ll look forward to, year after year …

1. Collect : Making the Time

I get it. The days just zoom on by and your todo list is as long as Santa’s! How are you going to find the time?

You decide to. And yes, it’s that easy.

Then you schedule it in your calendar as a reoccurring event, every year, no end date for this one!

We’re turning this powerful activity into a delicious and yummy tradition. Just like our weekly family meetings, a mid year review can be something you look forward to!

It’s yours, so choose how you want to celebrate!

Got a favourite treat, dessert or meal, how about a playlist to create the vibe. Maybe you prefer a few candles or fairy lights. Whatever way you like to relax and enjoy life, make it something you’ll look forward to year after year.

2. Reflect : Get the answers

Just like in life, it’s important to ask the right questions. The quality of your questions determines the quality of your answers.

In the FUSElife way of planning I encourage you to decide on your focus | roles in business + life. These are your main priorities or responsibilities.

Mine are :

Faith : beliefs in God, others and ourselves

Family : spouse and children, yes fur babies count

Home : place you live from, surroundings

Health : mental and physical inc. habits, routines and unconscious choices of who we are

Wealth : finances now and future

Social : rest and relax, enjoy life inc. extended family, friends, colleagues

Earn : what you do to make a difference in the world through paid work

Learn : personal and business development, study, home schooling

You may like to decide on a specific set for your business to measure the different areas.

With your focus | roles I ask the following questions so first of all so I can celebrate the wins, both big and small! And hen find the places where I can make some changes to ensure I’m on track to achieve my goals.

It’s so easy to be hard on yourself and only see how far you have to go. This is not only discouraging but you also lose the opportunity to give yourself a huge burst of energy as you go into the second half of the year.

Who do you think has a better chance to hit there goals out of the park … someone who is annoyed about how far they still need to go to achieve their goals, or someone who is excited about the progress they’ve already made?

So what kinds of questions should be part of your mid year review?

Here’s a sample of short, punchy questions I like at answer about each of my different focus | roles :

What worked?

If you’re gratitude journal regularly this will be easy for you. If not, make a note to get started on that new habit tomorrow, and look back over your planner for prompts on what you accomplished.

It’s time to toot your own horn!

Write down all the things, big and small that went well. You will want to do more of this in the next six months.

Big and small celebrate it all!

What didn’t?


Ok, so this doesn’t sound so exciting on the surface, but this little question holds the gold. What you write here can change your business + life in ways you only dreamed about.

So be honest, dig deep and get real. No one need read this other than you. It’s important to tell it like it is. Sugar coating it will only hold you back, consume more of your time and energy on things that don’t matter.

Honesty is your best policy!

Lessens learned?

So what can you learn from this? this can be one of the most powerful questions you ask.

I hear this great quote from a business mentor I admire and it has the power to change the way you look at things … We either succeed or we learn!

Whether it’s a win or a perceived failure, there is always something to learn from the experience.

#proTip : Remember a failure is nearly feedback on what you need to improve to get better at it. It’s not a reflection of your worth and value. #truthTalk

And either way we win.

If we succeed, awesome, celebrate it, write down what made it a success so you can do more of it. And it it failed, make a note of what you can do better next time.

#truthTalk : If it’s worth doing, it’s worth doing badly while we get better at it!

Give yourself some grace combined with a new strategy to succeed.

Thankful for
One of my favourite things to talk about is gratitude. It’s such a simple and yet, incredibly powerful activity, that only takes a few minutes each day to cultivate.

And the rewards are beyond measure!

Take a few moments here to reflect on what you’re thankful for over this last six months. They don’t have to be huge things. It may be a person who really supported you. An assistant who’s smile brightened your day. Maybe your children hep you to incorporate play into your day.

Again celebrate these blessings and count them one by one.

Let go

This may be one of the hardest parts of the mid year review, but I know it’s worth the effort.

Look back over what you’ve written so far, look for the things that get in your way. Habits that hold you back. Tasks and commitments that have become old and obsolete.

What do you need to let go of?

These aren’t always bad things, there can be good things that it’s time to let go off and allow someone else to take care of them.

It could be something you need to say no to, yourself or to others.

Maybe there’s something you need to delegate and give to someone else to get done so you have space in your schedule for what really matters. Is it time to hire an assistant, a house cleaner, or simply involve your family more, enabling them to grow in responsibility and self esteem.

Write down all the things that are getting in your way, good and bad.

3. Connect : Making the changes

So you’ve got an amazing bunch of insight about your business + life, what do you do with it? How do you turn this insights into action that will save you a while lot of time and energy and help you focus on what matters and make progression your goals …

First things first

First my caution, don’t try to do everything at once. Give yourself some smart grace. You’ll have a plan to take care of what needs your attention.

Just take one thing at a time + you’ll do just fine! 
(Yes, I’m a poet and I didn’t even know it!)

Strengthen your foundation


Now look back over your notes and highlight in one colour all the things that you want to be doing more of. It’s time to continue or increase those activities.

Then in another colour highlight all the things that you need or want to change. the things to let go of or delegate.

With the activities that you want to do more of, make sure your routines and habits support this finding. You want to have a strong foundation upon which to build and grow.

If they don’t, write down how you’re going to make that change. Maybe it’s getting up 15 minutes earlier to read your Bible, go for a walk. Or maybe it’s writing your todo lis the night before. Whatever they are, make sure they are a priority.

Collect the mini goals and projects


As you look over your list you will probably find new projects and goals in your notes.

You may also see that it’s time to let go of some commitments and goals that no longer serve you. Take care of these in a kind and respectful way. Realise it may take a bit of time to see out your commitment before you can move on.

I’d recommend creating a master list for these as you’ll want to work on one thing at a time. And some you may need to push out a little down the track.

It may help to put a month beside each project or goal so you know when you’ll have space to work on it. Often times that’s all you need to be at peace and be able to focus on what you need to right now. If somethings more urgent, consider getting help to make it happen. Maybe you need coach, a designer, babysitter, whatever it is that will help you make this positive change in your business + life.

Whatever changes you are making, give yourself and others grace, the space + tools, to make the transition.

Success comes when you #takeAction

A little reflection can save you huge amounts of time and energy, not to mention it enables you create a more empowered, purposeful business + life 🙂 And who doesn’t want that!

Learn how to set your day up for sweet success and get things done a whole lot easier with the FUSElife Planner Playbook!