Happy new year!
Jumping into the new year is always exciting and I love the process of reflecting on the past year and planning for the new one. So in today’s meeting we did just that and had a really insightful and fun discussion.
The word for last year was “Clarity“, and we talked a lot about how we gain so much clarity through our struggles – both internal and external. One member of the group mentioned realizing that she was working too hard for a client who always changed their mind. This clarity shifted her mindset from feeling guilty about not working all the time to patiently waiting for the client’s final decisions, ultimately removing a lot of rework. And I talked a bit about how the clarity I gained from working with challenging clients is influencing my 2024 planning, as it became clear that I need to update both my contracts and the pricing structure for the services I provide.
The word for 2024 is INTENTION!
Being intentional means making deliberate choices that support your success, and moving forward from a place of integrity.
This word is inspired by Randy, who throws it around every chance he gets! 😆 I’m not sure what took me so long to embrace it as much as Randy does, but it really resonated with me as I started working on my 2024 goals, and I think it’s perfect for Seattle Digital Freelancers. Funny that introducing this word led to a discussion about passion projects, or “vanity projects” as Randy calls them, and how making time for those really helps you get in touch with your values and what you love to do.
Also funny, just before the meeting I came across a photo I took out of a page from the book Eat That Frog!: 21 Great Ways to Stop Procrastinating and Get More Done in Less Time – a classic that I read at the beginning of last year:
I shared it with the group which lead to an interesting discussion about the importance of knowing your ‘Why’ and how that helps you prioritize your work.
Going through the process of adding my intentions, or my ‘why’, to my big list of goals for 2024 has helped me SO much in deciding what I need to do first, and what can wait. This lead to Lenka sharing that she is reading Simon Sinek’s book Start with Why: How Great Leaders Inspire Everyone to Take Action. Which makes me think that next week we should dive a little deeper into our Why’s.
Our next week will be on February 14th. Valentine’s Day!