Making room for a new one: why it's important to sum up the year and "unload the brain"

The old year is coming to an end, and a new one looms on the horizon, full of hopes and promises. This time is traditionally associated with new beginnings, setting goals and the desire to leave everything unnecessary and burdensome in the past. But how can this be done in practice? How not to drag the load of unrealized plans, unfinished business and negative emotions into the new year? The answer is simple: take an inventory of your life, summarize the results and "unload" everything superfluous from your "inner world".

Psychologists are unanimous in the opinion that summarizing is not just a pleasant ritual, but also an important psychological practice.

Liberation from the burden of the past.

Unfinished business, unspoken words, unrealized plans – all this creates in our subconscious a feeling of the burden that we carry on our shoulders. Summing up, we give ourselves the opportunity to let go of what is pulling us back and make room for a new one.

Awareness of your achievements.

In the daily hustle and bustle, we often do not notice our successes, focusing on what has not yet been done. Summing up the results allows us to look back and see how much we have achieved over the past period. This increases self-esteem, motivates for new achievements and helps to look more positively into the future.

Error analysis and lesson learning.

Mistakes are an integral part of life. It is important not only to recognize them, but also to analyze them so that in the future we do not step on the same rake. Summing up the results is the ideal time for such an analysis.

lass="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">Setting goals for the future.

By analyzing the past period, we can more clearly formulate our desires and goals for the future.

The technique of "Unloading brains":

The step–by-step guide "Unloading brains" is an effective tool that allows you to take an inventory of all areas of life, determine priorities and get rid of the burden of accumulated cases and thoughts.

Here's how it works:

Step 1: Preparation.

Take a piece of paper, a notepad, or open a text editor. Set aside enough time for the exercise to take your time and concentrate on the process. * Create a calm and comfortable environment.

Step 2: Brainstorming.

Write down absolutely all the cases, tasks, projects, ideas, thoughts – everything that comes to your mind, without censorship and criticism. * Do not limit yourself in time – write until you feel that you have uploaded everything that bothers you.

Step 3: Categorization.

Carefully review your list and categorize all items. These can be areas of life (work, family, health, hobbies), projects, deadlines (urgent, important, non-urgent) or any other categories that suit you.

Step 4: Prioritization.

Define two important criteria for yourself: importance and urgency.

Use the Eisenhower matrix (more on it below) to distribute cases into four quadrants: "Important and urgent", "Important, but not urgent", "Unimportant, but urgent", "Unimportant and not urgent".

Important! Don't forget to analyze which quadrant you have the most to do and why. Strive to ensure that the main part of the tasks is in the "Important, but not urgent" quadrant.

Step 5: Plan your actions.

For each item in the list, identify specific actions that need to be taken.
Set realistic deadlines.
Write everything down in your daily planner or task planner.

Step 6: Work with the list regularly.

Regularly review your list, update it, add new tasks and cross off completed ones.

Don't be afraid to delegate tasks if possible.

The Eisenhower Matrix: Prioritizing The Eisenhower Matrix is a simple but effective tool that will help you prioritize tasks and focus on the main thing.

Important and urgent:

This includes tasks that require immediate attention and have serious consequences if not completed.

Examples: delivering a project at the last moment, making an urgent call to a client, solving a crisis situation.

The goal: to minimize the number of cases in this quadrant, as they are often associated with stress and stress.

Important, but not urgent:

A key quadrant for achieving long-term goals. This includes tasks that are important for your development, but do not have strict deadlines.

Examples: plansplanning, training, sports, working on an important project at an early stage.

The goal: to devote as much time as possible to this quadrant in order to prevent the appearance of urgent and important cases.

Unimportant, but urgent:

Tasks that take up a lot of time and energy, but do not bring significant benefits.

Examples: answering messages in the messenger, solving minor household issues, meetings that can be skipped.

The goal is to delegate, automate, or minimize the time for these tasks.

Unimportant and not urgent:

"Time eaters" are activities that bring neither pleasure nor benefit.

Examples: browsing social networks, computer games, aimless web surfing.

The goal is to eliminate these cases from your life as much as possible.

A "clean slate" for the new year By carrying out a "brain unloading" and applying the Eisenhower matrix, you will not only put your affairs in order, but also feel incredibly relieved. You will make room for new ideas, plans and dreams. And, most importantly, you will enter the new year with a clear mind and readiness for achievements!