Year in review: habits & routines in 2024

As part of my year-end routine, I spend a few journaling sessions from mid-November onwards reflecting on the year. This is episode #3 in the ‘Review your year’ series. The other issues are here.

We adopt a set of habits and routines each year, consciously or subconsciously.

They determine what we end up doing each day — Were we productive? Did we doom scroll? Did we go exercise?

Though they control our days, we don’t spend much time thinking about them.

I like to spend time examining my habits at the end of the year.

I think through a typical day and list every habit I can think of — What do I do when the alarm rings? What is the first thing I do when I open my computer?

In my experience, this results in mostly the positive habits you exhibit. So, I next list down all the negative habits I have, including when and why they take place.

This gives you a good overview to reflect on and work towards increasing good habits and removing bad ones.

Today’s Prompts

Think through a typical day in your life. What good habits or routines do you maintain? How many of them are new?

List down all the negative habits or routines you exhibit. What causes them?

Which habits and routines would you like to carry forward into 2025? What new ones do you want to introduce?

Previous Prompts

Episode 1

What were the three most difficult things you went through this year? What did you learn through the process?

Episode 2

Which relationships enriched your life the most this year? What made them meaningful?

Which relationships changed through the year?

Which relationships worsened your life the most this year? Why did they worsen it? Are they still relationships worth keeping?

Get the most out of your journalling:

• Choose one prompt: Focus on just one prompt each day to avoid feeling overwhelmed.

• Be brutally honest: Reflect openly and honestly. This is your safe space to explore your thoughts and feelings.

• Take your time: Sometimes it takes a few days to clarify your thinking. Here’s permission for you to take your time to unravel a prompt and not take on any new ones during that time.

• Journal your way: Whether you prefer writing, audio recording, or video, choose the method that suits you best.

• Don't stress about streaks: If you miss a day, don't worry. You can always revisit a previous prompt.

I’d love your feedback

What was your favourite prompt of the day? Is there any specific challenge you want prompts for? How can I improve the content of the newsletter? Reply this mail and let me know!