5 Things to do at the Beginning of a New Year

New opportunities and the anticipation of greatness fuel the fire of entrepreneurs, consultants, small business owners and other hard-working professionals at the start of every year—making it the perfect time to pause, reassess and establish new rhythms. Ensure you’re set up for success in the new year, with these five action steps.

1. Celebrate the accomplishments of last year.
   Don’t forget the wins of 2019. While you look ahead to all that will come in the new year, it’s important to celebrate the wins from last year and formally acknowledge all of the people responsible for them. It also never hurts to complement that recognition with a tangible reward. When we’re too focused on accomplishing the next best thing, it’s easy to fall prone to the exhausting (and endless) cycle of striving rather than informed and strategic striding.
2. Reevaluate your routines.
   Start by making a list of your daily personal and professional activities. Then spend time reviewing what’s working and what isn’t and brainstorm how you can address specific areas of improvement. If you discover you need more time away from home, the office or both, a Roam membership could break up your routine and offer an energizing and productive workspace. Don’t worry if you’re worried about the commitment of membership. Day Passes are available for $50 per person and memberships offer flexible month-to-month terms.
3. Clean, organize and refocus.
   Performing at your best is almost impossible in a cluttered physical or mental space. You need to clear room for creativity. Go through your cabinets, closets and desk to remove all unnecessary items. Then tackle your virtual housework by optimizing your digital space. Clean out your inbox, old files and desktop to make room for the year’s upcoming projects. When in doubt, it’s always safe to save older files on an external hard drive for those “just in case” moments. Once you have everything back to an optimal starting point, make a mental commitment to keep up with your freshly organized workspace—both on your computer, at home and the office.
4. Prioritize gratitude.
   Make a commitment to tell someone how much you appreciate them—every day! At the end of the week, reflect back on how successful you were at expressing gratitude and vow to do it again the next week. And while it’s nice to be on the receiving end of affirmation, it can be argued that giving thanks is even more rewarding.  Making gratitude a priority, builds trust with colleagues, friends and family and improves both your social and working relationships. Plus, a grateful mindset improves your ability to navigate the inevitable stress and conflict we all encounter on occasion at work.
5. Create focus and alignment.
   Design a plan for the new year that establishes challenging, yet attainable goals. The key to achieving these goals is creating alignment and buy-in amongst all team members. Unite your team around the year’s priorities and goals by planning a kickoff meeting. For maximum creativity and engagement, take your team offsite and meet at Roam. All of Roam’s Metro Atlanta locations provide an all-inclusive approach to meetings with full service catering, A/V equipment, flip charts, whiteboards and sticky notes. Our meeting rooms are designed to enhance productivity and infuse energy into the meeting experience—ideal for creating fresh perspectives for the new year.

History tells us that positive actions yield positive results. Kickoff the new year the right way with these simple yet powerful action steps and make 2020 your most successful year to date. Happy New Year!