Everyone’s talking about annual reviews right now.
Take two full days to review your color-coded calendar. Track every metric. Calculate the exact breakdown of your time: meetings vs. creating, one-on-ones vs. group sessions.
It sounds incredible. It also sounds exhausting.
I’ve never done a full annual review. As a new entrepreneur, I’m intrigued by the idea.
But a two-day deep dive reviewing every detail of my year? I’m not set up for that.
So I’m doing a “micro-annual” review instead.
The Problem
It’s easy to see everyone doing elaborate annual reviews and think: “That’s for people who are organized. That’s not me.”
So you do nothing.
You don’t reflect on what worked. You don’t identify what to change.
You just roll into next year doing the same things — including the things that drained you.
The Big Small Thing
Do a micro-annual review. Pick 2-3 key insights that would actually help you next year.
(This is being RECKLESS. Reckless is one of the nine traits I write about in Wild Courage. It means erring on the side of action. Better to start small than wait for perfect.)
Here’s what my micro-annual review looks like:
(Carlina, my Chief of Staff, and I analyzed three things.)
1. Revenue breakdown: 1/3 coaching, 2/3 keynotes
2. Keynote fee analysis: We did way too much pro bono and low bono this year. It made sense for the book launch, but cutting that back will give me huge amounts of time in 2026.
3. Travel breakdown: I will pitch more virtual talks. Noa and Ari are 8 and 10, and I don’t want to be on the road constantly.
That’s it. Three data points that will change how I run my business next year.
Did we analyze calendar color-coding? No, because I don’t color-code my calendar.
Did we track how many nights I was away? No, because we don’t have that system.
Did we do a full SWOT (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, Threats) analysis? No, because I don’t have the time.
We worked with what we had. And it was still valuable.
How to do your own micro-annual review:
Ask yourself: What are 2-3 insights that would help me be more productive or happier next year?
– Individual contributors: Which projects got me recognition? Where am I spending time that doesn’t matter for promotion?
– Entrepreneurs: Which revenue streams are worth my time? Which clients should I fire?
– Managers: Which meetings could be async? What am I doing that my team could do?
Then find the simplest way to answer those questions.
Look through your calendar. Check bank statements. Scroll through sent emails. Ask your team what they noticed.
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How This Helps You Get What You Want
A micro-annual review gives you clarity without overwhelm.
Identify 2-3 things to change.
