October 1st is my annual opportunity to plan the last quarter of the year by completing my  “To end the year on a high I need to…” list.

A 90 day period is a reasonable time to plan the completion of unfinished tasks, deal with things that need attention or even initiate new plans for the future.

This exercise is particularly useful as it accomplishes a number of things, too many to note in a short blog, but here are a few examples.

  1. This exercise gets me back on track. Inevitably I will have drifted from the direction I set myself at the beginning of the year or some other time during the year.
  2. This exercise re-sets my priorities. “This is my predicament” wrote Epictetus a couple of thousand years ago, “over and over again we loose sight of what is important and what isn’t”. My list can help me re-calibrate.
  3. This exercise improves my focus. Clutter has accumulated, vision has leaked, mental energy has drained, goals have become fuzzy. This list helps me to sort out my thinking, clear my vision and free up some mental energy.

So, if you grabbed a pen and started writing a similar list, what would be on it? Now is the time to think about things you want to deal with before the end of the year. Leaving it until December is probably too late.

The things you carry over into 2016 that you wished you could have dealt with in 2015 could very well depend on your “To end the year on a high I need to…..” list.

If you want a simple template to help you recalibrate then send us a message.

Disclaimer: The views expressed in this post are those of the author only and are not necessarily those of I Planning Wealth Management Ltd. All material in this post should be considered as general information only and should in no way be construed as a recommendation of a specific product or course of action. Each circumstance is different and professional advice tailored to your circumstances should be sought from a qualified financial adviser.