#559: Forget New Year’s Resolutions and Conduct a ‘Past Year Review’ Instead
The Tim Ferriss Show
Tim Ferriss: Bestselling Author, Human Guinea Pig
4.6 • 17.7K Ratings
🗓️ 27 December 2021
⏱️ 6 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
Welcome to another episode of The Tim Ferriss Show, where it is usually my job to deconstruct world-class performers to tease out the routines, habits, et cetera that you can apply to your own life.
This is a special episode, and it is about how I approach New Year’s resolutions.
The truth is that I no longer approach them at all, even though I did for decades. Why the change? I have found “past year reviews” (PYR) more informed, valuable, and actionable than half-blindly looking forward with broad resolutions. This episode outlines the step-by-step process.
If you try it, let me know how it goes.
And if you want to see the instructions in written form, visit tim.blog/pyr
Good luck and godspeed, everyone.
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Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | optimal minimal |
| 0:02.0 | at this altitude I can run flat out for a half mile before my hands start shaking |
| 0:06.1 | can I also request a question? |
| 0:08.1 | now I just sit in the perfect time |
| 0:10.6 | what's the idea? |
| 0:12.1 | I'm a cybernetic organism living this show on metal impulse go on |
| 0:15.8 | lead to Paris show |
| 0:24.4 | hello boys and girls ladies and germs this is Tim Ferris welcome to another episode of the Tim Ferris show |
| 0:29.4 | where it is my job usually to deconstruct world class performers of all different types |
| 0:34.1 | to tease out the routines habits etc that you can apply to your own lives |
| 0:38.4 | this however is a special and short episode and it's going to detail how I approach New Year's |
| 0:44.6 | resolutions the truth of the matter is that I no longer really approach them at all even though |
| 0:50.1 | I did for decades why the change I have found that something I call past year reviews or PYR |
| 0:58.0 | to be more informed valuable and actionable than half blindly looking forward with broad |
| 1:02.8 | resolutions for the next year I did my first PYR after a mentor's young daughter died of cancer |
| 1:09.6 | on December 31st roughly 10 years ago I remember the night very very clearly I got the news at a |
| 1:16.3 | party and went to sit down by myself and I sat with a notepad and by myself did my first |
| 1:23.8 | past year review I've done it every year since her passing was a very abrupt |
| 1:31.1 | surprise it was a somber reminder that our days here are too precious also not guaranteed by the way |
| 1:38.0 | they're too precious not to fill them with the people and activities that nourish us most so |
| 1:43.2 | that's the goal of doing this review doesn't take very long completing a past year review takes |
| 1:47.8 | just 30 to 60 minutes and it looks something like this step number one grab a notepad and create |
... |
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