An Example Personal Annual Report – 2007
12/27/07
OVERVIEW
This year, my 38th, was among the best in my life. I made tremendous progress professionally, socially, and financially, and accomplished many goals. The two areas that admittedly slipped were physical fitness and family relations. Neither got dramatically worse, or worse at all, but they did not improve.
SPECIFIC AREAS
The largest accomplishment in 2007 was becoming a more prolific reader. I read 50 books this year:
Fahrenheit 451
Call of the Wild
Gandhi’s autobiography
Lord of the Flies
Think and Grow Rich
The Art of War
The War of Art
The Book of Five Rings
The Demon’s Sermon of the Martial Arts
The Unfettered Mind
The Great Gatsby
Bhagavad Gita
Animal Farm
A Clockwork Orange
The Sun Also Rises
SHAM (Self Help and Actualization Movement)
Invisible Man (by HG Wells)
Of Mice and Men
The Pearl
Modern Moral Philosophy
The Art of Learning
Bing-Fa, Martial Arts Strategy
Futhark: A Handbook of Rune Magic
Helping Himself (Horatio Alger)
Self Help by Samuel Smiles
Execution by Larry Bossidy
Living the 7 Habits by Stephen Covey
Stretching Scientifically by Thomas Kurz
The Swastika: Symbol Beyond Redemption?
Meditation for Dummies
Brave New World
As I Lay Dying
Slaughterhouse Five
Catch-22
Lolita
A Room with a View
The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie
The Maltese Falcon
Tobacco Road
Wind and Solar Power Systems
Heart of Darkness
Wide Sargasso Sea
Sundiata: An Epic of Old Mali
Darkness at Noon
The Concept of the Political
Ironweed
The Clean Tech Revolution
Sounder
Experience and Education
Journey to the East
The list demonstrates that I’ve been reading some classical works of fiction, but also some political works, and non-fiction. Ironically, I did much of my reading during “down times” where I wasn’t doing anything else. That type of efficiency is important to me because I want to ensure that I control my time, and I turn "down times" into productive packets of time. This is the concept of “fit”, where one seeks to find the right thing to do given time and space constraints. In 2008 I want to continue the habit of reading.
I consider the development of good habits and character to be very important to one’s future growth. Reading Gandhi’s autobiography was very influential to me. Positive lifestyle changes provide long lasting positive change. Major lifestyle changes developed in 2007 include the following:
• Became a vegetarian in May
• Started taking cold showers in May
• Went 100% renewable energy in my home
• Stretch about 3 times a week
In addition, I met some landmarks during the year:
• Received Shodan (Black Belt) in Japan
• Became a member of the Gallon club (donated a gallon of blood)
• Learned the Hiragana and Katakana (Japanese alphabets)
• Learned to solve the Rubik’s Cube
Other accomplishments include:
• Fasted for 30 hours in June
• Made 200 paper cranes
• Started a blog (with 34 entries)
• Opened an Etrade account just for Renewable Energy
• Funded microloans in Eastern Europe and South Asia
• Registered as an organ donor
• Improved my runecasting
• Did an Inipi sweat lodge
• Played over 20 games of pool
• Made a will
• Started a memoir and writing generally
Professionally, a number of positive developments occurred this year. My organization, a school, has gotten demonstrably better, much in part because of my improved ability to hire the right people. Back in March and April I transitioned one key person out, and transitioned, over time, a person who has fit far better. In addition, the culture of the school has improved, where staff is more on board. Most importantly, the students appear to be learning more. However, more data are required to verify this. Deep down, I more than ever am proud of the staff and enjoy seeing our creation produce excellent results. I love my job.
In terms of Social Consciousness and Philanthropy, I donated money to a Presidential candidate, and to a college, both of which with beliefs similar to my own. In addition, I continue to sponsor a child in a war-torn area of the world.
I have made some progress on the guitar, although not as much as I’d like. I continue to play roughly 5 times a week, but need to create a more structured study.
Financially, we are getting there! Our net worth rose about 30% in 2007.
Socially, I have solidified many professional relationships this year. These have created a very enriching, and ultimately more productive professional life.
OUTLOOK FOR 2008
I am a bit pessimistic that 2008 will turn out as well for a number of reasons. Because 2007 was so productive, it is expected that the next year will be slightly worse. In addition, just keeping up with the goals and habits I have developed will take much time and energy.