For the first 54 years of my life, I didn’t believe in New Year’s Resolutions. Now I understand why they are important. The end of the year is the best time to track the progress that we’ve made in the pursuit of our potential.

It is essential to reflect on our progress at the end of the day, week, month, or year so we can pay close attention to how our habits and progress are compounding, whether it be positive or negative. The best way to track our progress is by taking inventory of our values EVERY. SINGLE. DAY.

We must take inventory of the values (personal, experiential, giving, and receiving) that make us who we are now, and then imagine the person we want to become.

For me, gratitude, empathy (forgiveness), accountability, and effective communication (inspiration) are at the forefront of everything I do.

Taking inventory of our values is helpful when making decisions because we can determine if those decisions aligned with our values. We must also acknowledge that our values tend to change over time. We must not be afraid to be a hypocrite and admit when our values are different from what they were in the past. We are all hypocrites, but not all of us are humble enough to admit it.