For this final newsletter of 2024, I want to share a few tips and tools to help you create your best 2025. It’s all about dreaming it, planning it, and doing it. While it’s not a new concept, it’s worth revisiting—especially now, as we navigate the mix of holiday joy, a little chaos, and unexpected opportunities.
Here are some tools and strategies I used during my year-end dreaming and planning session.
1. Start The Process: Your Vision is Your Mission
Every great plan starts with a vision. A Vision Board is a fun, creative way to clarify your goals and keep them front and center throughout the year.
I recommend tools like Canva and Milanote to make this process simple and enjoyable. For a straightforward approach, try Canva’s whiteboard feature—drag and drop images, text, and graphics to design your board. Or, if you prefer, gather your visuals in Canva and arrange them into a Milanote vision board template.
When I recently created my vision board, I included all aspects of my life: business goals, personal aspirations, exciting possibilities, and meaningful connections. This exercise not only sparked creativity but also gave me clarity. A vision board isn’t about magic per se; it’s about setting the stage for the next steps: planning and action.
2. Plan with Purpose: Asana or Google Sheets
Once you’ve dreamed it, it’s time to start planning. This can feel overwhelming, especially if your mind is buzzing with ideas. A good starting point is a classic ‘brain dump.’
Write down everything swirling in your mind. This clears mental clutter and gives you a starting point to organize your thoughts. From here, sort your ideas into goals, intentions, and projects. Your vision guides you, helping ensure your plans for the year, quarter, and months ahead align with your bigger dreams.
I find Asana to be an excellent tool for this. It lets you break your plans into projects, tasks, and sub-tasks. You can set deadlines, track progress, and stay on top of everything day by day. It’s simple to use and highly effective.
If you prefer a lower-tech option, a Google Sheet or Excel spreadsheet works well too. Create columns for tasks, projects, assigned team members, due dates, and completion status. You can even tag tasks by project or priority, making it easy to stay organized.
3. Do Some, Delegate Some
With your plan in place, you’ll have a clear picture of what needs to be done—and what doesn’t necessarily need to be done by you. This is where delegation comes in.
A great way to make delegation smoother is by creating Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs). SOPs ensure consistency and clarity, especially when passing tasks to a team member or a Virtual Assistant.
Creating SOPs doesn’t have to be time-consuming or tedious. A tool like Scribe makes it effortless. Install the browser extension, and it records your screen as you complete a task, automatically generating a step-by-step guide with instructions and screenshots. These SOPs can then be shared with your team, saving you time and making the process seamless.
Delegation isn’t just about lightening your load; it’s about building efficiency and empowering others to help you succeed.
The Takeaway
As 2024 winds down, take a moment to dream, plan, and delegate. This process creates clarity, direction, and a sense of purpose—whether for your business, personal life, or both. It’s your roadmap for the year ahead.
No matter where you are in life—running a business, working a 9-to-5, pursuing a side hustle, or enjoying retirement—these tools and strategies can help you turn your dreams into reality.
Here’s to dreaming big, planning with intention, and making 2025 your best year yet!
About Me
My name is Julie Salerno. I’m a Virtual Assistant passionate about helping you – entrepreneurs and solo business owners – grow your businesses by taking the admin, marketing, and creative tasks like updating websites, email marketing, and setting up course platforms off your to-do list.
Learn more about how I can help your business here.