Your Priorities in Q2
Living in Oregon, everything changes in April. We have been through the rainy season, the ice storms, and the dreary days, and suddenly the sun breaks through. Cherry blossoms bloom, you wake up to the abundance of green all around you, and develop a sort of seasonal amnesia that is known by all who live in the Pacific Northwest. The region becomes our playground again, and we venture outside. This is the time of awakening.
With spring, we also find ourselves at the launch point of our second quarter. Q2 provides the push to step back on our intentions for the year and size up our progress- it’s a beautiful opportunity if we harness it, considering our priorities for both ourselves and our work ahead.
If you’re leading a large team, one that is small but mighty, or working for yourself, the importance of stepping back to refine is essential, and we need to continue to do the work of listening to our gut. Though it can be tempting to charge ahead, seasonal amnesia around your priorities will catch up with you if you don’t engage in a purposeful process.
In my last newsletter, I shared The Pulse Check, which serves to bring your priorities and their progress into crisper focus. This can be started at any point of the year, which gives us permission to start the very moment we realize we need it.
Engaging in reflection tools and metacognitive thinking is an essential tool for reaching our goals, and it doesn’t just mean we prompt ourselves to look at the data. I’d encourage you, in this time of vibrant springtime energy and the buzz of momentum towards mid-year targets, to ask yourself how you’re doing against what matters most, and what it means for what you prioritize ahead in the way you work and engage with the world. If you haven’t yet set your personal priorities, that’s okay- let’s count this as an opportunity to pause and do that for ourselves- you deserve it.
Notes:
If you set priorities for yourself in Q1, have them next to you while you’re working.
If you have clear goals at work, but haven’t yet tapped into this for yourself, start with this resource, then complete a Pulse Check for Q2 afterwards.
If you are engaging with this resource in a personal capacity outside of work, quarter/seasonal planning and reflections are just as useful. Start at step 2, and watch the rest of the year blossom.
Using the Q2 Launch Reflection: I'd recommend leveraging the following steps when engaging with this resource individually or with your team. If you’d like help in going deeper with this and outlining your priorities for the year, with either yourself or your team, let’s talk!
Start with the step back in the red box. Keep it simple or create a longer narrative you attach, but use the metacognitive questions to guide you, adding others as helpful.
Next, define the priorities of your “seasons” for each quarter. What will be most important to you at work and at home? Try to not have these match your OKRs line for line- making them yours matters. Consider: what will you uniquely need at work to achieve your goals this quarter?
Title your seasons- this matters because it pushes you to get concise and think through if you have a clear theme that will keep your priorities top of mind. Maybe it's a season of transition, one of growth, or one of connection- name it so that it sticks with you.
Step away from it for a day, then return. The brain needs this space to process, and your refinements will be meaningful.
Onward,
Rebecca
