Free Personal Annual Review Template (+ Guide)
A free personal annual review template that walks you through last year, then turns it into a plan you'll see every day.
5.0(1 rating)
Look back on your year, then plan the next one on a single page. Score your life, find what drove the year, and pick a theme, 3 outcomes and the weekly inputs that get you there.
The 7 steps a good review needs, with James Clear's 3 questions.
Make it yours
Add your site or a profile, and your face, name, logo and colors fill the pages this makes. Or bring last year's file, or paste your notes.
Your site's logo comes in by itself, in both versions when your site has them. If one looks wrong, upload the right file: the dark one shows on light pages, the light one on dark pages.
This free personal annual review template walks you through last year, then turns it into a plan for next year.
You score your life, walk through your year, and answer the questions people who've reviewed their years for a decade still use. You finish with a theme, 3 outcomes and the weekly inputs that get you there, on one page you'll see every day.
I've written public annual reviews since 2014. This is the tool I wish I'd had for them.
What is a personal annual review?
A personal annual review is an hour or two at the end of the year where you look back on what happened, find what drove it, and decide what you'll do differently next year.
It isn't a performance review. Nobody grades you, and nothing has to go to a manager. It's for you, and it only works when you're honest.
How to use the personal annual review template
Your answers stay in this browser, so you can stop and come back. Next December, open this year's plan file here, and both years sit side by side.
Fast or full
- Fast
- About 30 minutes
- Full
- 60 to 90 minutes
- Fast
- 7
- Full
- 12
- Fast
- James Clear's 3
- Full
- All 28, or Sahil Bloom's 7
- Fast
- No
- Full
- Yes, week by week
- Fast
- No
- Full
- Yes
Fast is enough for a first review. Full is for the year that changed a lot, or the one where you felt stuck.
Where the questions come from
The questions come from people who've published their reviews for years, rewritten in plain words, plus the prompts I use for my own.
James Clear's 3 questions. He answered what went well, what didn't, and what he was working toward in public reviews from 2013 to 2019, and credits Chris Guillebeau for the format. His 2019 review closes with his lesson on prioritization:
A life well-lived is a life well-edited.
Sahil Bloom's 7 questions. From his personal annual review: what you changed your mind on, what gave you energy, what drained it, what held you back, what you didn't do because of fear, your hits and misses, and what you learned.
Tim Ferriss's past year review. Walk last year's calendar week by week, write down the people and activities that gave you peaks and lows, then book more of the good ones. The past year review template reads your calendar file to do it.
It’s not real until it’s in the calendar.
Atomic Habits
by James Clear
Atomic Habits by James Clear breaks down the science of tiny daily habits, showing how small consistent changes compound into extraordinary results over time.
I may earn a commission if you make a purchase, at no additional cost to you.
The 5 Types of Wealth
by Sahil Bloom
The 5 Types of Wealth by Sahil Bloom explores how true wealth goes beyond money, helping you build a rich life in every sense.
I may earn a commission if you make a purchase, at no additional cost to you.
How the plan is checked
Most yearly plans fail the same few ways. The template checks yours in code, for free:
- 1 to 3 outcomes, because too many goals is how none get done
- A number in every outcome, so you'll know if you hit it
- A date on every outcome
- 1 to 3 weekly inputs per outcome, each an action you control
- Every input says how often: "write 2 posts a week", not "post more"
- A theme short enough to recite
- Every area you scored 4 or under is in the plan, or waits a year on purpose
- No 7s: it's the score people give to avoid deciding
A check that fails says what to fix, right on the plan step.
What you get
| You get | What it's for |
|---|---|
| Your plan, as a page and a PDF | The one-pager on top: theme, outcomes, weekly inputs, do more of, not to do, your wheel. The full review under it |
| A calendar file | A weekly review every Sunday, check-ins each quarter, next year's review, and the days you booked |
| review.md | Your plan as a file for your own ChatGPT, Claude or Gemini, so it knows your year |
| Your public page | Your annual review on your own site, in your brand, with only what you tick |
The plan file carries every year you've reviewed. Keep it, and next year's review starts from it.
Keep the plan alive
A plan you never look at again is a wish. 3 things keep this one in front of you:
- The weekly review in your calendar: 20 minutes to tick off your weekly inputs and plan the next week.
- A check-in each quarter: score the wheel again, and change the next quarter's focus if you need to.
- Your theme where you'll see it, on your lock screen or on your wall.
Weekly inputs are habits, and habits need systems more than motivation. These self-discipline examples and routines help.
Publish your annual review
My annual reviews were always some of my most popular posts. Writing one in public keeps you honest, and readers like real numbers and real misses.
Here are 3 pages made with it, each from a review its author published: James Clear's 2019, Sahil Bloom's 2021 and my 2018.
The year in review page turns your review into a page on your own site. Every year goes in its own folder, with one page that lists them all. Want a card to share it? The post image generator makes one from your year in numbers.
Keep your plan in front of you
Plan the weeks with
Personal Annual Review FAQs
Questions about the personal annual review template? Here's what to know.
A personal annual review is an hour or two at the end of the year where you look back on what happened, find what drove it, and plan what to do differently.
This personal annual review template walks you through it and turns it into a plan for next year.
A performance review is your employer grading your work.
A personal annual review is you looking at your life, for yourself, and nobody else has to see it.
Most people do it between Christmas and the first week of January.
Any quiet stretch of 1 or 2 hours works, and the calendar file reminds you next December.
The fast review takes about 30 minutes.
The full review, with the calendar walk and all 28 questions, takes 60 to 90 minutes.
Start with 3: what went well, what didn't, and what you learned.
The template also has Sahil Bloom's 7 questions and 28 in all, from wins and energy to fears and the habit behind your best results.
Yes, press Speak and say your answer, and it's written out for you.
Tidy it up turns a spoken ramble into clear lines, in your own words.
Yes, everything you write stays in your browser.
It's sent to the page's AI only when you press Speak or an AI button, and this site doesn't keep it.
Yes, the public page shows only the sections you tick, and never an answer you marked private.
Download the folder and put it on Vercel, Netlify or any host, or let Claude Code or Codex add it to your site.
Yes, it's free, with no login.
The page's AI has a daily limit per person, and your own AI has none.
It's for anyone who wants to learn from last year and plan the next one.
Creators, founders and professionals use the business questions, and everyone uses the life areas.
The wheel of life assessment, the year end reflection questions and the past year review template are single steps of this review.
See all my free tools.
Navid Moazzez
AI business strategist & AI OS builder
Navid Moazzez helps creators and founders master AI and build their own AI Operating System (AI OS) to automate their business and life.
Navid.me is reader-supported. When you buy through links on this site, I may earn an affiliate commission. Learn more.
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