Entering a new year is the ideal time to think about where you are in your personal and professional life. Starting the year with a clean slate gives you the opportunity to challenge yourself, create goals, and try something new.

To better assess our efforts at Service Express, we use the following framework – Start Doing, Stop Doing, and Keep Doing. Viewing your regular tasks through these lenses can help you better understand the actions you need to grow. Follow these guidelines and try it for yourself!

Start Doing

I’m sure everyone has a long list of things they would like to start doing in the new year. Big or small, tackling this list will be beneficial to your development. It could be getting back into the gym, stepping away from your phone, or embracing a new hobby! Getting started on your to-do list will help you get back on track to improve yourself in the new year.

Stop Doing

I’ve heard many stories of leaders having too much on their plates that don’t help them advance in the long run. If this is you, I recommenddelegating these responsibilities to other members on your team — give them the opportunity to show what they can do. Allowing members of your team to head more projects and tasks will help them showcase their capabilities while giving you more time.

I found this was a great opportunity as a parent to give our kids more responsibility. They vacuum vehicles, keep their rooms clean, clean the garage and do other chores to help around the house. These are the things that my wife and I don’t need to do anymore – so we delegated them to our children to teach them about responsibility. This same concept can apply to many other aspects of your life.

Keep Doing 

What are the key tasks that you do to move forward? It may be leading a team, balancing a department budget, or developing members in your organization. Pinpoint the tasks that help you grow and lean into them. 

I often say the phrase, “Only do what only you can do.” This refers to delegating your tasks to other members of your team to give them the opportunity to grow! Hold on to those responsibilities that move you forward and re-evaluate the rest.

At Service Express, we use this framework along with our Vision Talks, Scorecards, ROIs, and 5/15s to help us gauge our career objectives for the future. Try using this concept for yourself and let me know what you think!