December is the perfect time of year to step back, pause, and reflect, so you can move forward into January feeling informed and empowered to take on the New Year. I ask myself the same questions every year, and 2022 was an especially big year for myself and for Mosaic Engagement. How was your year? Try using the prompts below or writing your own!

What went well?

This year marked the first annual Mosaic Women’s Retreat! This event has been in my head for YEARS so to bring it into the world was very special for me. Women came to Backyard on Aberdeen in Brandon for two wonderful days filled with networking, reflecting, and committing to themselves. This was years in the making and something that will continue for years to come.

What will I do differently next year?

My learning goal for next year is to build in more breathing room. This may be in my calendar between events or within my day. While I am an eternal optimist who believes everything will go my way, I would like to build in some “realist time” to allow a little bit of grace when things do not go my way.

What surprised me about this year?

Typically, the busier and slower parts throughout the year are predictable with some accuracy. This year was anything but typical! 

Any ah-ha moments?

This year was filled with small, intentional tweaks made here and there that added up to a great year. Staying true to my organizational change background, I did not rely on a big ah-ha moment to drive change. Instead, I identified a few large goals and was specific about what steps to take to reach those goals. The Mosaic Women’s Retreat and Non-Profit Leadership Training in partnership with Volunteer Manitoba were two of those goals that came to fruition.

The biggest takeaway from 2022?

Things don’t always go as planned but having that plan helps get things back on track. I stopped keeping track of the number of sick days we took within our family of 4. I took some time off in the summer and due to a comedy of errors, it ended up being longer than expected. Coupled with our first “regular fall” (without COVID restrictions) and the pedal-to-the-metal pace with which 2022 rounded out, many of my best-laid plans did not roll out as intended. However, those plans and Clickup, my favourite project management software, were exactly what helped me to get back on track. Future Megan will keep on planning.