Do This Tiny Year-End Retro If You Want a Raise

(Or at Least Fewer Useless Meetings in 2026)

Most people end the year exhausted and vaguely dissatisfied, but if you ask them why, they can’t quite say. A lot happened. None of it feels clearly “countable.”

Then January rolls around. Reviews. Planning. Promotion conversations. And suddenly everyone is trying to reverse-engineer their own year from calendar invites and Slack threads.

Here’s the thing nobody tells you:

Being busy is not the same as being valuable.
And no one is keeping track for you.

You don’t need a vision board or a 12-month personal OKR system. You need about 30 minutes and a piece of paper.

Try this.

1. Write Down Your Wins (The Real Ones)

List three things you did this year that actually helped:

• make or save money
• help customers
• make your team’s life easier

Not effort. Not “I worked really hard on X.”
Actual results.

If you’re stuck, that’s a signal.
It doesn’t mean you didn’t do anything—it means your impact isn’t obvious yet.
That’s fixable. But only if you can name it.

2. Pick One Skill That Levels You Up

Not five. One.

Ask yourself: What would make people trust me with bigger stuff next year?

Maybe it’s:

• making decisions instead of waiting for consensus
• explaining complex things clearly
• pushing back without sounding defensive
• finishing things instead of juggling everything

Senior people don’t magically know more.
They’re just better at handling uncertainty without making it everyone else’s problem.

3. Cut Two Energy Drains

Think of the things that quietly ruin your week:

• the meeting that never needs to exist
• the task you always “temporarily” own
• the constant context switching

Pick two and decide how you’ll reduce them.

Cancel, delegate, batch, or redesign.
Be slightly ruthless.

Burnout usually isn’t about workload.
It’s about doing too much work that doesn’t matter.

4. Be Strategic About Visibility (Yes, Really)

You don’t need to self-promote constantly.
But you do need to be intentional.

Name one person whose opinion actually affects your growth.
Now ask: How will they clearly see my impact next year?

Not through mind-reading.
Through outcomes, updates, and conversations that connect your work to what they care about.

Unfair? Maybe.
Reality? Definitely.

5. Write One Sentence for 2026

One sentence. That’s it.
Something like:

• “I want to be trusted, paid fairly, and not constantly rushed.”
• “I want fewer tasks and more ownership.”
• “I want my work to matter—and be seen.”

Put it somewhere visible. Check it occasionally. Adjust if needed.
Direction beats motivation every time.

The Point

Most people drift into the new year hoping things improve.
Few people decide:

• what they want to be known for
• what they’re done tolerating
• what kind of year they’re actually aiming for

Those people don’t look louder or busier.
They just seem to be doing better by mid-year.

Do the small retro.
It's boring, but it works.