What Should You Be Doing to Plan for 2023? 

The last couple of weeks of the year are a great time to reflect on the challenges of this year, and the opportunity to prepare for new things in 2023 . If you’re working, usually these are “light” weeks and should give you some time to think strategically which can be incredibly valuable. 

Here are some thoughts that I go through at this time of year, every year…

Review 2022

Did you approach 2022 with a plan? Did you follow it? If you’re like most retail investors, you’ll begin every year with some “resolutions” which are nothing more than “wishes.” Four weeks into the new year, the gyms are empty again as the motivation burns off. Maybe 1 in 10 investors start the year with a plan, the rest just continue doing what they did last year with various results. 

But Everyone Has a Plan…

…until they get punched in the face. And 2022 was definitely a right hook to the jaw of most investors. Crypto was at an all-time high just about a year ago in November of 2021, and now appears ready to roll around in the gutter with the “mother of all recessions” on the horizon with the Fed hiking rates in the face of weakness. 

If and when you DO come up with a plan for 2023, it’s best if you can think about how you will handle all different possibilities, instead of your “desired” one. Almost like an IF-THEN-ELSE loop, you’re ready to fire off “plan B” should the primary plan not work out. 

What Will You Do Differently in 2023? 

This is a great time to break from the funk of a bad year, and do a full “audit” of your approach to the markets. The number one thing that I see investors do which guarantees poor results…is to not determine your exit prior to entering a trade. Just taking that one small step will likely change your results for the better. 

I also encourage you to take a holistic approach to your plan and include items like education and fitness into your approach. Everything is tied together and you’ll realize that you were spending a lot of energy working against yourself. 

Make This The Year of the System

The creator of Dilbert (Scott Adams) recently wrote in his book, “Goals are for losers, systems are for winners.” Goals provide a momentary burst of energy and inspiration, however they fizzle out and this is why so many fitness goals fall well short of target. 

SYSTEMS are where the state of the art is at these days. Create a SYSTEM for yourself where all you have to do each day is turn the wheel just a little bit. Just “showing up” on a regular basis will make an incredible difference to your consistency and results. 

A great book for learning how to implement incremental systems and changes into your life is “Atomic Habits” by James Clear.