Tackle these 19 tasks to finish 2018 right

With 2018 almost behind us and 2019 quickly approaching, the time has come to focus on tying up loose ends and making this new year your best one yet.

Be sure to check off these items before you raise your glass and toast the new year.

1. Donate to a local charity. Not only does this establish your name in the local community, but it’s a tax deduction.
2. Check the performance of all your tech tools. Is it time for an upgrade? For example, if getting your computer to do what you need is costing you valuable time, purchasing a new one is likely a better decision.
3. Read The Happiness Advantage by Shawn Achor for some great strategies to improve your mindset and business.
4. Analyze how the market has changed over the year, and the impact it has had on your bottom line.
5. Take a good hard look at your brand. Does it still represent you? A brand audit can help you make this determination.
6. Make a list of all the goals you set out to meet in 2018. Which are still pending? Figure out why, and create a plan to accomplish them.
7. Plan your budget for 2019, and get moving on 2019 action items early.
8. Schedule any dental or medical appointments you might have missed during the year. You won’t be much help to others if you are not in good health.
9. Update your biography. This should be done yearly, as a lot can change.
10. Get a new professional headshot if you haven’t done it recently.
11. Clean up your social media accounts. This means deleting anything from your feed that you don’t want out in public anymore. What might have seemed funny a year ago might not be today. It’s good practice to go through social accounts and delete anything that no longer applies or that you don’t feel comfortable about having posted. Also, don’t forget to remove images you are tagged in that still appear on your feeds.
12. Check out how you rank on Google. If you can’t find yourself, schedule a consultation with an SEO company or marketing firm.
13. Create your marketing plan for January 2019 through June 2019: direct mail campaigns, drip emails and media insertions. If you are ready to go, you will be more likely to see things through.
14. Review your website to ensure that it is still functional and accurate. Make a list of anything that has to be changed.
15. Spend a day at the spa; you deserve it. A massage and some much-needed relaxation are sure to get your creative juices flowing.
16. Let go of anything that you aren’t using. There are plenty of people who might benefit from things you have sitting around collecting dust.
17. Let the important people in your life (including clients, vendors and co-workers) know that you care about them. Send them gifts or handwritten notes.
18. Reflect on what you could have done differently in 2018 that would have made you happier, and therefore, more successful. Then incorporate lessons and new strategies for 2019.
19. Spend quality time with family during the holidays, and prepare to return to work hitting the ground running.

There’s nothing like a new year to remind us that we are getting older, and that time is passing us by quickly. The coming new year also serves as a great wake-up call. If you let things slide this year and you want a better 2019, now is the time to plan for it — you’ve still got time.

Laura Ure is the CEO of Keenability, a full-service marketing agency specializing in lifestyle and creative real estate marketing. Follow her on Facebook or Twitter.