Photo by JESHOOTS.COM on Unsplash
Yes, it is still August. Yes, it is still summer. Yes, it feels a bit ridiculous to be thinking about next year already. I promise that if you stick with me for a few minutes, I will show you that the opportunity you have in front of you right now is very real.
Most of us are oriented to the Western calendar. The year “starts” on January 1st and all subsequent events hang off of that date. By the time we get to the fourth quarter, we are burnt out and wrapping up with a heavy holiday season.
That view of the calendar never felt natural to me. Instead, I’ve always felt inclined to the school calendar. The year begins after Labor Day weekend and ends on June 30th. July and August are for relaxation, cookouts, and enjoying the outside world.
I’ve written about this before, but I view the four quarters of the calendar in the following order (in terms of importance to technology delivery in the corporate world):
Q2: No major holidays, no budget season, just pure delivery
Q3: Contention with the 4th of July week and summer vacations, but many “larger” projects that kicked off at the beginning of the year are trying to stick the landing
Q1: Starts slowly with budgets being finalized, performance reviews, and year-end reporting
Q4: For sales, insanely important. For tech delivery, not so much.
If you take a school-year approach to your year, you are better positioned to capitalize on the reality of the corporate calendar. Use the end of Q3/beginning of Q4 to get organized, and to think about what’s going to be most important to deliver. The changes you want to make and how you might go about making them.
And get those plans in motion while the rest of the corporate world is slowing down.
Thinking about getting in shape in 2025? Start slowly now so that come January 1st, you’re already 4 months into your health journey.
Thinking about learning a new skill? With ~128 days left in 2024, you could have over 100 hours invested in that skill without going overboard.
Thinking about a new job? Get that resume updated now while 2024 is fresh in your mind and start interviewing. When budgets are refreshed and new jobs are posted in 2025, your pitch will be polished.
Thinking about a new operational process? Experiment now to figure out what will make a difference next year.
There is so much opportunity left in 2024. Take advantage of the time that is otherwise wasted by accelerating your big plans for 2025. Imagine a 4-month head start against everyone else making “life-changing” choices?