Closing a month early in the quarter often has an odd feeling to it, a strange uneasiness. You’ve set your goals, but you’re still not completely confident in them.

Ideally, you’ve had that last-minute rush at the end of the month and closed a deal, completed an important piece of work, or opened a new door that gives your confidence a boost.

But you still catch yourself looking at your goals and feeling the urge to refine them.

The goal-setting reflex

You find yourself looking at your goals and wanting to add or remove something.

Refining and resetting your goals gives you clarity and restores your confidence. It quietens the nag at the back of your mind.

It also provides a sense of control, the same kind of control that comes from ending one period and starting another.

Looking back illuminates the path ahead

When we haven’t walked the metaphorical path before, which is often the case with business goals, it is looking back that makes the way ahead clearer.

Both what’s working and what’s not hold answers about where to go next. When you reflect on both, it becomes more obvious what you can do to make the progress you want.

The trouble is that in business, the pressure is usually on to get results, and action feels like momentum. Reflection means pausing, and pausing doesn’t obviously translate into results.

Looking back isn’t a pause or a retreat. It’s how you orient your next steps using the wisdom of the steps you’ve already taken.

Repetition creates stability

Like a path through a forest, business rarely follows a straight line. Reviewing your goals at the end of a period can give you insight, but it doesn’t give you an opportunity to change your position.

Regular reflection changes that. You don’t need to light the whole path ahead. You only need to see the next few steps.

That reassurance matters. It gives you confidence that if you take a few missteps, you’ll recognise them and adjust. Over time, this quietens your mind and creates space for more strategic thinking.

You’ll also find that insights compound. Decisions improve. The way ahead becomes clearer without needing dramatic resets.

Reflection is a tool that’s always with you. For goals that matter, it becomes foundational.