An Ode to the Weekly Review
Okay, Actually is a show about what’s really going on at work — and what we can do about it. New episodes come out every other Thursday and are always under 30 minutes.
A weekly review can sound like another administrative task or homework: one more obligation to fit into an already busy week, or an appointment with guilt and failure.
For me, it is the opposite. I’ve done some version of a weekly review every Sunday for more than 20 years. The exact form can change, but the ritual itself does not. It gives me a reliable place to look at what happened, decide what matters now, and figure out what to do next.
In this episode, I share the weekly ritual that has built more self-trust than any other practice in my life. I talk about the difference between consistency and rigidity, why a review should not become an exercise in judgment, what Sunday Karen can learn from the Karen who actually lived the week, and why planning can be valuable even when it doesn’t make us feel more motivated.
I also break down the simple three-part process I use to look backward, look forward, reflect, and commit (and explain why deleting something from your list may be even more satisfying than completing it).
00:00 The One Ritual I Never Skip
02:23 Inside My Sunday Weekly Review
03:48 Consistent Rituals vs. Rigid Routines
05:29 Why Weekly Reviews Feel Like Homework
08:35 Sunday Karen Meets Wednesday Karen
11:08 How Returning Builds Self-Trust
12:18 Planning Without Manufacturing Motivation
14:11 Unfinished vs. Unattended
15:36 A Three-Part Weekly Review
19:06 Celebrate Wins
21:52 Never More Than Seven Days From a Reset
A simple weekly review
Set aside approximately 30 minutes. If that feels like too much, begin with 15.
1. Look backward
Go through the previous seven days on your calendar.
What happened?
What decisions were made?
Did you promise to send, schedule, or do something?
Did someone promise to send, schedule, or do something for you?
What moved forward, even if it wasn’t completed?
Is there anything that remains open?
What did you learn?
2. Look forward
Review the next seven days and your active projects.
What is already committed?
What requires preparation?
Where are the pressure points?
Does anything need to move?
Does every active project have a clear next action?
Are you waiting for someone?
Is there anything you can remove?
3. Reflect and commit
What went well?
What are you proud of?
What happened in your life — not just your work — that you want to remember?
What didn’t work?
What do you want to change?
What three commitments would make the coming week feel successful?
4. Celebrate with an actual ode (Optional)
You completed your weekly review. This clearly calls for Beethoven: Listen to “Ode to Joy,” performed by the London Symphony Orchestra.
Remember: the purpose of the review is not to do all the work you uncover. It is to see, decide, and orient.
Research mentioned in this episode
Uhlig, L., Baumgartner, V., Prem, R., Siestrup, K., Korunka, C., & Kubicek, B. (2023). “A field experiment on the effects of weekly planning behaviour on work engagement, unfinished tasks, rumination, and cognitive flexibility.” Journal of Occupational and Organizational Psychology, 96(3), 575–598.
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