Monthly Review Skill

Facilitates monthly review and planning by rolling up weekly reviews, checking quarterly milestones, and setting next month's focus.

Usage

/monthly              # Run monthly review for current month

Or ask:

• "Help me with my monthly review"
• "Plan next month"
• "How did this month go?"

What This Skill Does

1. Creates or opens monthly goals file (Goals/2. Monthly Goals.md)
2. Rolls up weekly reviews from the past month
3. Checks quarterly milestones against yearly goals
4. Plans next month's focus areas and priorities

Review Process

Phase 1: Collect Monthly Data (10 minutes)

1. Read all weekly reviews from the past month (Goals/3. Weekly Review.md or weekly review notes)
2. Read daily notes from past 30 days (scan for patterns)
3. Read current Goals/2. Monthly Goals.md for this month's targets
4. Scan Projects/*/CLAUDE.md for project status updates

Extract:

• Wins from each week
• Challenges and recurring blockers
• Goal progress percentages
• Project milestones completed
• Habits tracked (completion rates)

Phase 2: Reflect on Month (10 minutes)

1. Read Goals/1. Yearly Goals.md for quarterly milestones
2. Calculate which quarter we're in and check milestone progress
3. Identify patterns across weeks (energy, productivity, focus areas)
4. Compare planned vs actual outcomes

Generate:

• Monthly accomplishment summary
• Quarterly milestone progress check
• Pattern analysis (what worked, what didn't)
• Goal alignment assessment

Phase 3: Plan Next Month (10 minutes)

1. Identify next month's quarterly milestones
2. Surface projects that need attention
3. Set next month's primary focus (ONE thing)
4. Define 3-tier priorities (must/should/nice-to-have)
5. Plan habits to build or maintain

Write:

• Update Goals/2. Monthly Goals.md with next month's plan
• Set specific weekly milestones for the month ahead

Output Format

## Monthly Review: [Month Year]

### Month Summary
- Weeks reviewed: 4
- Daily notes analyzed: [N]
- Projects active: [N]

### Wins
1. [Major accomplishment]
2. [Progress milestone]
3. [Habit success]

### Challenges
1. [Recurring blocker]
2. [Missed target]

### Patterns
- **Energy:** [When were you most productive?]
- **Focus:** [What got the most attention?]
- **Gaps:** [What was consistently avoided?]

### Goal Progress
| Goal | Start of Month | End of Month | Delta |
|------|---------------|-------------|-------|
| [Goal 1] | 30% | 45% | +15% |
| [Goal 2] | 50% | 55% | +5% |

### Quarterly Milestone Check
**Quarter: Q[N] ([Month Range])**
| Milestone | Status | Notes |
|-----------|--------|-------|
| [Milestone 1] | On Track | [Detail] |
| [Milestone 2] | At Risk | [What's needed] |

### Project Status
| Project | Progress | Status | Next Month Focus |
|---------|----------|--------|-----------------|
| [Project 1] | 60% | Active | [Key deliverable] |

### Next Month Plan

**ONE Focus:** [Primary objective]

**Must Complete:**
1. [Non-negotiable deliverable]
2. [Critical milestone]
3. [Key commitment]

**Should Complete:**
1. [Important but flexible]
2. [Supporting goal]

**Nice to Have:**
1. [Stretch goal]

**Weekly Milestones:**
- Week 1: [Focus]
- Week 2: [Focus]
- Week 3: [Focus]
- Week 4: [Focus + monthly review]

### Wellbeing Check
- Physical Health: /10
- Mental Health: /10
- Relationships: /10
- Work Satisfaction: /10
- Overall: /10

### Questions to Consider
- "What would make next month feel truly successful?"
- "What commitment should you drop or delegate?"
- "Which goal needs a different approach?"

Data Sources

Always read these files:

• Goals/0. Three Year Goals.md - Long-term vision context
• Goals/1. Yearly Goals.md - Quarterly milestones and annual objectives
• Goals/2. Monthly Goals.md - Current month's plan (to review) and next month's (to write)
• Goals/3. Weekly Review.md - Weekly reviews from past month
• Daily Notes/*.md - Past 30 days of notes
• Projects/*/CLAUDE.md - All active project statuses

Task-Based Progress Tracking

Monthly Review Tasks

TaskCreate:
  subject: "Phase 1: Collect monthly data"
  description: "Read weekly reviews, daily notes, and project files from past month"
  activeForm: "Collecting monthly data..."

TaskCreate:
  subject: "Phase 2: Reflect on month"
  description: "Analyze patterns, check quarterly milestones, assess goal alignment"
  activeForm: "Reflecting on monthly patterns..."

TaskCreate:
  subject: "Phase 3: Plan next month"
  description: "Set focus, define priorities, establish weekly milestones"
  activeForm: "Planning next month..."

TaskCreate:
  subject: "Write monthly review note"
  description: "Generate and save the monthly review document"
  activeForm: "Writing monthly review..."

Dependencies

TaskUpdate: "Phase 2: Reflect", addBlockedBy: [phase-1-id]
TaskUpdate: "Phase 3: Plan", addBlockedBy: [phase-2-id]
TaskUpdate: "Write monthly review", addBlockedBy: [phase-3-id]

Mark each task in_progress when starting, completed when done.

Integration

Works with:

• /weekly - Monthly review rolls up weekly reviews
• /goal-tracking - Quarterly milestone progress
• /project status - Project progress feeds monthly assessment
• /daily - Next month's plan informs daily priorities
• /push - Commit after completing review