Block 90 minutes in December, scroll your calendar day by day from January 1, and reconnect with the people whose names still make you smile.
The idea
Your calendar is like last winter's coat with a forgotten $20 in the pocket, except the treasure is people. Our brains are bad at remembering who we really liked and when we last spoke, so good people slip through the cracks every year. The distance helps. Months later you know who you'd dread seeing again, who you can't remember at all, and who you really hit it off with. The folks who still make you smile when you see their name a year later? They're your relationship gold. Trust your gut on this one.
How to do it
Block 90 minutes. Yes, put it on your calendar.
Start at January 1 and scroll through each day.
For each meeting ask: What do I think of them now? Have we spoken since? Do I want to keep this?
Note every name that makes you think "oh yeah, they were awesome!"
Add each one to your CRM or contact system.
Send the no-ask message in the Script.
Example
I do this every December as part of my yearly review. I skim my recent contacts a few times a week and I still miss people, so a couple of hours at year end is worth it. In December 2025 I ran it by sorting the names by how they made me feel (energy givers, drainers, forgettables), which is its own exercise, the Energy Audit. Either way, the move afterward is the same: go deeper with people you already know instead of polishing a LinkedIn post for strangers.
Script
"Hey! Was just reviewing my year and remembered our great conversation back in _______. Hope you're doing well!"
Watch out for
Don't ask for anything. Remembering them is the whole message.
Most people won't take the time to do this. Don't be most people.
Relatable: If your calendar syncs to Relatable, every meeting is already sitting on that person's profile, so the review doubles as cleanup (I'm biased). A plain calendar works fine. How-to: Sync your calendar automatically, The year-end outreach.
Related frameworks
The Energy Audit: Scroll last year's calendar, notice your gut reaction to each name, and sort people into energy givers, drainers and forgettables.
Reconnecting After a Long Silence: Skip the apology. Send a short note that they came to mind, ideally with one real detail or shared memory, and leave the ball in their court.
The Review Cadence: Review weekly for 30 minutes, monthly for an hour, quarterly for half a day and yearly on a retreat, so you stop adding without removing.
The One-Year Test: Before writing a note about someone, ask what you'll want to remember about them next year. Write one thing, maybe two, then stop.