The importance of reflection (+ a free workbook)
As another year (and decade!) draws to a close, it’s time to start thinking about the year gone by and begin planning for the new one ahead. I always love this period of reflection, and I truly do believe that building a proper process around it each December has helped me to make the past few years my most productive, joyful and successful yet.
There’s so much we can gain from pausing to think about the past 12 months and setting some new intentions for the new year. It gives us the opportunity to celebrate our successes, it helps us to truly learn the lessons of the year, and it helps us to identify where we’ve still got work left to do. But I think most importantly, it encourages us to play an active rather than a passive role in our own lives, which is when the magic really begins.
For that reason, I’ve been encouraging all of my coaching clients to take some time out in the next couple of weeks to complete their own process of reflection. And while they’ve all been on board with the idea, there’s been one universal question raised: where should I start?
That’s exactly why I decided to create a free workbook, which I’ve named Reflect & Grow. To help those clients who are looking for a reflection framework, but also to help you. These are the questions and exercises I work through each and every year, and this is the process that helps me to head into January with purpose and intention.
Find a couple of hours in your diary in the next few weeks, make yourself a drink, and curl up somewhere comfy. Commit to being completely honest throughout the process, and adopt an attitude of curiosity. I find that my most meaningful answers come when I write almost in a stream of consciousness - that’s when I get the most value and insight from this process.
And then once you have your answers, read through them. Reflect on how they make you feel, and what thoughts they conjure up in relation to the year ahead. Maybe you’ll start to have some goals circling around your head, or maybe you’ll simply wish for more of the same.
Either way, you can be sure that you’re setting goals and making plans that are right for you, rather than just jumping on the “new year, new me!” hype and plucking resolutions out of thin air. And that’s bound to set you up for a better start to the year, right?