Part 1 – A reflection exercise for you
Every year, I encourage my clients to answer a series of questions that help them pause and reflect. Regularly pausing, reflecting, and planning is essential for our mental well-being, personal fulfillment, and goal setting—especially this time of year when we have the benefit of reviewing a year at a glance.
I have author David Allen to thank for these; he’s the Getting Things Done guy. He posted them a long time ago in his blog, and I’ve been using them ever since.
- What was your biggest triumph in 2023?
- What was the smartest decision you made this year?
- What one word best sums up and describes your 2023 experience?
- What was the greatest lesson you learned this year?
- What was the most loving service you performed this year?
- What is your biggest piece of unfinished business for the year?
- What are you most happy about completing this year?
- Who were the three people that had the greatest impact on your life in 2023?
- What was the biggest risk you took this year?
- What was the biggest surprise?
- What important relationship improved the most this year?
- What compliment would you like to have received this year?
- What compliment would you like to have given and to whom?
- What else do you need to do or say to be complete with the year?
Now thinking ahead, consider the following:
- What would you like to be your biggest triumph in 2024? What advice would you like to give yourself in 2024?
- What is the major effort you are planning to improve your financial results in 2024?
- What would you be most happy about completing next year?
- What major indulgence are you willing to experience in 2024?
- What would you most like to change about yourself in 2024?
- What are you looking forward to learning next year?
- What do you think your biggest risk will be in 2024?
- What about your work are you most committed to changing and improving in 2024?
- What is one as yet undeveloped talent you are willing to explore in 2024?
- What brings you the most joy, and how are you going to do or have more of that next year?
- Who or what, other than yourself, are you most committed to loving and serving in 2024?
- What one word would you like to have as your theme in 2024?
If you found these questions helpful, then check out part two of this series, where I share questions to discuss with your team, and part three, an exercise that helps you bring these reflections to life.
