Making self-Reflection a daily priority

This past year I used an app called “1 Second Everyday”.  The goal is to capture a 1-second video highlight of each day. The app then mashes each month, so you can view the 30 or 31 second video of your month’s highlights.  And at the end of the year the app mashes the year’s worth of 1-second videos and you have 365 seconds of all your highlights! I loved it.  It was great to see my months and my year in review. Using this app kept my focus each day on something I wanted to highlight. As I step into 2020, I want to take that approach with me, focusing on something to highlight, not missing the meaning in day to day life.

Sometimes I miss the key moments of the day because I am busy or feeling overwhelmed or rushing here and there. 2019 gave me a reason to look for something I wanted to capture: something meaningful, playful, celebratory or impactful. It transformed the ordinary, mundane days into extraordinary ordinary moments to capture. I had to slow down and take notice of what was happening around me. This is what reflection does. 
Reflection requires you to slow down which can lead to valuable insights and even breakthroughs in your life. It gives the brain an opportunity to pause, untangle and sort through experiences, consider possible interpretations and create meaning in your life. Last week I sent an email with 10 reflection questions for 2019.  Today I want to challenge you to make self-reflection a part of your day. This is a way to live more intentionally and more mindfully. Consider making daily self-reflection a part of your everyday routine, taking 10-15 minutes/day.
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Here are 7 reasons to make self-reflection a priority in your life:

1. Helps you process your thoughts and feelings. As you reflect on a particular situation, relationship or event, you can sort through your thoughts and feelings. The “why” to the “how”.
2. New ideas will emerge in your thinking. When you are always doing, producing, moving, active you can forget to stop and think. Taking time, a pause, in the regular routine allows new ideas to emerge and counters the risk of becoming stagnant. It opens up space in your brain to dream and imagination improves.
3. Recognize change and progress. As you take time to reflect daily, you will notice growth in your life. Journaling is a great way to reflect. Writing things out gives you the opportunity to see how you are changing and growing.
4. Builds self-awareness. You gain better understanding of your strengths, weaknesses, emotions, values, etc.
5. Provides perspective. Taking a step back, you gain understanding. You can see the bigger picture and make decisions with more clarity.
6. Strengthens your value system. The more time you take to reflect, the greater confidence you will have in what you believe and what you stand for.
7. Uncover dreams, aspirations and potential. Taking time to reflect may reveal dreams that have been hidden or lost in the busyness of life or hardships of life.

 
Daily self-reflection questions. Use any or all of them:
Today,

1. What was I most proud of?
2. What am I most grateful for?
3. Is my allocation of time congruent with what is most important to me?
4. What situation did I handle well? What situation could I have responded better?
5. Anything weighing on my mind right now?
6. What feels like a struggle at this moment?
7. What thoughts have I been repeating in my mind? Are they true?
8. What advice do I need to give myself?
9. What project am I loving? What project is a struggle?
10.  Top 1-3 highlights of the day. 

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