Repeat after me: It’s never too late to start over.
Thanksgiving is for remembering your blessings. Christmas is for children and miracles. New Years Eve is for reflection. Or as I like to put it – Interrogation time. You see, I may be a blogger now, but I’m still a journalist at heart so I can’t pass up any chance I have to question any and everything I can think of. That’s why I’m a big fan of New Years Eve. It’s my chance to ask all those hard to answer questions.
As you may recall from my post last year, I’m really not a fan of new years resolutions. Instead, I vow to be better than I was yesterday for the duration of the year. Regardless of making a resolution or not, reflecting on the year still proves to be a necessity. Yearly reflection or a year-end review allows you to see where you rise and fall as well as your biggest takeaways. Of course, saying going “reflect on the last year” is a lot easier said than done. It’s a rather broad task to sum up 365 days in jus a week. That’s why I created this list of must-ask questions to help summarize the year and guide you in the next one.
Remember, this isn’t a test. Nor are there any right or wrong answers. It’s simply a tool to help you realize your growth in the past year and help you continue to grow in the new one.
- What do you need stop doing?
- What made you proud?
- In what areas did you struggle?
- What 3 words would you use to describe 2016?
- What things did you find made you jealous?
- What was your favorite compliment received during the year?
- How did you best spend your time?
- What your biggest time suck this year?
- What books, movies, or others work of art had the biggest influence on your life?
- How would you describe your mental state during the year? Were you depressed, curious, enlightened, excited, hopeful, etc.?
- What things did you celebrate?
- What things didn’t you celebrate but wish you did?
- What made you laugh?
- What did you stop doing but wish you hadn’t?
- What did you learn?
- Did you feel fulfilled?
How do you choose to reflect on the past year?
TERRific Words: If you have a problem that has no solution, it’s possible you don’t have a problem.
I’m definitely going to use this list. I’m finding it rather gruesome to find a lot of good with this year and hopefully this list will allow me to form another conclusion before the new year.