Reflect, Plan & Prioritize - Creating a Life with Intention
Human beings are pretty special creatures. We have been blessed with these big, complex, high functioning brains that allow us to shape and create our own life. Of the many things our brains allow us to do, reflecting on the past, planning for the future and making conscious, intentional choices in the present is what truly sets us apart. Rather than living in a state of pure reaction driven by the need to survive as most living things do, we have the opportunity to expand our perspective and become conscious creators of our lives.
Reflecting - Reflection is so important because it allows us to learn from the past, notice our continual growth and see where we could improve. The end of the year is an amazing time to set aside time to reflect on your life. My life & business coach, Dani Kenney, taught me a method for reflecting that I love. Below is a list of reflection questions to help you turn inward and harvest the lessons of your life experiences.
What 3 words come to mind when you think about the past year?
Wellness Scale - Rate each of the following on a scale of 1-10 for the period of time you are reflecting on.
Happiness
Calmness
Fulfilment
Energy
Health
Relationship
Fun & Leisure
Self Care
Productivity/ Time Management
I wish I would have done more of…
I wish I would have done less…
The top 3 things I’m proud of…
Top 3 lessons I learned…
Most memorable parts of the past month…
What was my main goal? What progress did I make toward that goal?
How I succeeded…
How I can improve for the month ahead…
I’d like to celebrate and give gratitude for…
Planning - Unlike any other living thing, humans have the ability to imagine a reality different than the one they are currently experiencing. This is useful for endeavors such as scheduling a meeting next week (you can predict where you will be at that time) or for envisioning your ideal life (you can imagine a reality where you have the nice house or the new job or good health). Taking time to intentionally plan out what you want your future to look like is a powerful exercise in creating the life of your dreams and knowing what steps to take next.
Some potent questions to ask yourself are:
What do I want to do/create/ accomplish/ experience this month/year?
What will I be celebrating at the end of this month/year. So, on December 31st, 2023 what will I have accomplished?
How can I show up for my goals and desires?
What habits & behaviors can I implement that will support me?
What habits & behaviors can I let go of that will hinder me?
What are my top priorities for the upcoming month/year?
Is there anything I can ask for help with? Who are my go-to support people?
What is the next best step?
Prioritize - Our big, beautiful brains give us the capacity to make choices today that will lead us in the direct we want to be tomorrow. We can think big picture, prioritize our goals and predict the outcomes of our decisions (to a certain extent). This is why planning is so important, because when we create a vision in our mind of what we are aiming for we become empowered to make better choices in the present. This becomes a helpful tool when making decisions on a daily basis. You can ask yourself, “is this decision moving me closer to my ultimate goals, or further away?”.
The New Year is a potent time to reflect, plan and prioritize. I encourage you to set aside a chunk of time and give yourself the gift of looking back at how far you’ve come, getting excited about what’s on the horizon and becoming clear on your priorities. Doing this will set you up for more success, alignment, fulfillment and fun in the months to come!