At the end of the year, I always spend some time reflecting. I usually do a combination of journalling, meditating and giving myself plenty of quiet time. I’ll make lists of goals I have for the New Year, things I want to accomplish, and areas for self-improvement I want to work on. I’m doing this a little differently as we close out 2024, and I wanted to share the approach I’m taking as a possible source of inspiration for resolutions and reflections.
One of the things I’m doing differently is spending some extra time acknowledging and appreciating the version of me that exists right now. Before I show her everything she needs to improve on, before I push her towards all she needs to achieve in the new year, I’m recognizing her as she is. To do this, here are some questions I will continue to muse on over the next several days:
- What did I accomplish last year that I am proud of, and what qualities of mine helped me with those accomplishments?
- What experiences did I have last year that really made me happy? Reflect on those with gratitude.
- What challenges did I have to navigate, and what qualities of mine helped with those challenges?
- What lessons did I learn – whether from something going well, or not going well?
- What unexpected blessings came my way? Reflect on those with gratitude.
Another element to end-of-year reflection is goal setting. My usual approach is to write down specific goals I want to accomplish, both personally and professionally. Instead of getting too specific right now, I’m simply making a list of what I want more of in my life, and what I want less of.
There is a lot of research on goal setting, and typically the more specific the goal is, the better we can do at breaking it down into steps so it’s achievable. So as the year goes on, I will likely refine some of the “want more of” items on my list to be more detailed. But for now, this feels like the right approach.
I’ve had times where I felt ready to charge full speed into all sorts of goals and resolutions for the new year. This time around, I just felt I needed a gentler method. If this idea appeals to you, start by honoring the version of you that is here now – after all, this version has already made it this far!