Tap into the Power of Reflection All Year Long: Accessible Prompts to Unlock Stuckness and Guide Your Path
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We all love a reflection moment around holidays like new years and birthdays.
We’re drawn to the power we feel when we recognize where we’ve been, what we’ve accomplished, and what’s on the horizon.
My friends and I are always coming up with a special mantra for our birthdays - 22 and I’m cuter than you, 23 finally feels good to be me, 24 I ain’t broke no more, 25 it’s my time to thrive…
These mantras bring us together to celebrate the person's growth over the previous year and sets an intention for what the upcoming year will bring. And ~clearly~ they represent where we are mentally and emotionally during those times in our life.
But reflection and setting intentions are far too beneficial to reserve for only a few times a year.
With consistent reflection, you set the stage for what you want your life to look like rather than dealing with life happening to you.
For anyone who feels lost and without purpose OR anyone with ambitious goals and dreams, self-reflection can set you on the right path forward.
Below I highlight some of the best times for reflection and share prompts that’ll help you soak up the clarity you need to achieve your dream life with confidence.
Yearly
Most of us have this one down! Yes, I know you watched your “year in review” photo montage around December 31st… But yearly reflection can actually happen multiple times a year.
Here are a few great times for a yearly reflection and the questions you can journal on:
New Year 🎆
Whether it’s on January 1st or sometime during that cozy week between Christmas and New Years, this is the time of year where you can feel the energy of new beginnings.
Rather than setting a silly resolution that 90% of people won’t stick to, or jumping on a trend that might not be what you need, use these questions to guide you into action for your unique goals:
- List some highlights from the year.
- What accomplishments are you most proud of yourself for?
- What challenges or setbacks did you experience? Did you bounce back or is this still a struggle?
- List 20 things you learned this year.
- Based on what you’ve done, choose 1 new thing you want to do or accomplish by the end of this new year.
Birthday Reflection 🎂
- What is something you cared about last year on your birthday that now you don’t?
- When did you feel most loved and celebrated?
- Who is around you when you feel your best?
- List 20 lessons you learned at this age.
- What does future you, one year from now, look like? How are they different from who you are today?
Anniversaries / Big Life Events 🤍
- Write about how you’ve grown with or apart from the people this date reminds you of.
- What emotions come up during this time of year? How are you caring for yourself and acknowledging these emotions?
- What is your favorite memory together from this past year?
- What is one thing you can do to connect more deeply in relationships this year?
Quarterly
As we get older, the years seem to fly by faster and faster. By taking a pause to reflect each quarter, we can integrate our newest learning and experiences to fast track our growth and success.
Every 90 days journal on:
- How have things changed in the past three months? What have I accomplished in relation to what I set out to do?
- What still needs to change?
- What is one new small healthy habit I can add to support myself better?
Cyclically
Human emotions are affected by the cycle of the moon. Being in tune with your emotions and knowing how to support yourself is a key aspect of becoming your desired future self.
A new moon starts the 28-day cycle. During this time, the sky is dark and we may find ourselves feeling more calm, peaceful, and clear. Because of this, a new moon is the perfect time to set intentions for the upcoming cycle.
By cultivating the powerful energy of this time, you plant the seeds for what you intend to experience by the time the full moon illuminates the sky 14 days later.
Explore these journal prompts the evening of a new moon:
- What does my dream life look like? How does it feel to live this reality?
- What did I do last cycle that felt completely aligned?
- Who do I want to be? How can I embody this new energy?
- What did I manifest last cycle? Am I happy with this experience?
- What does my heart deeply desire? Why do I want to manifest this?
- What adventure did I experience last month? How did that make me feel?
- What new adventure can I plan this month? (Exploring somewhere or something new every 4-6 weeks is powerful for joy, pleasure, and expansion! Planning this monthly is a great reminder to make it a priority.)
During a full moon, the sky is brighter and we may feel ourselves being more active, energized, and emotional.
If you catch yourself feeling frustrated, angry, or off track during this time, pull out your journal and express those thoughts on paper. This will help you release all that is not serving you and bring you back into harmony with who you want to be.
If tracking moon cycles and working with energy is not your thing, having a monthly check-in can help you experience this same powerful reflection.
As a new month is approaching — or every new moon, I love to reflect with my monthly R.E.P.O.R.T.
Reading: What did you read this month? What points or topics resonated with you?
Eating: What have you been consuming that makes your body feel incredible?
Playing: How did you incorporate play this month?
Obsessing: What have you been loving and obsessing over this month? What have you been feeling enthusiastic about?
Recommending: What have you been sharing with everyone lately because you enjoy it so much?
Treating: How have you cared for yourself this month? What practices feel healing and supportive of your holistic well-being?
*Note: I did not make up this R.E.P.O.R.T. It’s a trend I saw on social media that has helped me with monthly reflection.
Weekly
With a fresh new week at your fingertips, reflecting on what worked last week can propel you forward with clarity.
I came up with a weekly self-C.A.R.E reflection to give me a quicker way to tap into this practice than the monthly R.E.P.O.R.T.
Self-
Cooking: How did you cook for yourself in a way that focuses on nourishment? How do you want to romanticize this experience more?
Art: What art resonated with you last week? (nature, social media content, paintings, architecture, poetry, photography, fashion, etc.)
Reading: What have you read recently? Is it challenging your beliefs, bringing pleasure, or teaching you something new?
Enthusiasm: What lit you up last week? What were you doing when you were experiencing pure joy? Who were you with?
Daily
Having a daily reflection practice is super important to stay grounded in who you want to be.
This can be a super short journaling session or even just questions you think about as you wake up in the morning or lie down at night.
- How am I different from who I was 24 hours ago?
- What new information did I learn in the past 24 hours?
- How do these changes support my goals?
- How did I care for my physical health in the past 24 hours? Mental? Emotional?
- Who did I spend time with in the past 24 hours that felt uplifting and loving?
How Can I Make This a Routine?
Engaging in these reflection practices can change the person you currently are, into your ideal future self.
By studying what you’ve done, you can implement new learning and use your experience to consciously choose your future.
It’s not always realistic to think that we will make the time for each of these reflection times. However, each new phase whether that be a new year or a new day, brings powerful opportunities for understanding and direction.
The best way to keep track of all of these different moments throughout the year is to schedule them. I use the calendar on my phone to remind me of the days I want to plan a few minutes for journaling.
I follow this Instagram account to remind me of the new moons and I try to plan a few minutes for journaling right after dinner on those days. But I’ll be honest, I don’t remember those 100% of the time which is why I also plan the monthly R.E.P.O.R.T. on the last Sunday of every month.
Every other Sunday, I do my weekly self-C.A.R.E reflection along with a brain dump on what’s been on my mind and what’s been resonating lately and I share these in my newsletter!
Daily journaling is powerful when you make it a part of your routines. The best way to make the time is to habit stack. Pick a time in your day when you already have a set habit, maybe it’s making your morning coffee or eating dinner. Immediately after doing that thing you always do, make that be your trigger to start journaling.
The second your coffee is made, that's your sign to sit down and start journaling. You don’t have to remember it or think about it, it’s just what you do.
Everyone’s daily rituals are unique so finding the time in each day where it makes most sense to add journaling will be key. Although writing things down feels more powerful and true, if you don’t feel like a daily journaling practice is the best use of your time, because yes, sometimes sleep is the best thing you can do for yourself, then don’t.
Setting a time each day to simply think about your answers to the daily prompts is beneficial.
Maybe every day when you start your morning walk, or while you brush your teeth you bring the questions to mind and answer them intentionally while you do other things.
Let It Flow
With any personal development tool, it’s important to implement in a way that works for you.
This should not be so rigid that it makes you feel bad about yourself if you don’t do it perfectly every single day.
Listen to your body and pay attention to how you feel while you’re reflecting.
Are the prompts bringing out insightful responses?
Does it feel empowering and uplifting?
This is how you find your flow.
I found my favorite way to reflect is by writing my newsletter. Every week I share the exact wellness and personal development practices and tips that have been most impactful on me that week.
To get ideas for your own reflection practice, learn the tools that are changing my joy, health, business, and relationships, and catch up with my favorites of the week, join the community by dropping your email here.
I can't wait to connect with you in your inbox 🤍
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