Personal Reflection as a Priceless opportunity!
When you stop and pause for a moment, do you recognise that there are times when you just go from day to day? Do you ever take time to really pause to consider what you are feeling, what you are learning day to day, and what you can do to improve and support yourself going forward? This form of active personal reflection is a valuable resource. Personal reflection offers a priceless opportunity for personal growth. Developing an ongoing reflective practice is underestimated in terms of the value it offers in regard to wellbeing and personal growth. Self-reflection is an essential aspect of what facilitates personal growth, personal fulfilment, and achieving your true potential.
Opportunity for Personal Growth
Firstly developing your reflective skills and adapting to a reflective state of mind will support you in creating a deeper level of self-awareness, improved emotional intelligence and improved state of wellbeing. All of which positively influence and support you in achieving your true potential. Reflective skills will help you identify those emotions/triggers and responses that may need addressing. While helping you to consider the next steps, identify areas for learning and facilitate your ongoing personal growth as you go.
This process involves taking time to check in with yourself each day to reflect on the different aspects of your day. This includes giving yourself time to reflect on what emotions you have felt and why. It encourages you to acknowledge what you did well. It helps you to re-consider what situations you would like to have handled differently. It gives you the time to identify what parts of your day you are grateful for and what parts were a struggle. Which in turn helps you to assess how you might address these struggle areas going forward.
These reflections will provide you with the information you need to assess your needs and areas for potential growth. This process will also proactively support you in maintaining your ongoing sense of wellbeing alongside building self-awareness. Which facilitates deepening self-knowledge which better informs you going forward. Reflection creates new awareness so you know better going forward, and when you know better you have the opportunity to do better.
Establishing a Reflective practice
Secondly, adapting to a reflective state of mind will take time and effort, but with practice, it will become second nature and a natural part of your day-to-day life. Developing a more reflective state of mind and a more proactive personal reflection practice requires planning and commitment. It is also important to note that it is a very individual process, and it's important to develop a reflective practice that suits you. For some people, a reflective process will be taking some time out to simply think things through in their heads. For others it can involve writing things down, using drawings and doodles, and using a journal to track things. Others find doing self-reflection meditation and using that process to reflect on their day is a good way to facilitate that reflection.
Creating your own Reflective Practice
So finally, what would you like your practice of self-reflection to look like? When you consider developing a reflective state of mind to support yourself, what are the things that you feel could get in the way of that? What do you think you can do to manage this? Can you identify the steps you can take to support yourself to develop a more reflective state of mind? What would those steps be? Work to find a reflective practice that supports you. Create one that is relevant to your life and professional position. Create a practice that resonates with you. It takes time to develop reflective practice, that is part of the process and yet so worth it. So take note, active personal reflection is a priceless opportunity for self-discovery, personal growth and achieving your true potential. Why not take that first step?
