Yes, reflection. And, vision.
How to look back in order to look ahead.
Happy 2022! Whether you’re still stuck in 2021, reliving your favorite moments or hung up on regrets, or you’ve already done your best to forget the year ever happened, this one's for you. This week’s piece is a little bit different than usual, and I think you’ll find it valuable in this season of renewal.
I’ve often struggled to know how to approach a new year. We’re all too familiar with the three week (in a good year) lifespan of resolutions, so simply listing things I’d like to accomplish feels like posturing. Yet, there’s something about turning to the first page in a new calendar and seeing the fresh date of 1/1 which makes me feel like there’s something significant about a new year. I want to take some time to intentionally take inventory of my life and readjust a few areas at a time, but I don’t want to over-commit. Believe it or not, I found an answer on social media.
A couple of years ago I found myself mindlessly scrolling through Instagram when a friend’s post suddenly jumped out at me. “Reflection and vision.” She shared how she journaled through guided prompts to reflect on the year coming to a close and cast vision for the year to come. This was what I’d been looking for—a more nuanced version of resolutions while keeping in mind lessons learned from the past year.
I’ve set aside an afternoon in early January for the past two years now to honor the past year and prepare for the new one and I plan to keep doing so for years to come. I use elements of my friend’s original prompts, modified for myself, and I find each year I learn more about myself and my habits while becoming more realistic in what I can achieve. I do set goals—although they’re more process-oriented than outcome-oriented—but I don’t have a 100% success rate. Yet, because of the additional reflection behind those goals, I find myself getting closer each year to establishing those habits.
This week, I’m sharing some of these prompts. It’s my hope you will sit down with yourself and journal, type, or simply reflect to yourself on these questions in a way which is most meaningful to you.
Reflection
Summarize the past year.
Set a timer and just write for 3-5 minutes. Don’t think too hard, just dump your thoughts on the page. What feelings are evoked by thinking about the past year? What lessons first come to mind?
Wins.
When and how did things go as planned? When did they not go as planned, but still turned out in a pleasant or meaningful way?
Losses.
What pain did you experience this year? How did that shape you? Which were in your control, and how will you avoid repeating those mistakes? Which weren’t in your control, and how did you make peace?
What worked?
Habits, apps, places that brought fulfillment + productivity + purpose. Actions that were a vote for the person you most want to be, put them here.
What didn’t work?
Habits + apps + tendencies to drop. Actions that were a vote against the person you most want to be, list those here.
Key message of the year.
If you picked a word for the year at the beginning, did you live it out? Did another word become more prominent? What themes kept showing up? How did you grow? How do you want to remember this year?
Vision
Summarize your hope for the new year.
Again, set a timer for 3-5 minutes and just write your heart out. When the year is complete, what do you want to be reflecting on?
Mission
What roles will you fill this year? (Student, brother, girlfriend, employee, etc). What will those roles look like for you? Make these a series of “I will” statements for each role you fill.
Vision
By the end of this year, who will you be? What will you have done? What lessons will you have learned?
Intentions + Habits
Refer back to what worked and didn’t work from last year and set intentions for what you’ll continue doing, what you’ll start doing, and what you’ll stop doing. If you’re already doing something, how can you do it better? Focus on process (ex: exercise 3-5 times per week) instead of outcome (lose x pounds) and you’ll find it’s more sustainable.
Prayer
As a person of faith, I like to begin with prayer, weave spiritual growth throughout these prompts, and then end with a prayer for the Lord to guide my steps and my vision. I don’t usually write down my prayers at other times but I find it valuable to go back and read how I prayed each year. Feel free to skip this portion if it’s not for you or replace in whatever way you see fit.
Once I’ve journaled through all the prompts, I don’t just leave it in a document and never look at it again; I refer back to my thoughts regularly throughout the year. Keep yourself accountable, share with a friend so they can be part of your growth each year, and rest in the knowledge that this new year is not aimless for you.
If we only focus on what we want the future to look like, we’ll miss out on earned knowledge of the past. If we fail to admit to ourselves what we want to accomplish, we’ll always be living in a past that no longer exists. Reflection is valuable because of how it helps us achieve our vision; vision is valuable because it keeps us from losing ourselves in reflection.
Do you have a system for reflection and vision? What prompts would you add to this list? Drop your thoughts in the comments below or tag @miriamrosah on Twitter or Instagram. I’d love to learn from you.