The decisions you make every day affects the direction where you are going. We usually only start doing self-reflection on a deeper level or on our core values when we are in a crisis! Does that sound similar to you? Rather, it should be part of our everyday life. Although the word of “crisis” meaning in Ancient Greek is “power of distinguishing” “decision” and “choice” that means a new beginning. 🙂 When was the last time you thought about what your core values were and whether you were living up to them?
We usually just get through our days by focusing on the day-to-day tasks that we have to accomplish. Going through the motions of daily lives could feel like we are on a treadwheel. Repetition doesn’t just create routines it also normalizes our behavior. And we can become so used to doing what we have been doing that it takes a conscious effort to stop and take some time to check-in with ourselves. “Coaching 20 years without reflection is like coaching 1 year 20 times” /Wade Gilbert/
There is a difference between reflection and introspection. Ideally, you need both introspection and reflection. Introspection is the examination of one’s own conscious thoughts and feelings and does not include an outside perspective. Through introspection, you observe your own mental state and soul and it’s the process within. In essence, introspection is a deeper and more personal form of reflection. In an introspection, the whole tendency is to self-evaluate and measure and evaluate the philosophical aspects as well. Vs. reflection implies a fixing of thoughts on something or a thought and it looks for the facts. Reflection is also including how something or somebody is perceived. The term reflection denotes the act or state of being reflected. You have to be able to step back and analyze your own actions in situations as an observer as well. Think about how you are perceived from outside (have a critical friend or a coach). In addition, you should also consider how you feel in those particular stations in terms of the types of thoughts and feelings you have. Based on these analyses you can always improve your performance and life in general -do things better next time or avoid certain situations or behaviors in the future if they didn’t serve your purpose.
Here are some important questions to ask to clarify your core values:
- What are you passionate about?
- What are you the proudest of?
- What are you most grateful for in life?
- What are the most important things to you in life?
- What are your biggest goals in life? What is stopping from pursuing them?
- Who are the 5 people you spend the most time with? Are these people supportive of you and your goals or holding you back?
- What are the most important things you learned about yourself last year?
- If you are to do something for free for the rest of your life, what do you want to do?
- Where do you put your energy when you are overstressed?
Sometimes we forget to check-in and answer these questions. Let’s do it and email me if you have any questions dora@dorakurimay.com