How Self-Reflection Can Help You End 2018 Positively
In a world that is constantly pulling you in what seems to be hundreds of different directions every day, what do you do to stay true to your own goals and ambitions? We are often told that we need to sit down and set weekly or monthly goals for ourselves to keep grounded, but sometimes that’s just not fun, and can often become defeating! To ensure that this does not happen to me, I am always looking for fun ways to do a little self reflection and self motivation. I stumbled across this challenge and thought it would be the perfect one to share as we end 2018.
For the past 30 days, I have been asking myself a meaningful inquisitive question every single day. I first took a few minutes to reflect on the question in my mind, and then I took a few minutes to record my thoughts in a journal. While these questions may not necessarily have been related to traditional goals, they were food for thought, and something that I otherwise probably would have never taken the time to think about.
My challenge to you is to do the same for the next 30 days. If you miss a day, don’t stress, we’re all human, but then do your best to get back on track and continue the practice. If your results are anything like mine were, you will quickly realize that not only did you develop a new goal and ambition list, but you will have developed an accumulation of entries with much deeper meaning than when you are forced to organically create a goals list.
To get you started, and to learn a little bit about me, I have decided to vulnerably and honestly share with you seven (one full week) of my entries from the past month.
Enjoy my reflections, and cheers to the beginning of your own reflections and growth. Choose to end 2018 by diving more into your intellect, heart, spirit, and core.
What is your biggest dream?
This one was hard one for me because I instantly thought professional dreams, but then I began feeling guilty for not thinking of a personal dream first. The more that I thought about it the more that I concluded that these can be the same thing, so my answer was to build a wellness legacy. What I meant by this was that I dream of creating a center where there are countless forms of alternative medicine present in the same building. Whether it be counseling, massage therapy, chiropractic, holistic healing, yoga, etc. I want all of these amazing services all in one building so that clients can have a one stop shop for all of their wellness needs.What is one lesson that you learned today?
One lesson that I learned today was I really do have the ability to motivate myself to get up and go to the gym. No matter how tired I think I feel, no matter how much I tell myself it’s going to take more than a few inspirational Pinterest quotes to get me up off of the couch, I really CAN find the motivation to make myself go. (And truth be told, it was the inspirational Pinterest quotes that really got me going!!)What is one behavior that you need to let go?
One behavior that I need to let go is finding pride in being exhausted. I feel that this is a behavior that developed by the strong influence of society. It has become cool in our world to walk around and talk about how exhausted we are, how run thin we are, how empty our tanks are, how many cups of coffee we have consumed. As a graduate student that also works full time and interns full time, it became “cool” for me to spread myself completely then and to be honest, not practice what I preach in the counseling room. I need to let go of the idea that exhaustion is okay, and put more effort into receiving adequate sleep and increasing time for self care.What’s your priority for the next week?
To be honest, the first thing that came to mind when considering my priority for next week was “get your sh*t back together.” Now let me preface that with the fact that school is almost over or the semester. This is when I can clean my house, catch up on laundry, complete all of my errands, and maybe just maybe read something that is not assigned to me. In addition to my typical cook, clean, and catch-up, I would like to prioritize more self-care and care for my loved ones in this week off. My loved ones and boyfriend are the first to get pushed aside when I have school, work, or internship demands and unfortunately they (too often!) get pushed to the back burner. This is a week that I get to dedicate to myself, and to them, and I cannot wait for that priority!What is something that gives you energy?
Seeing my clients every week. Now I’m not saying this to get all of you to think that I am counselor of the year, but I am saying it because I committed to honesty and transparency, and I get energy from the time that I spend with all of you. There is a certain sense of peace and tranquility that I get knowing that I am trusted to sit with you and listen as you share all of your deepest hurts, secrets, and stories with me. While oftentimes my heart hurts for my clients and the stories that are shared, I leave sessions with a sense of energy knowing that I have committed to and you trust me to go through these pains not beside you, but with you every week!What was the last self-care thing you did?
I bought not one, not two, but three different treats from the Hy-Vee bakery. Maybe it was a little excessive order all three, and to be honest I am ashamed to admit how much of them didn’t’ actually get eaten, but when I was trying to pick, I couldn’t pick just one! I wanted all three treats, and so I “treated” myself to all three. I typically do not purchase treats as I feel that there are other ways to cure those nasty sweet tooth cravings, but sometimes you just have to eat the shortcake, cheesecake, and tiramisu because your sweet tooth simply wants you to indulge, and self care rules tell you that it’s okay to do!
If you would like to embark on your own self-reflection journey, here are questions, challenges, and lists that you can use exactly or pick your own questions from.
30 Days - Setting the Intentions
Journal Bullet Questions
For the Joy
Andrea McDonald
Counseling Intern
MORE BY INTERNS
