This year has been far from 'normal' and although we can appreciate and empathise with our community as a whole, each one of us has been on an individual journey - a personal journey of challenges and learnings. We may not yet fully understand the complete magnitude of this year, but as 2020 draws to a close, it is a good time to reflect on the highs and lows, the light in the dark and our personal wins.
To continue to grow from any experience, we need to make a concerted effort to recognise what we have learnt, how we have changed and what this means for our future.
Within a short time frame, we've changed, adapted, adjusted and taken on more than we could imagine. There will be so many learnings but often we fail to give ourselves the space and time to reflect.
Reflection, or 'thinking' is one way to become aware of what has changed around us. It helps create conscious awareness and identify what we want for the future based on recent experiences. A regular practice of reflecting helps cement the learning and create new perspectives and habits.
"Looking back so that the view looking forward is even clearer"
Consider these prompts:
Name 5 significant events / situations from this year. Take a couple of moments to remember each one of those (how you felt, what your mood was like, your reaction, the reactions of others).
What challenges have you faced? What would you say to yourself now if you were facing the same challenges?
What obstacles have you overcome? What attributes played a role in enabling you to overcome them?
What successes have you had? What was your role in that success?
When have you surprised yourself most?
To deepen your reflection and delve into the learning, consider the following:
What would you say to yourself 12 months ago, knowing what you know now?
What positives have emerged from this situation?
What have you learnt about what is important to you?
What would you like to take forward into 2021 with you?
What would you like to leave in 2020?
And finally...:
What is the main thing you are taking away from these reflections?
How will you use this learning moving into 2021?
What happens if you decide to ignore these learnings?
If you could change one thing now, to benefit you in 2021, what would it be?
It is helpful to capture these reflections to refer back to, say in 6 months and as prompt of what you were thinking and feeling at this time, but to also continue reflecting and noticing what has changed.
Gemma Brown is an associate certified coach with the International Coach Federation, working with people to navigate successfully through transitions - be it career, relationships or life in general. Her belief is that when we confidently bring our whole selves to all areas of life, anything is possible. Transitions exist in both our personal and business life, and so often, the two fiercely overlap. Coaching with Gemma focuses on you as a whole, enabling you to identify your strengths, build confidence and to live a life with increased purpose and direction. Gemma is based in Cambridgeshire and carries out face to face coaching in the area as well as 1-2-1 coaching via Skype and Zoom. For more about Gemma, visit her 'About' page or contact her directly.