Christmas holiday is a great time for rest, renewal and reflection. The year-end underlines a natural point for a stock take – how things shaped up and what we are up to in our lives. With the advent of the New Year and the promise of new beginnings, pausing to take time for reflection and thoughtful intent for the New Year is most natural.
The seers have repeatedly pronounced – an un-reflected is an unlived life! This year, I would like to encourage a strengths based approach to your reflections.
And why not record your answers to the following questions in your journal? Not only will this give you a sense of achievement and consequent good feelings but it will also provide you with directional clarity for the coming year.
You could ask these questions in relation to your team, business, leadership and personal life as well.
1) What have been some of my key achievements this year?
2) What stands out as a real highlight and makes me feel good, proud and or strong?
3) What are the strengths I used to reach my achievements and highlights?
4) What is something I would like to develop next year and how could my signature strengths help me get the results I want?
5) What is an unrealised strength that I may wish to utilise more?
And of course, the big SQ question,
6) How have I grown as a person this year? For example, what skills, talents, virtues and resources did I draw upon to face a major challenge?
TIP 1 – When thinking about your achievements – don’t just focus on the obvious, tangible big ticket items such as “presented at an international conference or established a community of interest or forum for my industry” but also more qualitative, courageous and softer issues like “I had an honest and courageous conversation with my partner about what had been bugging me for a while.”
TIP 2 – In reflecting on what you may wish to do, be or achieve in the coming year, don’t discount any left field idea – these could be the seeds of some new beginnings for you. When you are relaxed – lying on the beach, playing with the kids and generally not thinking too hard is the very time that creative insights and flashes of inspiration strike!
For example, a client who was extremely happy in her job found herself entertaining thoughts about attending university. This baffled her as it was not a viable option for her at that time. As it turned out, upon returning to work, a few months later her department was restructured with her position redundant. Rather than be angry about this turn of events, she happily turned her attention to pursuing what had seemed an unrealistic option before. The intuitive self knows that which the mind has not got a glimpse of just yet!
TIP 3 – If you going through a career or life transition and would like some pointers or give a gift to family, friends or work colleagues for their journey, check out – Get Your Groove Back and or the new workbook version.
And finally thank you for being part of my SQ-zine newsletter, blog and twitter community and all my very best wishes for 2011.
Arohanui
Jasbindar
