Reflection
You know those family members you see once every couple years and every time you see them you can notice how much taller they've gotten, how many more teeth they have, or how much better they can count. Because the time in between interactions is so long you are able to notice just how much they have progressed. Now, compare this with those family members you see everyday or every week. It is really hard to notice the changes. You can’t really tell how much taller they’ve gotten unless you take them over to the door frame where the annual height measurements are.
Now, think about this with yourself. You are with yourself 24/7/365, so imagine how difficult it is to track your progress and notice how far you have progressed.
Reflecting is a very powerful tool for a few reasons, and I believe it is terribly underutilized.
Humans are feedback oriented, we react to stimuli and continue doing behaviors that result in a positive stimuli. Without reflection it is really hard to give ourselves the satisfaction of knowing whether the behavior that we are choosing to do is resulting in a positive impact. By giving ourselves the positive stimuli by being able to compare our current self to our past self we are able to see how much we have progressed which can show just how positive a behavior can be. Train yourself to get inspired when you see how fast you are growing and all of the amazing things that you are doing.
Reflecting allows you to align your goals to your current interests. Before I co-founded Quokka Brew I was very into the keychain business (super random, but trust me it is insane). I was all about understanding that area of business, however by reflecting I was able to realize that my goals had shifted. I was able to see that I needed to allocate more time towards understanding CPG and making connections in that space. When you reflect on where you were and where you are going you are able to formulate a strategy of what the best next steps are to get you there.
How to Reflect:
Reflecting is like making a steak, it is not easy, but it also isn't hard if you know what you are doing. Reflecting is tough in the sense that it requires you to sit down, by yourself and avoid any distractions. You need to be brutally honest with yourself about where you did well and where you still need work. Reflecting can sometimes feel demoralizing when you think about all the situations where you messed up. However, it is important to keep in mind because you are taking the time to reflect you are already ahead of 95% of people and even if you aren't quite there yet, you will be very soon. All you have to do is keep going, and eventually you will end up where you should be.
In terms of goals, I like to set tangible 0 or 1 goals (ie. read X books in 1 month). I like my goals to be something that I know i can get to if I set my mind to it. Lastly, I talk openly about my goals, not that anyone I tell is going to remember them or try to hold me accountable, but because in my eyes when I tell people I am going to do something that I am actually going to do it.
In terms of tools, I use Notion to organize all my thoughts, reflections and goals (I love Notion).