What if I told you that you could possibly be missing out on invaluable information to your success? Also, that this information is very easy to obtain but most people don’t even know it is available. Would you be interested?
There of course are many factors that work congruently for your success. One that I want to share with you today is highly important and should be utilized habitually. It is so crucial to your success that it needs to be part of your end of day routine or what I call my “wind down” time. And that is the time you sit and reflect on the day’s activities while personally asking and answering the right questions.
The time you spend reflecting over the day gains you invaluable insight and growth that will aid in your journey to success. It is this opportunity that you learn some of your greatest lessons and receive some of your best directions.
Life Revealed
When I started intentionally taking time to reflect each day, that is when I began to see things differently. It was as if a greater awareness of my life was revealed. I had a better understanding on where I was, why I was there, and what I could do to move another step forward the next day.
That is because during reflection time, I was able to see what I did right and what I could have done better. This is simply invaluable information gained simply by pausing at the end of the day and reflecting.
What’s Baseball Got To Do With It?
Since Baseball is back in full swing (yes, I know…but I had to), I thought I would demonstrate the importance of your reflection time to that of baseball. I personally relate well with this game as I spent all of my youth either playing it, watching it, dreaming about it, or talking about it. I probably was a little obsessed.
I was fortunate enough to play for a winning baseball program in high school. We always won because we had a coach that knew how to win. One important action he would take after every game was to immediately process all that happened.
It didn’t matter if we won or lost the game. He knew we could always be better and he would identify the “how” simply through reflection. Because so, we always were winners.
The following practice after our games he would detail out where we performed well and where we had opportunity to do better. Of course he would put it in a much different and colorful manner if we lost. But the results were the same. We knew what needed to be done for improvement.
Do What The Pros Do
Just as a professional sports coaches watch replays of games, so should you replay each day. Map out what you did well and make notes of where you can improve. Do this by asking yourself questions.
To help you, I will share some of the questions I ask myself during my reflection time. Of course there are many more questions as this time should be dynamic and flowing based on the events. But these give you an idea and a good start.
Ask yourself…
- Who did I add value to today?
- Did I accomplish my planned targets for today?
- Where are my opportunities to improve?
- Why was today a success/setback?
- When was I most productive?
- Did I deliver my best effort?
- How did I grow?
Remember that the time you spend reflecting on your day’s events will be a tremendous value to your life. It will bring forth awareness and direction you would have otherwise missed.
Make your reflection time a priority and make it a habit. Simply find time at the end of each day to sit quietly without disturbances and contemplate. You will be amazed by the results just as I was.
