Using Self-Refection to Your Advantage

As we begin to approach this winter season, I have increasingly begun to reflect on this year and all the amazing things that have occurred. Part of my education here at Gonzaga University requires that I become more familiar with myself through Jesuit traditions. Self-reflection is a very important tool the Jesuits have practiced for many centuries allowing me to accomplish more. Reflection is a way to build a stronger and bolder sense of self. By using this technique, we can become this improved version of ourselves through reflecting on our daily routines. Reflection as the Jesuits use it, is crucial to build on experiences which creates a well rounded person.

Perhaps one of the most important things that you can do as an individual is to learn from the mistakes you have made in the past. Most people often go about our daily lives and don’t learn from their actions, but what we must realize is that sometimes taking the time to reflect on our day is necessary to becoming truly self aware.

In all of our lives we have good moments and bad moments. The bad moments are often times we choose to overlook and often avoid. But when mistakes occur, it is up to you to hold yourself accountable so you can avoid this future action. In my current marketing course we take five minutes before the start of every class to go over our week, taking in the best moments and acknowledging the worse, to reflect and think about how we can improve our relationships or extend our existing goals.

Pete Hall an educational professional mentions, “The more reflective we are the more effective we are.”[1] Often becoming more reflective is part of self-improvement and taking even just a little time will save you tons in the future to come.

We should be making the most of our moments, taking just a few minutes a day to actively reflect on our interactions with others. All you need is a few minutes to sit in silence and slowly digest what occurred during the week. Practicing self-reflection requires you to make a metal note of the good and bad occurrences, often helping you to understanding why this occurred and what your interactions where that lead to a specific moment. Then you can ask yourself what you should be doing in the future to change this result. By incorporating this technique, you can determine if you need to have better communication to convey a message or if you need to improve an other skill that you lack. Opening your mind to negative feedback and being able to accept or move on from the original issue is all part of improving.

Everyone has a desire to learn and most importantly to learn from their own mistakes, but sometimes this isn’t always so easy. Allowing yourself to have the right amount of time to properly digest your day is crucial. Not only is this time often found to be relaxing and enjoyable, but it allows you to think critically about yourself and how you can become more aligned with a specific motivation.

 Coby, The Intern

[1] http://www.bamradionetwork.com/quoted/aprofile/1684-pete-hall