Before you’re back to work and stuck in your daily routine again, what do you need most, both now and in 2026? In this blog, let’s slow down and make some space to consider what truly matters to you and what you want.
Reflection Matters
As another year draws to a close, it’s natural to wonder ‘what’s next for me’? Well I would like to support you with that: at the end of this page are two downloads to get you started, free and on the house, you’re very welcome! If you’re up for it, I recommend setting aside just 30 minutes to one hour to begin. You never know what will happen…
A new year can bring fresh energy, that feeling of the possibility of a new start….and the wintery weather, cold climate and dark nights naturally offers us a chance to stay in, get a hot drink and a notepad out, and stop and take stock of where we’ve been and where we’d like to go.
Reflection allows you to step back, notice patterns, understand what’s really mattered to you, and recognise what you’d like more (or less) of going forward. When we take time to reflect intentionally, we build self awareness, clarity and direction. And this honestly does not take very long to do, get started and feeling better and more purposeful.
Why Does It Work?
When you write things down, imagine the future and connect emotionally to what you want to create, something shifts in your head. You’re no longer just thinking about change, you’re picturing it with detail, you’re actively engaging your mind in making it happen.
There’s strong evidence from the worlds of psychology and performance showing that visualisation and intentional goal setting:
-
increases motivation
-
improves focus
-
strengthens commitment
-
and makes success more achievable
In simple terms: when you give your brain a clear picture of where you’re heading, it’s much more likely to help you get there!
Three Starting Prompts
Sometimes it’s good to just start simple. So if that’s where you’re at, here are three prompts. Grab a notepad and start writing:
1. What are you most proud of achieving this year?
3. Were there key challenges that you overcame – what did you learn from them?
3. With the above in mind, what do you want more and less of now in 2026?
So simple to do, go go go!
Downloadable Guided Reflection Toolkit
As a coach with lots of beautiful individual clients and brilliant business clients too, I created something that people could use over the holidays to organise their own thoughts, in their own space and time.
Sharing 2 resources here:
1. Six Step Reflection Exercise
This two page document will guide you every step of the way with simple instructions. You can do the whole thing in detail, or you can skip steps, whatever works for you!
2. One Page Goal Setting Matrix
A piece of paper that you can print out and scribble on to get down everything you need to about the goals that you’ve set. A reminder of what the goal is, why it’s important, how you will achieve it, tackling what might get in the way and listing all the possible actions that you could take.
And if you’d like some support working through any of this, I’d love to chat. Sometimes it’s hard to do this stuff alone. You can book a relaxed, no strings conversation with me here.