Seven Questions That Will Change Your Life

Self reflection should be more than a minor consideration if you’re serious about personal growth. I can testify that it’s worked wonders for me, for grounding myself and evaluating my life’s progress. How else am I supposed to make improvements, if I don’t know where I’ve gone wrong in the past? Many people try to ignore past errors, but then history repeats itself, as we all know.

Here are some questions that I find useful to use for self reflection. The format that I use is that of a weekly self assessment and reflection journal. Try it yourself, ask yourself the following questions Sunday night, when your week is complete.

1. What will I try to improve on next week?

2. What was I most proud of this week?

3. What was my biggest accomplishment this week?

4. What have I done to get closer to my life goals this week?

5. What was hard for me this week, and why?

6. What was my biggest waste of time this week?

7. What did I do this week that made me ashamed?

By answering these questions for myself in my writing journal, or journal diary as it is sometimes called, I force myself to take a hard look at myself. I may spend months or years treading water, not getting anywhere, if I didn’t take this time to analyze myself.

For me a week is enough time to pull myself back if I’ve gotten too far off-course. If I’ve stopped exercising for a week, I would be ashamed of myself, and my weekly review would get me to the gym first thing Monday morning.

By recording things that made me proud and that I consider my biggest accomplishments, I can emulate them in the future. The benefit for me is that these are the things that make me feel good and are likely taking me towards my life goals.

I record the activities that I’ve found to be hard during the week. Maybe it was a test, or a work out at the gym. I can then analyze where I went wrong, or right. A test being hard could mean that I wasn’t prepared enough, or it was meant to be a challenging critical thinking exam. A hard day at the gym could mean that I’ve let myself get out of shape, or I’m over working myself. I can make adjustments for the following week and plan accordingly.

What things will you discover yourself if you stare these seven hard questions dead in the eyes?

Stumble it if you liked it.

Another post that StumbleUpon users love is How To Become an Outstanding Person In Twelve Weeks.

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Dave Olson

Dave Olson said on March 22nd, 2007 at 12:50 am

Alex. Really useful questions. I’m planning on asking them as part of my weekly review
Alex Shalman

Alex Shalman said on March 22nd, 2007 at 11:17 am

Good to hear that Dave - If you’d like to share what else you do during your weekly review, please do so here.
Calvin Chan

Calvin Chan said on March 24th, 2007 at 12:17 am

Thanks for sharing this Alex, I will definite answer these questions each week from now on.
Calvin Chan

Calvin Chan said on March 24th, 2007 at 2:02 am

Definitely, I have already subscribed to your blog. Thanks for visiting mine
Alex Shalman

Alex Shalman said on March 24th, 2007 at 10:15 am

Np bud, good to have you on the team
Hueina Su

Hueina Su said on April 1st, 2007 at 4:44 pm

Hi Alex!

These are great questions! I ask my coaching clients similar questions too, and encourage them to do weekly reviews like you do. It’s a great way to keep yourself on track. Thanks for sharing the insights!

Warmly,
Hueina
Brent P. Newhall

Brent P. Newhall said on April 6th, 2007 at 9:32 pm

Great list! I plan to add them to my weekly review.

I’m particularly intrigued by the final three questions. The others are fairly easy to ask yourself; it’s those last three that seem particularly challenging.
therapydoc

therapydoc said on April 7th, 2007 at 10:30 pm

It’s the being honest with yourself part that’s the hardest. Nice job.
Dave M

Dave M said on July 25th, 2007 at 11:25 pm

I’ve been struggling lately to get myself to journal on a regular basis. After reading this post, your questions seems like the perfect idea for giving me something specific to answer each week. Even if I just journal once per week, it’s better than what I’ve been doing lately. Thanks for the great ideas!
Alex Shalman

Alex Shalman said on July 26th, 2007 at 7:45 am

I’m glad to hear that Dave. Just remember that a journal doesn’t have to be like a diary. A journal is a tool to expand and explore your own mind by writing your thoughts down. Whether you ask yourself questions or record events is up to you. I will agree with you - once a week is better than never! Although I think it’s easier to get into a daily habit than a weekly habit.
Sleeping Dude

Sleeping Dude said on July 26th, 2007 at 10:54 am

I keep detailed time log at work in office so it’s easy to answer those questions iwhen they’re applied to my job. But the point is to apply them to your “out of job” life and see how are you doing there… Great questions Alex!
Alex Shalman

Alex Shalman said on July 26th, 2007 at 11:04 am

Thank you - glad you enjoyed them sleeping dude.
Sara

Sara said on July 30th, 2007 at 3:47 am

Alex,

That’s a great list. I am just starting to get organized as far as “checking in” with myself on a regular basis. This will be a great help.

Thanks,
Sara
Matthew Cornell

Matthew Cornell said on July 30th, 2007 at 8:08 pm

Thanks for the stimulating post. I teach a personal productivity method that has a weekly review built-in. This is a tasty addition!

FYI here are a few posts related to keeping a personal development journal:

Some thoughts from tracking “lessons learned” for a year
http://ideamatt.blogspot.com/2006/12/some-thoughts-from-tracking-lessons.html

A key to continuous learning: Keep a decision log
http://ideamatt.blogspot.com/2007/04/key-to-continuous-learning-keep.html
Serafino Raimondo

Serafino Raimondo said on September 19th, 2007 at 12:05 pm

and i don’t know, how to make it bette. Serafino Raimondo.
Christos

Christos said on December 1st, 2007 at 3:10 am

Hello, I have one question about the article.

I am usually most proud about my biggest accomplishments, and usually these accomplishments are done to move forward towards the achievement of my goals. So, how do you answer dinstictly questions 2-4.
Alex Shalman

Alex Shalman said on December 1st, 2007 at 9:11 am

Christos,

2. What was I most proud of this week?

Did you go out of your way to do something great, did you follow your routines and commitments to the T, etc?

3. What was my biggest accomplishment this week?

Did you get an A on a test, a raise at work, write a really popular article, complete a really big goal?

4. What have I done to get closer to my life goals this week?

Have you been chipping away at your life goals, at writing that book, at working towards the body you want?

These are the type of questions you ask yourself while trying to answer the 7. It’s all about the questions you ask yourself.
SaiF

SaiF said on February 20th, 2008 at 7:27 am

Hey Alex!

I think your last question is rather negative.. What’s the answer you’re looking for with that question?

If my understanding of the question is correct, maybe we should replace it with “What should I have done differently to get BETTER results?”

Really GREAT questions for us there! Thank you so much!

I’ll be sure to add this to my blog!

To CANI,

SaiF
Alex Shalman

Alex Shalman said on February 20th, 2008 at 7:33 am

I like the question the way it is. That is a great follow up question though.
SaiF

SaiF said on February 20th, 2008 at 7:40 am

Ooops.. You sound offended.. Sorry, mate! Just a suggestion
Alex Shalman

Alex Shalman said on February 20th, 2008 at 7:43 am

Not at all my friend! I just really wanted to answer you, but I kept it short because I’m concentrating on an article I’m writing.

Keep on commenting, as you were…
Mayank Rocks

Mayank Rocks said on March 9th, 2008 at 4:28 am

You have scared me now. I find “nothing” to most questions, or I am just not able to think. I have to re read it… Very nice post Alex…. I’ve subscribed to the blog already.
Flimjo

Flimjo said on March 12th, 2008 at 10:38 am

Alex, you should be a motivational speaker. Between that and blogging, you won’t have to work ever again.
Alex Shalman

Alex Shalman said on March 12th, 2008 at 1:52 pm

Working on it buddy. =)
james

james said on March 19th, 2008 at 9:31 pm

good post man thx
arni

arni said on March 19th, 2008 at 10:20 pm

hi great site 10x
Adam Sicinski

Adam Sicinski said on April 28th, 2008 at 9:19 am

Alex,

Your post reminded me of a time when I use to carry around a small flash card of questions that I read throughout the day and at night before going to bed. These questions grounded me and focused me on what was most important in my life when everything else seemed so out of control.

I truly believe that questions are the keys that separate the most fulfilled and successful people from the rest. They are indeed the doors that unlock many opportunities and insights that we would normally not be aware of if we didn’t take the time to stop and reflect for moments throughout our day. Your questions are indeed powerful if utilized consistently and reflected upon in a manner that encourages deep insight and self-reflection. After which of course, we must act upon these reflections to move towards a happier place in our lives.

I do believe that I will now return back to that list of questions that got me through a difficult period of my life. I’m in a very different place now, however you can never fully understand or comprehend the insights that can be gained without first asking the right set of questions. I will also be adding the last of your 7 questions to my list. Believe it or not, I had all the rest (phrased somewhat differently) there already.

Thanks for your deep insights.

Regards,

Adam Sicinski
dexter

dexter said on May 26th, 2008 at 1:59 pm

people should do these more often…
komodo dragon

komodo dragon said on June 15th, 2008 at 12:49 pm

these are some great thought provoking questions … I am especially loving this one : What was my biggest accomplishment this week? haha mainly cause i have a pretty good answer for it
Robbyn

Robbyn said on June 18th, 2008 at 4:36 pm

Me too, Dave! These questions are a great and I will use them weekly.
Caleb

Caleb said on June 21st, 2008 at 11:29 pm

I’ve naturally been doing this for along time. Though,lately #6 and #7 has been the most recurring questions
Krista

Krista said on June 24th, 2008 at 5:05 am

Hi Alex
John Chow posted these 7 questions in his post and I had to come by because like you, I am always journaling. Having these questions allow me to journal with a purpose and allow deeper insights into myself. This is a good way to chart one’s progress (or eeek… non-progress) over a week or a month. Most people live Life as if they have forever. We don’t. We don’t have forever - that’s why reflection is important. It gives us an impetus to life a Better Life which encompasses meaning and purpose. Thanks Alex for the brilliant way to poke ourselves into mindfulness!
moserw

moserw said on June 30th, 2008 at 4:50 pm

Good thoughts and good questions. Only quite sure not many will be able to ask themselves such tough questions. Internal probing is missing in our society and we can only find fault with others, but never ourselves.
Beautiful Scraps

Beautiful Scraps said on July 6th, 2008 at 9:43 am

Yeah, Wonderful points..

But I couldn’t make out.. We should just avoid thinking of the embarrassing situations we had been right ? We should make sure.. it doesnt happen again!