Reflection presented me my future. It wasn’t until I reflected that I realised the direction I needed to take. Now, reflection occurs naturally and guides me in my everyday life” - Student

Why reflect? And why reflect on learnings?

Reflection is important because it can bring clarity, help you understand how you are feeling and help you decide on the direction you want to take in the future.  It can increase self-confidence by helping you to identify strengths and help you generate new ideas through creative thinking. Reflection can help you develop your wellbeing plan.  You can identify what you will keep, what you will develop and what you will do differently.

"Learning gives me knowlege, knowlege gives me the power; power to change, to grow and be the best version of me. - Student"

Learning something new imprpoves wellbeing as it helps us to problem solve, it inspires creativity, it makes it easier to adapt to new situations and it boosts confidence and self-esteem. There are a number of free learning resouces on the internet, at your local library and by joining local groups and activities. 

It is very important to reflect on all of your achievements, no matter how small they may seem. Gradual improvement is very important for recovery and tiny steps forward lead to the realisation of big dreams.

This is why we have placed some reflective questions around the things you may have learned this week, as well as some ideas on other ways to reflect. 

Ways to reflect

Reflection is an ongoing process. It may be helpful to re-do some of the exercises you've learnt during other courses, both to see how far you have come as well as help you discover next steps. Alternatively, you can use goal setting strategies. life satisfaction surveys, think about your past achievements or try jounraling. 

Life satisfaction charts and goal setting

Exercises like the life satisfaction chart (new blog to come!) and goal setting could help with reflection as these exercises will give you the opportunity to decide what went well and why.  It is also an opportunity for you to consider what did not go so well and consider how you can improve and overcome any barriers.  Remember, any mistakes are just opportunities to learn and improve.

Journalling and creative writing

Writing is a good way to reflect on how we feel. Journaling can help you remain present whilst also keeping perspective. It can help your brain regulate emotion and develop self-confidence and self-identity. Joining our creative writing or art journaling for wellbeing course may provide you with some useful tips to get started.

Mindfulness

Staying present can help you to reflect and as mentioned, can help you bring clarity. You may want to consider going back to the mindfulness exercises in our previous posts, joining our In the Moment seminar or taking part in the Mindfulness for Everyday Life course.

Reflective questioning

Some questions to reflect on this weeks learnings:

• Write at least one thing that you have learned this week that could help your wellbeing. Perhaps you've read our last three #mentalhealthawarenessweek blogs about how nature, mindfulness and walking helps your wellbeing.
• What could you do to intergrate some of the learnings, changes or practices into your life?
• What could be preventing you from achieving your learning goals?
• What changes could you make or what resources could you utilise to help you learn more or achieve your goals?

Some examples of questions you could ask yourself to reflect in everyday life include:

• What is important to you?
• What are your strengths – what are you good at?
• What do you do just for you – how can you take more time for yourself?
• What might you like to do – a new hobby or interest for example?
• What are your goals – have you tried creating SMARTS goals for yourself?

More questions to ask yourself further into your recovery:

• What small things have you achieved?
• What has improved since you started this journey?
• What will help you feel more content with your life?
• How can you develop your creativity?
• What helps you to relax?
• How can you develop connections?
• What small changes will help improve your health?
• What is working well?
• What has not worked so well?
• What areas of your life will you focus on next?
• What is the smallest thing that you can do today to work towards your next goal?