How can self-reflection help with career development?

Self-reflection exercises are my personal favorite and I am intentional about scheduling them each quarter so that I can assess my progress. These exercises often lead to uncomfortable truths. It confronts you with your limitations and mistakes, while uneasy, is where significant growth occurs. Embracing this discomfort, you learn resilience and the courage to face challenges. Reflect on tough feedback or failures and use these insights to forge a stronger, more adaptable self. This process of confronting and overcoming discomfort not only enhances your skills but also builds character, essential for long-term career success. It's in these moments of discomfort that you truly understand your potential and the pathways for reaching it.

Meaningful self reflection is purposeful and needs to be practiced over time. Only then can areas for development, states of “flow”, states of fatigue and irritation be analysed. Ideally, add depth to the reflection with the added layer of external observation and input- from a trusted colleague, work mentor or leader (if they are awesome and embrace the role with a strength based coaching mentality)

Meaningful self reflection is purposeful and needs to be practiced over time. Only then can areas for development, states of “flow”, states of fatigue and irritation be analysed. Ideally, add depth to the reflection with the added layer of external observation and input- from a trusted colleague, work mentor or leader (if they are awesome and embrace the role with a strength based coaching mentality)

Self-reflection is going to be the pinnacle of what you need for career development. Think about how often you get opinions from others that don't "feel" right. This is your inner guidance telling you that this not right for you. Yet we have so much conditioning, leaning on external validation, etc. that it can be quite difficult to make a decision for ourselves. The benefit is that when we take a step back to learn more about who we truly are and what we want we can know that the decision is our own and not someone else's.

La autoreflexión podria compararse con meditar. La parte más importante del dia de un ser humano es cuando medita al menos cinco a diez minutos sobre su dia. 1-Errores o Puntos de Mejora. 2-Influencia en las demás Personas. 3-Aprendizaje Profesional, Laboral, Familiar, Amistades. 4-Avances en Educación.

In my view, effective self-reflection involves two primary steps. Firstly, ask yourself, 'Where am I today?' This prompts an honest assessment of your current position. Secondly, inquire, 'Where do I want to go?' This encourages a thoughtful consideration of your aspirations and goals. By candidly addressing these questions, you can construct your personalized career path. Ultimately, it's crucial to share the outcomes of this reflective exercise with your manager or mentor. Seeking feedback and guidance from them will provide valuable insights for enhancement and further refinement.

Forcing self-reflection when busy, stressed, or overwhelmed is unlikely to result in quality self-reflection. First, it might make sense to address stress and overwhelm by either finishing, delegating, or letting go of projects. Then, it is important to get proper sleep. Then, do something that allows you to truly reconnect with yourself, like taking a walk, a bath, a scenic drive, or having a nice cup of coffee. Self-reflection will likely follow. Over time, it might be possible to build a habit and a ritual of self-reflection, e.g., first thing in the morning. But don't force it when tired or stressed, and especially when sleep-deprived.

Self reflection is ideally practiced over time and when relatively healthy with stress and negativity under control. If we set a target of a month of self reflection to generate meaningful insights, we open ourselves up to weird and wonderful life events popping up and interfering with usual routine. This is consistent with a calm, rational state required to make and draw rational meaningful analysis. As a work around, consider a morning practice reflecting on the day before when well rested with enhanced considered perspective

If you're looking for your next opportunity or looking to make a change, you may also want to reflect on your past decisions. What led you to make the choices (career, job, role, company, etc.) you did? What did you learn from each of those experiences? What do you want to do differently now? This will also help you with describing your career story.

Total advocate of the “good time journal” and I acknowledge it’s possibly a dated subjective tool. Carry a notebook ideally an awesome coloured one to inspire. Figure out what a good time means to you and clearly describe it. If you’re neurodivergent like me and get a kick out of hyperfocus on subjects over and above small talking at a cool party, name it and own who you are. If cool parties can be constructed as opportunities to find joy as defined by you, make a note of it if it works ie what could you do differently for the experience to be a good time and deeply reflect. Use your hyperfocus on the analysis if you can, and link the 2 joys together. All of it being relevant and applicable for a subjective tool to identify strengths ????