How Self-Reflection can Re-Energise and Refresh Your Work and Career

There are times in our lives when we reach a crossroads - and need to make crucial decisions that can dramatically change our future.

It is at these times that self-reflection can really help.

Imagine you have been in your job for quite some time and are feeling quite jaded and unenthusiastic about what you are doing.

You have been ‘spinning your wheels’ for years - and never feel like you are getting anywhere!

This is when you should be drawing on self-reflection to both reassess and reinvigorate your life.

In a recent leadersinheels.com article, leadership and business writer Leanne Yong outlines some of the best ways to re-energise and re-focus your career, while also achieving better productivity, satisfaction and efficiency at work:

1. Self-reflection

Self-reflection is an excellent tool for reinvigorating yourself - both at work and at home. In fact, self-reflection is crucial for identifying what is most important in your life, and what is not. Self-reflection also helps us to learn, as it allows us to compare and assess our situations more clearly. By prioritising what is really important to you, your workplace and your family, it then becomes much easier to cut back on the unimportant things. To carry this out effectively, simply find at least five minutes a day for quiet thought and contemplation. This not only allows us to look back on things but also helps us become more relaxed and efficient: both at work and at home

2. Re-energising

Have you ever noticed how some people seem to be able to run around all day like an ‘Ever Ready’ battery and never seem to tire? The answer to having boundless energy lies in managing your energy levels and finding a happy medium between energy expended, and energy available. This of course, is different for everyone - and because not everyone is ‘superhuman’ - some of us may need a bit more help than others to balance our energy levels to their best ability. One way is to set some rules and routines at work, and stick to them! For example, if you are a morning person, do your most difficult work in the morning when you are at your freshest and most vibrant. Another way to re-energise is to give yourself an extra 15 minutes in the morning to have a decent breakfast - or spend a few minutes before work planning your day to help make your schedule more efficient

3. Refocusing

It is important to be absolutely clear where you are going in your work – and how you are going to get there. This ‘road map’ is crucial to success, and is also referred to as the ‘why’ factor. Not only can refocusing your life help motivate and sustain you, it is also a reminder of what is really meaningful to you. Indeed, when you have a ‘why’ in your life, it makes the choices and decisions you need to make at work that much easier. One question you could ask yourself is: “Where do I want to be six months from now?” Another is to outline your career vision - and set out the steps you need to take to achieve it. The possibilities are endless, and as leadership and self-development guru Simon Sinek says: “Your WHY is the purpose, cause or belief that inspires you.”

And by following your ‘Why’, you will be able to achieve things you never thought possible!