Retune Your Compass with Reflection + AI
Elaine Q. Chang
Technical Advisor to Microsoft Chief Communications Officer | AI Strategist and Practitioner | Master Of Messiness (MOM)
As the clock resets and the calendar flips, the start of a new year stirs a mix of hope and opportunity. But before diving headfirst into setting new goals, have you considered pausing to reflect on the year that’s passed? The answers you uncover might hold the key to your most fulfilling year yet.
Inspired by Mel Robbins podcast episode, "How to Make Next Year the Best Year: Ask Yourself These 7 Questions", I embarked on this "yearly audit" myself. I even wove some of these questions into conversations with my family during car rides. The process was simple, yet profoundly effective. Listening to Mel’s podcast is a great guided exercise for this. Her candid examples breathe life into each question, making the reflection process feel like a conversation with a trusted friend.
In this article, I will walk you through each of these seven transformative questions, with tips and key insights. I will also explore how AI tools can act as inspiration partners, helping you delve even deeper into your self-discovery journey.
What is a Yearly Audit
As Mel Robbins highlights, a yearly audit helps you reset your internal compass. The past year holds valuable data and insights that can inform your future decisions and actions, empowering you to create a more fulfilling life. It’s not just about goal setting but about ensuring your energy and efforts are aligned with your core values. By reflecting intentionally, you’ll uncover patterns, prioritize effectively, and move forward with clarity. Doing less allows us to focus on what truly matters, helping us achieve more in meaningful ways.
Seven Questions
By engaging deeply with the following seven questions, you can chart a path forward that’s both meaningful and practical.
1. Describe the highlights from the past year of your life
Review your camera roll and calendar as powerful triggers for memory and emotional recall. Reflect on the standout moments that brought you joy, warmth, fond memories, excitement, or fulfillment. These highlights often point to areas where your values and actions align. They are cues to what brings you joy and should be cherished in the coming year. As Mel Robbins wisely noted, "the things that make your heart warm...are important data because you want more of that in your life."
2. What were the hardest parts of the year for you?
Acknowledge challenging experiences and allow yourself to feel the emotions associated with them. Analyze these difficult moments to understand the lessons they hold. Recognizing your low points provides valuable data about areas that require healing, attention, or change.
"When you ask yourself what were the hardest parts of your year, it's okay that it makes you sad. It's okay to feel the feelings." - Mel Robbins
3. What did you learn about yourself over the last 12 months?
Reflect on both highs and lows, and anywhere in your life where you’re feeling friction and tension. Identify patterns in your behavior and reactions to situations can illuminate areas for personal growth. Awareness of your strengths, weaknesses, and limitations is critical for personal growth and making informed decisions. For example, recognizing that I excel in collaborative environments but struggle with overcommitting to multiple projects has allowed me to recalibrate my priorities. This awareness helps me set boundaries and focus on areas where I can truly thrive.
4. What are you going to stop doing in the coming year?
Pinpoint habits, behaviors, relationships, or commitments that drain your energy or no longer serve your purpose. Be honest about what you need to eliminate to create space for what truly matters. Stopping unproductive actions frees up time and mental resources for more fulfilling pursuits.
5. What are you going to start doing in the coming year?
Embrace new mindsets, habits, or skills that align with your values and aspirations. Approach this with curiosity and be open to experimenting. Starting something new is often the first step toward transformation, but remember to keep it focused and manageable.
6. What are you going to continue doing in the coming year?
Identify what worked well in the past year and deserve to be maintained or expanded upon. Recognize the routines, habits, or relationships that provide stability and support. Not everything needs to change. Strengthening what is already working can be just as powerful as making changes.
7. What can you do today to take the first step in that set of directions?
Identify one small and concrete action you can take right now to set your intentions into motion. Taking action, no matter how small, builds confidence and creates momentum for the year ahead.
Unlock Deeper Insights by Leveraging AI Tools
To deepen your reflection, consider leveraging AI tools as helpful inspiration partners. They offer tailored prompts and suggestions, making self-discovery more meaningful. AI tools can analyze your responses, highlight patterns, and provide insights that might be overlooked. By combining human introspection with technology’s analytical and creative power, you can uncover actionable insights to retune your compass.
Here are ways you can leverage AI tools to enhance your reflection with these seven questions:
For a more immersive experience, try voice-based AI tools, such as the voice mode in the Microsoft Copilot app. Voice interaction with back-and-forth conversations can feel more natural, making reflection intuitive and less structured. Expressing your thoughts aloud can also help you articulate your ideas further. After the voice conversations, ask the AI tool to summarize them into actionable insights you can refer to.
Additionally, if the AI tools already have knowledge about you - such as Microsoft 365 Copilot with context from your emails, documents, chats, and meeting transcripts - leverage those for your reflection, as they can provide even more nuanced and tailored recommendations based on your unique context.
Applying the Audit
After taking your first step, continue building your momentum to turn insights into action. For example, compile your reflections into a personal manifesto for the year ahead. Share your key insights with trusted colleagues or friends to foster accountability and gain fresh perspectives. Most importantly, this audit is not about perfection but about progress and alignment.
Thriving Through Messiness
Life and careers are inherently messy, but within this messiness lies the potential for profound growth. By regularly recalibrating your direction, you can transform chaos into clarity, ensuring you’re not just surviving, but truly thriving.
Let this yearly audit become a cornerstone of your journey, empowering you to embrace the art of possible in an age of unpredictability. Remember, your yearly audit is more than just an exercise—it’s a compass guiding you toward your aspired future. Take that first step today by reflecting on just one question, and watch as clarity unfolds before you.