"The unexamined life is not worth living." ~ Socrates
The month of January was named after the Roman god Janus. Janus was the god of gates, doors, beginnings and endings. He is pictured with two faces, one looking back to the past and the other into the future. In honor of Janus it seems appropriate that before we begin making resolutions for our New Year that we should reflect on the one just past. (for astrology in Atlanta click here)
New Year's Day is the perfect time to ask yourself the questions below and reflect on your answers:
What happened in 2011? How did you act/react? Could you have done it better? Or differently? Where did you change? How could you have handled certain situations differently? What have you learned?
How did you treat people in 2011? Were you too abrupt? Not diplomatic enough? Was there something you could have said or done but didn't? Who were your major teachers in 2011? What lessons did each bring to you? Did you learn? What events in the world shaped your life in 2011. What inner feeling and longings moved you in a new direction? Did you walk a moral path and retain your values and beliefs despite threats to your career and/or personal life?
Did anything or anyone in 2011 make you choose between what you knew was right, moral and of value and what was not? How did you handle the challenges? Were you successful? Do the choices you made in 2011 allow you to sleep at night? Did you walk your truth? Did you give up on any of these because you were afraid for whatever the reason?
Where and how did you grow in 2011? Emotionally? Mentally? Spiritually? Are you at peace with yourself? If not, where does work need to be done?
Reflection is a dynamic learning tool. We examine our lives through reflection and our ability to reflect allows us to realistically assess our own knowledge, values, qualities, skills and behaviors. Reflecting enables us to become aware of our experiences and learn from them, it guides and informs our personal and professional development as it allows us to clearly recognize our own strengths and weaknesses. Because we reflect on ourselves, we are able to articulate our skills and abilities to others. And it is only with the self knowledge that honest reflection brings that we can become aware of who we really are and see ourselves as others do.
Each of us is standing at a crossroad and must decide on something...what that is...is unique to each individual. But before you impulsively choose spend some time reflecting on where you've been, how you got there and what this all could mean for 2012.
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