27 Questions for Self-Reflection Before the New Year

It’s that time again! Before you start setting goals and resolutions for the coming year, it’s important to take a moment to reflect on your experiences and lessons learned. This reflective process can help you celebrate your successes, identify areas for personal growth, and consider how to bring more balance into your life. 

To guide you through this process, we’ve compiled a list of 27 thought-provoking questions that will help you gain closure on the year that has passed and set the stage for a fulfilling and intentional year ahead:

1. What are the first thoughts that come to mind about the past year? Mostly positive, negative, or neutral? Why?

2. If you had to describe the past year in one word, what would it be and why?

3. What unique experiences set this year apart from all other years? What moments were most significant and how did they impact you?

4. What went well this year? What were your biggest accomplishments? What are you most proud of?

5. What could have been better? Is there anything you wish you would’ve handled differently in hindsight? (The point of this question isn’t to beat yourself up about things you can’t change, but to learn from your past experiences so that you can improve your response in the future).

6. Did you achieve the goals you set for yourself last year? If the answer is no, why not? What stopped you? If yes, how does it feel? 

7. What was your most enjoyable moment of the year?

8. What are you most grateful for this year? Is there anything that you took/are taking for granted?

9. What was the biggest challenge you faced over the last year? How did you handle it? How did you grow and learn from it?

10. How did you push the boundaries of your comfort zone? What can you do in the coming year to continue pushing those boundaries for personal growth?

11. What did you learn about yourself this year? What are the most significant life lessons you learned? 

12. What will you do differently moving forward because of what you learned and experienced over the past year?

13. Did you use your time wisely? How can you be more intentional with how you use your time in the coming year? 

14. What things/people/thoughts did you give time and energy to that are not serving you? What in your life deserves more of your time and energy?

15. Do you feel as though you lived a balanced life over the past year? What areas of your life were lacking? What areas were abundant? (i.e. physical health, relationships with family/friends/a significant other, finances, career, self-care, personal growth, learning, FUN) How can you bring more balance into your life in the coming year?

16. Do you feel as though you are living true to yourself? Do you feel like you’re suppressing parts of who you are in order to please others? Are you letting fear of failure and/or judgment stop you from taking chances on your biggest dreams and goals? What steps can you take to bring yourself into alignment this year and be more authentically YOU? 

17. What are you currently doing (or thinking) that’s not working or serving you?

18. Other than time and money, what do you want more of in the new year? How can you go about getting it?

19. What matters most in your life? Are your day-to-day actions representative of what you SAY is most important in your life? Why is that?

20. What do you need to let go of in the new year? (resentment, limiting beliefs, toxic relationships, material possessions, etc.)

21. What/who do you need to create more space for in the new year?

22. What do you want to learn more about or pursue in the coming year? How will you follow your curiosity? 

23. What challenges or obstacles do you anticipate when it comes to accomplishing your goals in the coming year? What can you do to proactively manage these challenges ahead of time?

24. What would you want your life to look like at this time next year, if you knew you wouldn’t fail?

25. How do you want to show up in the coming year? Who do you want to be? What frame of mind do you want to be in? What do you want to accomplish?

26. What is your focus word and how does it embody your intention for the coming year?

27. If you could accomplish only one goal in the coming year, what would it be? Why does it matter to you?

NOW I WANT TO HEAR FROM YOU!

What’s the biggest lesson you learned this year? What goals or intentions are you setting for the coming year? Let me know in the comments below!