Birthdays offer opportunities to gather alongside loved ones and celebrate. Yet that merely represents the beginning. You can make your birthday more significant. Adopting the correct mindset your birthdate will come to mean reflection time. Reflection time! You know, an occasion to reflect back on recent successes and failures. Gather lessons learned from said experiences and apply towards the future. Almost like a second New Year! If the above concept sounds familiar, thanks. You stand a long-time reader. In early 2015 I first suggested transforming your special day into reflection time. Since, every April I penned a related post. Allow the tradition to continue. Over the years you and I discussed various self-reflection questions. Internal inquiries designed to bring out your best. Recognize achievements. Improve efficacy. Identify next milestones. Combining the original five birthday reflection questions proposed along the three additional queries, our reflection time questionnaire appears as follows.

• What stands out?
• What did you accomplish?
• What goals did you set?
• What did you do on a daily/weekly/monthly basis to achieve your goals?
• What went right?
• What went wrong?
• What habits hindered you?
• How can you move forward better in the next year?

Glancing at the list, you likely notice a universal theme. Anyone could answer the aforementioned. Same holds true amidst the ensuing additions I wish to recommend today. Nonetheless given my blog’s cerebral palsy concentration, I intend to keep all examples CP related.

New Self-Reflecting Question #1: Compared to a year ago, how are you better off now?

365 days add up quickly. An exciting and rewarding task mellows to become mundane. Fulfillment suffocated by daily life. Using reflection time to remember the initial excitement builds gratitude. Gratefulness breeds positivity. So ask, “Compared to a year ago, how are you better off now?” Answering might seem tricky. Just consider my previous statement. “An exciting and rewarding task mellows to become mundane.” To rephrase, the day-to-day camouflages reasons to feel excited. Recognizing the hidden requires renewed perspective. Try clearing your mind. Think to a year ago. Recall any activities new to you then. Maybe a major event occurred. Perhaps you discovered pleasure within a rather simple undertaking. Say buying shoes both comfortable and fashionable! Personally I recount a moment where criticizing myself. Sarcastically I thought “Way to use exercising to procrastinate!” I grew adjusted enough to my exercise routines I mistook the vital activity for procrastination. Incredible!

New Self-Reflecting Question #2: How would you grade your overall effort and why?

Once you power your grateful attitude, you prove ready to work down our reflection time prompts. The majority enhances planning. “What goals did you set?” “What went right?” “What habits hindered you?” However, until now a valuable aspect stood ignored. Effort! A plan only works after you take action. Honestly assess yourself. Ponder “How would you grade your overall effort and why?” An honest evaluation reveals much. Those acquainted with me probably heard me reference CPChatNow before. I help oversee the online community which resembles a cerebral palsy support group. A weekly Twitter chat provides CPChatNow’s foundation. My co-host Devin and I alternate weeks summarizing the week’s chat via a recap. While I am passionate about CPChatNow, my recaps’ timeliness suggested otherwise. Too often I published my recaps less than an hour prior to the following #CPChatNow. Due to the last minute nature, I would grade my efforts a low C-. Courtesy a 2018 New Year resolution to publish recaps no later than 24 hours ahead the next chat, my score currently keeps rising.

New Self-Reflecting Question #3: One year from today, what will you look back on and celebrate?

Another element deserving emphasis during self-reflections includes foresight. A subject visited through the existing question “How can you move forward better in the next year?” Although exploring the area, responses potentially lack details. A factor our final addition addresses. “One year from today, what will you look back on and celebrate?” Specifying particular accomplishments gives you direction. Objectives turn to purpose. Helpful assets ensuring your successive reflection times contain upbeat vibes. Possibly you aspire, despite your CP, to exhibit greater confidence. Ergo your response states “One year from today I will celebrate being more confident.” A mission you must decide how to pursue. Forming acquaintances among the cerebral palsy population should assist, albeit joining #CPChatNow, a Facebook group, or etcetera. Shyer individuals may initially elect to discover camaraderie consuming cerebral palsy memoirs. Please contemplate mine, titled Off Balanced (available at Amazon).

Reflection Time!

Shameless plug complete, let you and I draw today’s post to a close. This year once again we revisited the concept to utilize your birthday as reflection time. Compiling additional self-reflecting questions to ask, our updated list reads as follows.

• Compared to a year ago, how are you better off now?
• What stands out?
• What did you accomplish?
• What goals did you set?
• What did you do on a daily/weekly/monthly basis to achieve your goals?
• What went right?
• What went wrong?
• What habits hindered you?
• How would you grade your overall effort and why?
• How can you move forward better in the next year?
• One year from today what will you look back on and celebrate?

Note, I do refer to the list as ours. Therefore I welcome your additions. Suggest your own self-reflection questions in the “Comments” section below. Until next post, remember. Don’t blend in. Blend out! -Zachary

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