My life has been a series of firsts: starting school, moving across the country, graduating college.
One day I realized I had experienced more firsts in the past two months than I had in my entire life. All of a sudden, I started reflecting on how much I was learning every day.
Since then, I've started applying my experiences to everything I do. Instead of waiting to reflect on my lessons after the fact, I'm trying to take advantage of the opportunities while they are happening.
Reflection is a key component to personal growth. It lets us learn from our experiences and makes sure we never forget a key lesson.
Here are some tips to help you grow as a person by learning from your experiences:
Write down lessons learned: Writing down lessons learned is an incredibly easy and effective way to get started. You can either write down what you think they are or write down what you've experienced.
Keep it short: Keep your reflections short and to the point. If they take longer than a single page, keep writing until you're done, but cut out distractions like the weather, traffic, and the time of day.
Don't just focus on mistakes: Reflecting on your successes as well can be equally important. You could think of your mistakes as a way to learn how to handle situations differently in the future, but focus on the successes as well.
Learn from everything: We all make mistakes, but that doesn't mean that all of our actions are failures. In fact, we learn a lot from our successes as well.
Remember that the best lessons often come from unexpected sources: Don't limit yourself to your lessons learned from classes or books, but consider the lessons you learn from unexpected sources like mentors, friends, and family.
Focus on your own life: One of the most common reasons people don't learn from their mistakes is because they never reflect on their own lives. By focusing on your life, you can ensure you aren't making the same mistake twice.
Use the time to take action: Once you've finished your reflection, make a plan. Now is the perfect time to start taking action.
Try it: Try to apply what you have learned today to your life. You'll see that you grow as a person by continually learning and reflecting on your experiences.