The Benefits of Not Labeling Your Year Good or Bad

Questions to guide your yearly reflection

Every year around this time I like to reflect on what I’ve experienced in the last 365 days. I intentionally sit and remember it all… the good, the bad, the amazing, and the worst. I reflect on the decisions I’ve made, my emotional reactions, the love I gave, the moments that took my breath away, the views I saw, and the strangers turned friends turned strangers again.

If we don’t stop to remember or reflect, how much different can the next year be? How will we know what lessons we’ve already learned, so as not to repeat our mistakes? Taking a minute to be grateful for making it through another year, especially in times as they are, can remind us of what is truly important in our lives.

If someone were to ask you “how was your year?” you’d likely answer one of two ways…

“I had a good year.” or “My year wasn’t great.”

People tend to feel the need to label things: label a relationship, label their level of success, label their year. When we label the year in a single box, we limit what we can actually take from it.

If the year was all hunky-dory with little to no struggle, then when did we have the opportunity for growth? If nothing good came from the year (in your…