Reflection – Ruthann M. Wilson

Harvest: Gather your gifts, blessings, and life lessons

Hello October!

I don’t know about you, but I can hardly believe it is the last quarter of the calendar year. What a journey it has been from January to today!

I welcome the change of season and the gifts and opportunities that it brings. Autumn is a season of harvest, thanksgiving, reflection, completion, and letting go of of things that no longer bring you joy or serve your highest good.

This month is a good time to begin harvesting by asking yourself questions like “What did I learn?”, “How did I grow?”, “Who or what has been my greatest blessing?”. Asking and answering these questions in writing is a wonderful way to bring awareness to the gifts, blessings, and life lessons that have been provided to you this year. Schedule time to sit in quiet reflection and answer the suggested questions or create your own. Set an intention to make this process a seasonal practice, if it isn’t already one. Use the power of the written word to solidify this practice.

It’s also a great time to evaluate progress relative to your goals. If you have formal goals, check your progress relative to the milestones you established at the beginning of the year. If you don’t have formal goals, think about what you set out to accomplish at the beginning of the year and what you have accomplished to date. In evaluating progress, think not only about what you have accomplished, but who you have become as a part of the process.

Thank you for taking the time to read this post. If you know someone who might benefit from reading it, please share by clicking on a share button below.

All the best,

Ruthann

Autumn Themes

Each season brings gifts and opportunities for growth as we journey through the year.

Autumn is a season of harvest, reflection, thanksgiving, completion, and releasing/letting go of things that no longer bring you joy or serve your highest good.

Autumn questions:

What have I accomplished this year?
What didn’t I accomplish that I really wanted to? Why?
Who or what has been my greatest blessing? Why?
What is complete in my life and ready to be released so that I can embrace the next phase of my journey?
How can I release what is complete with gratitude and love?

Thank you for taking the time to read this post. I hope you found it helpful. If you know someone who might benefit, please share it by clicking on a share button below.

All the best,

Ruthann

Link to winter

End the year with GRATITUDE

It’s been a tough year, to say the least. It may be difficult to see your blessings through all of the challenges, but they are there. If you keep a gratitude journal, take time to review and reflect on what you have captured over the course of the year. If you don’t have a gratitude journal, take time to reflect on the past year and note whatever you consider to be gifts, blessings, or life lessons.

Questions for reflection:

Who or what was my greatest blessing?
What did I learn? How did I grow?
How was I a blessing to others?

Gratitude is the key to creating a joy-filled and abundant life. Giving thanks for everything that has been provided to you will increase your appreciation for your life and help you cultivate a mindset of abundance that will take root and blossom in your life.

Wishing you peace and abundant blessings in 2021.

Ruthann

Finish the Year Strong (2019)

In this video, I provide suggestions to bring the year to a close in a way that sets you up for success in 2020.

Evaluate progress toward your goals.
Celebrate what you have accomplished to date.
Complete what needs to be completed.
Make room for something new.

I have also included a worksheet that you can download to work through the exercises. You can access the worksheet by clicking here.

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All the best,

Ruthann

Reclaim Your Power

The power to choose what is best for your life is your greatest power and means of evolving your life (i.e., relationships, finances, career, etc.)

In the busyness of life, it’s easy to operate on autopilot and forget that we create our lives one choice at a time and we can make a different choice, at any given moment, to change our lives. Sometimes we don’t realize we’re on autopilot until we suddenly ‘wake up’ and realize we’re not making progress on the things that matter the most to our lives. Busyness can sometimes give us a false sense of progress.

Indecision is also a choice that keeps us from making progress. Indecision begins with small things and can become a way of life. Do you find yourself saying “I don’t know”, “I don’t care”, “It doesn’t matter”, or “You decide” frequently? If so, begin to reclaim your power by making decisions for your life, even in small matters.

If this topic resonates with you, I invite you to create awareness of the choices that you are making on a daily basis and the impact they are having on your life. Keep in mind, not making a choice is also a choice.

Questions for Daily Reflection:

What choices did I make today? Why? Were they empowering or disempowering choices?

Empowering choices are in alignment with your values/what is most important to you, affirm your sense of worth and personal freedom, boost your energy, and help you move forward. Disempowering choices are the opposite. They may or may not be conscious.

Life is all about choices. Use the power of reflection to bring awareness to what you are choosing for your life.

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All the best,

Ruthann

Finish the Year Strong (Video)

In this video, I provide suggestions to bring the year to a close in a way that sets you up for success in 2019.

Evaluate progress toward your goals.
Celebrate what you have accomplished to date.
Complete whatever needs to be completed.
Make room for something new.

All the best,

Ruthann

Reflect on Your Week

Reflection is a powerful way to learn, grow, and keep moving forward. Taking time over the weekend to reflect on the week that has past and look forward to the week ahead will help you keep your life in progress and your goals on track. Small changes on a weekly basis can have a tremendous effect on your life.

Make a commitment to spend 15-20 minutes over the weekend (Saturday or Sunday) to first, look back and then, look forward. I have outlined a few questions, best answered in writing, to help get you started.

Look back

What did I accomplish?
What didn’t I accomplish that I wanted to? Why?
What did I learn?
How did I grow?
What’s working/going well?
What’s not working/not going well? What can I do to shift or neutralize what’s not working?
Who or what was my greatest blessing?
How was I a blessing to others?

Look forward

What are my top priorities for the week ahead? Why are these priorities?
Based on my review of last week, what might I do differently in the coming week?

Use the power of reflection on a weekly basis to help you learn, grow, and keep moving forward.

Thank you for taking the time to read this post. If you know someone who might benefit from reading it, please share by clicking on a share button below.

All the best,

Ruthann

2018: Create a New Chapter

“And suddenly you just know…it’s time to start something new and trust the magic of beginnings.”

—Meister Eckhart

A new year provides us with the opportunity to begin a new chapter in our lives. To get the most out of your new beginning, spend some time bringing 2017 to a close. Here are a few questions for reflection.

What did I accomplish in 2017?
What didn’t I accomplish that I really wanted to? Why?
Who or what was my greatest blessing? Why?
What is complete in my life and ready to be released so that I can begin a new chapter in 2018?

What are you inspired to begin this year? Declare it in the comment section below.

Wishing you all a happy, healthy, and prosperous 2018.

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Ruthann

Mid-Year: Review, Reflect, Keep Moving Forward

Forward

It’s hard to believe that we are halfway through the year. It’s a good time to pause and reflect on the first half of the year to see where you are versus where you hoped to be this time of the year. Make an effort to look back at the first half of the year without getting stuck in feelings of guilt or regret if you are off track. The goal of a mid-year evaluation is to review, reflect, correct, and move forward.

If you work in a business setting, you are more than likely used to a mid-year assessment related to your role/position. It is also a good practice for other areas of your life. Here are a few questions for you to consider:

What have I accomplished year to date?
- Consider all of your life areas (e.g., career, finances, health & fitness, etc.)
- Celebrate your accomplishments no matter how big or small.
What didn’t I accomplish that I really wanted to? Why?
Who or what has been my greatest blessing? Why?
What did I learn?
How did I grow?
What am I really committed to?

The last question is important to crystalize as a part of your mid-year evaluation. It will help you to see where you need to make adjustments to your current plan or change course and create a new plan of action.

For your reference, I have provided links to previous posts that are related to this topic.

Be Intentional (includes a downloadable worksheet)

Focus on what truly matters

SMART Goals: Bring Your Desires to Life

Create a Vision Board

Create a Theme for the Year

Keep moving forward! 🙂

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All the best,

Ruthann

2016 Change and Transition

If you have read my book, you know there is a recurring theme that the nature of life is change and transition for the purpose of growth and evolution. Change is an inevitable and necessary element of life. It can be self-initiated or the result of external factors that might be out of our control (e.g., death of a loved one, loss of a job, health crisis, economy, sociopolitical environment).

Change is difficult whether we initiate it or not because it requires us to release/let go of something or someone and venture into the unknown. The unknown can be exciting or frightening depending on your perspective. Being able to reflect on the changes and transitions that have occurred in our lives enables us to learn and grow from our experiences.

As a part of my year-end process, I look back at the changes that occurred over the course of the year. I put the changes into two categories: 1) changes that I proactively initiated and 2) changes that were in response to external factors. I look at them separately for two reasons: 1) I am committed to personal growth and it is a way to hold myself accountable and 2) I recognize that some events/circumstances are out of my control, however, they provide me with an opportunity to learn more about myself, as well as others, and make changes accordingly.

PowerPoint Presentation I invite you to look back on 2016 in the context of the changes that occurred in your life. Look back with the following questions in mind.

What did you learn?
How did you grow?
What did you do for the first time this year? How did it make you feel?
Did you proactively initiate any changes in your life? If not, why not?
What did you learn about yourself and others as a result of external factors that were out of your direct control?

If your desire is to create your life from the inside out, commit to setting goals and proactively making changes in your life. Choose how to respond to external factors that are out of your control and stay focused on your goals.

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All the best,

Ruthann