The Importance of Taking Time for Reflection
Articles By Susan Leigh
The Importance of Taking Time for Reflection
It is a valuable exercise to occasionally pause and take a break in our life, to take time to reflect on the direction our life is taking, to consider the various parts of our life. Otherwise, it can be the case that days, weeks, months go by and then we suddenly wonder where all the time went and why so many of the important hopes and dreams never occurred.
Taking time to stop and reflect can be done at any time though many people regard New Year as the universal time for this exercise.
Realistically though, any time can be good to take a break and consider the direction that we are going in and determine whether or not we are on the right path for us to achieve our goals.
- Pausing in a busy life is an important opportunity to manage stress better.
Are all the pressures and stresses equally valid or could some be let go of completely or passed on to someone else. Some duties can come with the job title of Mother, Father, junior staff member, manager, but they may be historical responsibilities rather than important and critical matters. Letting go of some tasks can free us up to be more valuable elsewhere and make better use of our time.
- Sometimes, upon reflection, we can find that we are behaving in certain ways, saying or doing things because of the lifestyle that we have adopted. We may come to appreciate that the way we live our life, the people we mix with, the stresses that have become a major part of our life are changing and affecting us in ways that we do not like. Stopping and reflecting on whether we are happy or not can have a major impact on the way we proceed next in our lives.
- Look at the dreams that were once so vibrant and inspirational.
What happened to them? At one time we were perhaps determined to travel the world, climb a mountain, visit the Arctic, run our own business. Those dreams informed the choices that we made along the way. Is there still some way of putting them back on the agenda and finding the time to be inspired again.
- Are we spending our valuable free time with the people with whom we want to be or is it all about cultivating people of influence, fulfilling our duties, being seen with the right people. Sometimes we have to undertake certain roles to further our career but, on reflection, could we get a better balance which would result in us spending a little more time with our loved ones, friends and family?
- What about more fundamental aspects of our lives and of ourselves.
Are we happy with the person we are becoming or are we adopting attitudes and views that do not really suit us? Reviewing and revising our opinions and points of view can, on occasion be a useful exercise. Listening to others, how they think, their moral code, the considerations they take into account can all provide important areas for reflection.
- Often if we have an important decision to make or are considering a major change in life, taking time to reflect can be important. Sometimes people will sleep on an important dilemma or choice, knowing that overnight their minds are processing the various points. We often find that we feel rather differently about things the following day. Stresses and priorities can be interestingly amended after a good nights sleep.
About the Author
Susan Leigh is a Counsellor and Hypnotherapist who works with
- stressed individuals to promote confidence and self belief,
- couples in crisis to help improve communications and understanding
- with business clients to help support the health and motivation levels of individuals and teams
For more information see http://www.lifestyletherapy.net
Keywords: Importance of Taking Time for Reflection, Hypnotherapist, improve communications, Susan Leigh, Intuition, Intuitive, Articles, UK, South Africa, Cape Town
