Over at Marc and Angel Hack Life, I read a post by Marc about 20 questions he feels you should ask yourself once a week, like on a quiet Sunday when you have time to reflect on your life, what you’ve accomplished and where you are going, or would like to go – this seems like such a stellar idea, I thought I’d try it out here, and maybe again in weeks to come.

Here’s what Marc says about the process, which he says much more eloquently than I could ever hope to:

At the cusp of new beginnings many of us take time to reflect on our lives by looking back over the past and ahead into the future.  We ponder the successes, failures and standout events that are slowly scripting our life’s story.  This process of self reflection helps maintain a conscious awareness of where we’ve been and where we intend to go.  It is pertinent to the organization and preservation of our dreams, goals and desires.

If you would like to maximize the benefits of self reflection, I have 20 questions for you.  These questions should be reviewed every Sunday morning or sometime during the weekend when you have some quiet time to think.  Remember, reflection is the key to progression.

So here are the questions and my answers for this week:

1. What did I learn last week? – I learned that I have to stand up for myself, and admit my weaknesses as well as my strengths – if I’m not capable of doing something, I should simply say so – instead of trying to do it anyway and having is strain my life and relationships for the worse.
2. What was my greatest accomplishment over the past week? – Learning the above – finding ways to help people without hurting myself, and still feeling accomplished in that goal.
3. Which moment from last week was the most memorable and why? This week my husband and I celebrated our 2 year anniversary so that has certainly been the most memorable – from the lunch we had day of, to our big date night that weekend.
4. What’s the #1 thing I need to accomplish this week? – My mind says help my friend find a new car, but I think the answer should be “Accept that it’s my friend’s responsibility to find that car and not mine,” despite the effect her lack of car having-ness will have on my life.
5. What can I do right now to make the week less stressful? – Right this second, I’d say get as good and relaxed as I could possibly be – this coming week is going to be busy, particularly Monday, so I’ll need my wits about me – I’ve done a good job so far, I think I just need to try not to botch things up. I managed to get my grocery shopping done and plan a menu for the coming week and that should help. It might behoove me to get a head start on my laundry, but that is easier said than done in an apartment when the weekends mean a constantly busy laundry room that is practically empty on weekdays.
6. What have I struggled with in the past that might also affect the upcoming week? – Being a doormat and trying to do more than I am capable of without losing my mind.
7. What was last week’s biggest time sink? – I did a lot of chauffeuring this week which cut time into my own needs for the week, but I think that was kind of unavoidable and just unfortunate.
8. Am I carrying any excess baggage into the week that can be dropped? – No I’ve done a surprisingly miraculous job of de-stressing this week, so that even big things that have happened, I’ve already mostly let go of.
9. What have I been avoiding that needs to get done? – I need to get my oil changed, which we’ve decided to do this week but it does need to get done – unfortunately we’ve got some other bigger fish to fry…
10. What opportunities are still on the table? – We need to save up to replace our DVD player.
11. Is there anyone I’ve been meaning to talk to? – I haven’t talked to my sister in awhile
12. Is there anyone that deserves a big ‘Thank You’? – I’ve given a couple of big thank yous recently actually, I’m kind of rocking this week…
13. How can I help someone else this coming week? – If I help many more people I think my head will explode.
14. What are my top 3 goals for the next 3 years? – Save for a house, move to a new state, buy a puppy
15. Have any of my recent actions moved me closer to my goals? – Only that we’ve pared down our spending tremendously.
16. What’s the next step for each goal? – Continuing to spend less and start saving even more – get life insurance, finish our will, and make sure we are absolutely financially stable.
17. What am I looking forward to during the upcoming week? – Having a meal plan, having less days until our September vacation
18. What are my fears? – abandonment, death, bad stuff happening to my family, going broke
19. What am I most grateful for? – My husband, friends and family – that we are doing as well financially as we are – having
20. If I knew I only had one week to live, who would I spend my time with? – God I don’t want to think about that – but my husband and son. The end.