Why Taking Stock Changes Things

At the end of the year, so many feelings come up. Thinking to yourself, What did you learn? is a useful way to sort out your wins from this year.

In my last blog post, I talked about two other questions you can ask yourself at the end of the year: What successes did you experience? And, Who did you help? Did you try asking them? Because there’s NO WAY you didn’t experience success or not help anyone, this exercise often brings a feeling of gratitude and well-being. There’s ample opportunity to reflect on what we’ve done wrong–it’s more fun to focus on what we did right.

That's why I also recommend thinking about what you learned.

So, what did you learn this year?

Start small. Maybe you learned to use your phone more effectively, or the names of your neighbors, or how to knit. Here are some things on my list:

1. I learned how to draw cartoons (sort of. Luckily, cartoons are very forgiving). You can see them in my book, Artists: Prosper! Shout out to cartooning teacher extraordinaire Tom Motley.
2. I got better at interviewing. I’ve been interviewing an artist most weeks on Instagram Live. You can see the interviews here. (And if you’re a creative and you want to be interviewed on IG Live, email me).
3. I practiced making peace with my inner Judge.

On a more personal note, I learned which face mask doesn’t fog my glasses. I learned how to bake bread that doesn’t turn out like a whole wheat hockey puck.

Making these lists reminds me...

We’re changing and growing in lots of ways that we don’t necessarily recall unless we sit down and remember. Your What did you learn list may grow long after some concentrated thought.

If you'd also like to make peace with your inner Judge

My book, Artists: Prosper! is out. If you want to make peace with your inner Judge, the directions are in the book.