Learn how to use reflection to examine and evaluate your decisions, and how to identify and use patterns to improve your critical thinking skills and outcomes.

Reflection tends to invoke internal processing; replaying a tape and taking away learnings from missed scenes or missteps. But remember you’re using a singular lens. So, if you’re authentically reflecting & themes arise, it’s incumbent upon you to check if it resonates with others, mitigate your areas of opportunity by surrounding yourself with people who you can learn from in real time, and be candid & vulnerable by sharing your reflections & growth areas with your team(s). This demonstrates ownership, openness to ask for help in accountability, humility, and commitment to improve . When people see action addressing areas they’ve likely perceived before you have, you’re productively owning it. This accelerates trust by walking the talk.

How can you use reflection to identify patterns in your decision-making?

How can you use reflection to identify patterns in your decision-making? Reflection is a process of examining and evaluating your thoughts, actions, and outcomes in relation to your goals, values, and standards. By reflecting regularly, you can improve your critical thinking skills and learn from your experiences. In this article, you will discover how to use reflection to identify patterns in your decision-making, and how to use them to enhance your performance and growth.

1 Why reflect on your decisions?

Reflection helps you to understand why you made certain decisions, how they affected your results, and what you can do differently in the future. By reflecting on your decisions, you can identify patterns that reveal your strengths, weaknesses, biases, assumptions, and preferences. You can also recognize the factors that influenced your decisions, such as emotions, information, context, and feedback. Reflection enables you to assess your decision-making process and outcomes, and to learn from your successes and failures.

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2 How to reflect on your decisions?

Reflecting on your decisions can be a valuable and meaningful activity, but it's important to set aside the right time and space for it. You should also collect and review the relevant data and evidence related to your decision, such as goals, criteria, alternatives, risks, consequences, and feedback. Additionally, you should analyze and evaluate your decision-making process and outcomes. Ask yourself questions such as: what was the purpose of the decision? How did you weigh the pros and cons of the options? What were the expected and actual results? How did you communicate and implement the decision? What were the positive and negative effects? What challenges and opportunities did you encounter? What did you learn from it? And what would you do differently next time?

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Scott Bahr

Leader, strategist and one who gets it done. Author. Bar raiser. Mentor. Dad. Former President & CEO.
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Self-reflection is harder than it sounds. If you want to truly learn from your reflection, you need to understand WHY you made the decision you did and what mistakes, if any, you made in the process of arriving at that decision. Try a 5 why approach, working backward from the final decision. Why did you decide as you did? Why did that cause you to make the choices? Why were those your criteria? Why did that matter? Why did you feel that way? Next look at whether you decided too fast or should have decided faster? Each has ramifications. Finally, look at your internal biases to see what blind spots impacted your decisions.

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3 How to identify patterns in your decision-making?

As you reflect on your decisions, you can look for patterns that emerge from your answers to the questions above. Patterns are recurring themes, trends, or behaviors that indicate how you approach and make decisions. For instance, you may find that you have a tendency to rely more on intuition than evidence, seek feedback from others, have confidence in your choices, be flexible in changing plans, be proactive in solving problems, be creative in generating options, be optimistic about the outcomes, and be satisfied with the results.

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4 How to use patterns to improve your decision-making?

Once you identify the patterns in your decision-making, you can use them to enhance your performance and growth. Recognize your strengths and weaknesses as a decision-maker, acknowledge any biases or assumptions that may affect your decisions, and appreciate the preferences and values that guide you. Celebrate your successes and learn from any mistakes or failures. Set goals and action plans to improve your decision-making skills, seek feedback and support from others to refine your process, and experiment with new ways of making decisions.

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Christen Ng

Chief Technology Officer | People-First Leader Leveraging Technology + Data Strategy for Collective Impact in Nonprofits | Human Experience Enthusiast
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Reflection tends to invoke internal processing; replaying a tape and taking away learnings from missed scenes or missteps. But remember you’re using a singular lens. So, if you’re authentically reflecting & themes arise, it’s incumbent upon you to check if it resonates with others, mitigate your areas of opportunity by surrounding yourself with people who you can learn from in real time, and be candid & vulnerable by sharing your reflections & growth areas with your team(s). This demonstrates ownership, openness to ask for help in accountability, humility, and commitment to improve . When people see action addressing areas they’ve likely perceived before you have, you’re productively owning it. This accelerates trust by walking the talk.

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5 How to make reflection a habit?

Reflection is not a one-time activity, but a continuous and ongoing process. To make reflection a habit, you should schedule regular and frequent sessions, such as daily, weekly, or monthly. You can use a journal, template, or tool to record and organize your reflections, then review and revise them periodically to track your progress and changes. Additionally, sharing and discussing your reflections with others can provide new perspectives and insights. Finally, you should apply your reflections to your current and future decisions in order to test and validate your learning. Reflection is a powerful way to identify patterns in decision-making and use them to improve critical thinking skills and outcomes. By reflecting regularly, you can learn from experiences, enhance performance, and grow as a decision-maker.

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6 Here’s what else to consider

This is a space to share examples, stories, or insights that don’t fit into any of the previous sections. What else would you like to add?

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How can you use reflection to identify patterns in your decision-making?

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1 Why reflect on your decisions?

2 How to reflect on your decisions?

3 How to identify patterns in your decision-making?

4 How to use patterns to improve your decision-making?

5 How to make reflection a habit?

6 Here’s what else to consider

Critical Thinking

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How can you use reflection to identify patterns in your decision-making?

1

2

3

4

5

6

1 Why reflect on your decisions?

2 How to reflect on your decisions?

3 How to identify patterns in your decision-making?

4 How to use patterns to improve your decision-making?

5 How to make reflection a habit?

6 Here’s what else to consider

Critical Thinking

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