Make Time for Reflection

Guest Post by Amy Newton, owner of Amy Newton Public Relations, LLC, located in Loudoun County Virginia

If you are a business owner, sometimes you can get so focused and caught up in the day-to-day operations of keeping your business running smoothly (and keeping business coming in) that a key component of success can fall through the cracks…reflection.

Incorporate time for reflection, evaluation, and assessment into your project (or daily) process. In business, you may often have to jump from one project to the next, so you may not spend the time you need to reflect and then record your thoughts about how a project or event went or was completed.

Taking time to reflect on a closed project is beneficial. Don’t rely on memory. Memories fade and people who worked on a project can leave. Having a post-project or post-event assessment record helps you retain the information. Stop and take time to reflect on each item or step of the project, assess it, and then write down your comments, ideas, and other details or issues that may have come up during the project.

It’s important to note, too, that reflection and assessment are not solely for after completing a big project or event. You can reflect upon and assess everything that you do throughout your workday or workweek.

For example, if a new client visited your office, did they find parking easily, were they greeted upon arrival, did they have a long wait? If it was a video or conference call with a client, did they have to wait long for everyone to join, could everyone hear, were there any connectivity issues?

Taking time to assess and reflect upon business projects and interactions can help you identify the areas in which you are doing well and the areas on which you can improve. Even small improvements can reap big rewards, so be certain to incorporate time for reflection into your project process.