When we look forward it brings possibility.
When we look backwards, it brings awareness.
It’s the perfect combination.
When you put those two things together it’s very simple but it’s very powerful.
That’s what we’re going to learn about today.
We’re going to add to the practice from a previous episode of Looking Forward and today we’re going to learn about the daily practice of LOOKING BACKWARD.
Today, we’re going to talk about the simple, but powerful practice of Looking Backward.
Here’s how you do it.
Take a few minutes every night and write down a few things that you have done during the day.
What are some things that you don’t want to forget?
We all think that we’re not going to forget the events that happen each day, especially the big and important ones.
Here’s a little secret… You will!
Let’s start with an example of what NOT to do.
When I was growing up, my brother, when he turned about eight I think, as a project for cub scouts, he started writing in a journal.
I think he kept it up at least through high school, which is actually really impressive.
Every night, he wrote in this journal:
I got up.
I ate breakfast.
I got dressed.
I went to school.
I came home.
I did my homework.
I ate dinner.
I went to bed.
Don’t ask me how I know what he wrote in his journal.
Don’t get me wrong, it set up a great habit BUT
the point is, it really didn’t serve a purpose besides developing a habit.
But it was boring and didn’t tell the story of anything that he did.
I’m also not saying that my journals were much better back then either.
Mine were full of who was cute and who I wished would want me to be their girlfriend.
What I’m getting at is that when I talk about looking back and writing about the day, I’m not talking about just writing about the events of your day.
I don’t want you to just write a list of what you did.
There’s a lot more to it than that.
It needs to have more thought put into it if it’s going to become a memory.
Our brains like to put information together and when you write something down daily, it helps your brain to put it all together. Not just random bits of facts scattered around.
Add a little more information, like:
How did it make you feel?
What made it so special?
Why do you never want to forget it?
Do you ever want to have it happen again?
AND
What can you learn from this situation to make something in the future better next time?
It’s so important for you to record the events that you think you’re never going to forget because YOU WILL!
When we record the things that happen to us it’s like it stops or freezes a moment in time and it makes it feel like the time didn’t just fly by. It actually gives it “weight” so it stays with you longer.
It’s pretty cool how that works.
You get to decide the method you want to use to record your important memories.
I’ve got a few ideas for you:
Scrapbooking: with all the fancy papers and the embellishments
Simply writing in a journal
Keeping pictures in a photo book. (it’s better than nothing. Pictures can spark memories and a few descriptive words make it even more memorable)
I’ve chosen to do a daily memory and picture for the year between 49-50. My 50th scrapbook. I’ve kept it pretty simple and I think I’m going to continue doing it because I’ve loved it so much. I’ve recorded so many things that I wouldn’t have otherwise.
If you’d like to see more of this 50th year scrapbook you can follow me on Instagram @hunkeedori where I’ve posted pictures about it.
There isn’t a wrong answer.
Choose the style that works best for you.
It really only takes a few written lines for you to remember something that happened.
You get to be there for the story of your life.
Things don’t always come easy.
Life can be really hard AND it can also be a really fun adventure.
All of it makes up who you are and you need to do what you can to keep those moments with you.
I happen to believe that everything that happens to us…
Every event
Every hard thing
Every good thing
ALL OF IT
Makes us who we are so that we’re able to handle whatever comes next.
I want to be prepared for whatever comes next.
So I’m trying my best to keep the things that have happened in the past and every day somewhere where I can draw from them in my memory when I need to.
Today I’ve shared a little bit of what I teach in my Camp Connection Program.
If the ideas I’ve shared with you today feel good to you and you’d like to learn more, I’d like to invite you sign up for the entire program.
It’s a FREE series of five videos that I send to your inbox daily that you can watch each day when it works best for you.
The next session starts as soon as tomorrow. You’ll be enrolled as soon as you register and I’ll send you information of how we’ll get started.
Just go and sign up at Hunkeedori.com or go down to the show notes below this episode and click the link to sign up there.
I will teach you a simple practice each day that “fills the potholes in life” that can create a smoother ride as you work towards your destination.
Each video is only fifteen minutes or less.
Each day I’ll leave you with a little homework assignment that is meant to help you put into practice what I taught that day. If you truly want to learn something, you’ve got to give it a try!
You’ll leave Camp Connection with what I like to call a “First-Aid Kit for the soul” that is filled with supplies that you can use to help you to reconnect to YOU and strengthen yourself so you can be more prepared to help others.
I hope you’ll join me! It’s totally FREE and I’d love to connect with you there. I truly believe in the things I teach in Camp Connection. The more I use the daily routine I teach you, the more I see how it shows up for me when I need it the most.
Go over to Hunkeedori.com or scroll down to the show notes of this episode and you’ll find the link to sign up! I know it’s TOTALLY worth your time. I’ll be watching for you to join!!
Enroll in Camp Connection: https://hunkeedori.com/CampConnection