13 Year-End Reflection Questions to Reset Your Mindset

Hi guys, I'm Reena Vokoun, the host of Your Power Move by PassionFit, and I'm excited to be bringing you another solo episode today. We are in December of 2025. It is crazy to think that we are already at the end of the year, which is why for this episode I wanted to talk about end-of-year reflections. I think it's an important topic to cover. Um, it really in and of itself is a power move to take the time to reflect on how your year has gone. And I think it can really benefit all of us in many different ways. So I'm gonna talk a little bit about why it's so important. I'm gonna talk about some questions that you may wanna think about asking yourself as we approach the end of the year. And I'll even share a little bit of a reflection on my own, uh, 2025 and some of the highlights of what things happened for me this year as well. So as we are nearing again the end of the year, according According to research by Harvard Business School, only about 15% of people are sufficiently self-aware. Um, and so when we do things like have these end-of-year reflections, they can really help us to have that sense of self-awareness. The more we do it, the easier it gets. And it really helps us to be intentional. It helps us to really be proactive about how we manage our lives. And that's what's going to help us to learn and grow. Um, so some of the things to think about, um, you know, when we are looking at the end of the year is what did we accomplish? What were some of the successes that we had, um, throughout the year? And I think it's important to reflect on those because oftentimes, um, for those of us that are high achieving people who are always setting goals and achieving them, sometimes we just hit the goal and then we move on to the next thing. And sometimes what that does is it causes us to never feel fulfilled because we're always chasing after the next goal or accomplishment. And the one after that and the one after that. And so when we actually take the time to stop and reflect and appreciate the fact that we did reach a goal and we did have some really significant accomplishments, that's going to allow us to feel good about it. It's going to make us feel motivated so that we can continue to, um, you know, focus, um, on our pursuits in the future, but it also allows us to stop and rest for a second and really take the time to realize how hard we worked and what efforts we put into that accomplishment and to be satisfied with it. When we have that sense of satisfaction, that sense of fulfillment, and that sense of gratitude, that's really going to help us so that we're not always chasing the next thing. Sure, it does motivate us for our future pursuits, but it also lets us feel content with what we've already accomplished. On the flip side, it's really important to look at any mistakes that we might have made and give ourselves grace. Um, we all make mistakes. Um, that is a part of life. There really is no failure in life. I know a lot of us can be afraid to fail. Um, but really all it is is just a learning lesson. And so as we are in sort of this end of year reflection timeframe, that's another important thing to think about. You know, what were those mistakes that we made? Let's give ourselves grace for them and let's figure out what we can learn from them because oftentimes our mistakes and our failures or perceived failures are some of the biggest teachers that we can have in our lives. And in most cases, we'll never forget them, right? We'll never forget a mistake that we made. Made, especially if it was significant in our professional life or our personal life. And as long as we understand maybe what we could have done differently or what went wrong, we're gonna take that with us into our next set of experiences, um, as we approach the new year. So I think that's another really important one. Focus on the accomplishments and the successes, but also focus on any of the perceived failures or mistakes or weaknesses that we may have had and be grateful for them and for all that they can teach us to really help us to get better and better. I think it's also important to maybe think about our purpose. Are we reinstilling our purpose? Are we redefining our purpose again in our personal lives or our professional lives? Um, because that's another one that really is what helps us get out of bed every morning, right? That's what gives us, um, that, that light and that energy to go about our day. And so if our purpose is staying the same, that's great. Let's reinforce it. Think about it. Let's remember it. But if it's changing, maybe we have a different purpose because of some major event that happened this year, that's going to have us shift our focus and redirect us to a different purpose. That's important to think about because then a lot of the things that you are going to be focused on in the coming year might be different and might change your perspective, might change some of your values, um, and how you go about your life. So that's another really important deep one to think about, um, when we are approaching end of year and end of year reflections. Um, and there's lots of different ways that you can do this. Journaling is obviously, you know, a great one. I love to journal. I do it as often as I can. I keep a notebook actually in my nightstand and I like to journal usually before bedtime. So that could be a way for you to, again, just write freely about how the year went, you know, put in your reflections, all the different learnings that you might've had. Um, and then you have that as a reference point later, which is one of the most powerful parts of journaling. Another way to do it could be just voice recording on your phone. Sometimes it's actually nice to talk it through and then listen back to it, and you can get different perspectives hearing your thoughts, hearing your, your feelings about how things went in the year. And that again is just a really great way to connect with yourself, to have that sense of self-awareness that we were talking about earlier. And again, something that you can come back to again and again. You could also do it as a conversation with a close friend or a family member, anybody that you trust that you want to just talk about. And maybe you can do that with one another. Maybe they can share their end of year reflections as you share your own. Um, and it can also be done in the workplace setting. You know, oftentimes you do have end of year reviews with your bosses. So on the, you know, career side of things, that's another great forum to really reflect and think about what you accomplished, what you wanna do differently, what you learned, um, and just how it hopefully makes you a better person. So you can definitely have a conversation about it as part of your end of year reflection, either in your personal life, um, and/or your professional life as well. Um, another great way to reflect is during a meditation session or a yoga session. You may not have something that you're actually writing down or recording, but sometimes end of year reflections are very effective for people when it is done in a quiet space, in a quiet place, and just for you to just personally reflect mentally and emotionally on how the year went. And maybe that will still stay with you because you'll remember that yoga session or that meditation session when you were really thinking through how the year went. Um, so there's lots of different ways that you can reflect, and I think it's important to, um, think about what ways are going to be most beneficial for you, most meaningful for you. And again, that you can have a reference point, uh, for later if that's important to you, or just something that's just, um, you know, put into your memory from a meditation practice or a yoga session. And there's lots of different questions that we can all be asking ourselves, right? As we approach the end of the year. Um, you know, I think some of the first ones are, you know, what, what am I most proud of? Um, you know, what did I do this year? And it doesn't even have to be a tangible accomplishment. It could just be a feeling about how you approached, uh, different relationships, different situations, how you dealt with change, how you dealt with challenges. Um, so think about things that you're most proud of, of yourself. Um, I think that's also really goes hand in hand with instilling a sense of self-love, right? Which is not always easy for people to do, but when we really think about things that we are proud of within ourselves, um, no one can do that better than ourselves. We can try to seek that out from other people, but having that own internal sense of confidence and security and self-assurance that comes from really thinking about it and, and vocalizing it to ourselves, I think that can really help, um, with these end-of-year reflections and also be a great form of self-love as well. Um, it's also important to think about what we're grateful for. Um, you know, that is, I know, kind of a cliché thing to ask or to think about, but I think it is so critical and so pivotal in our lives to take those times to stop and think about what we are grateful for, because it really does give us a better sense of wisdom about things. It gives us a better perspective when we focus about what we do have and what we're grateful for versus again, always chasing the next thing or focusing our lives on what we don't have. Um, the more we question what we are grateful for and answer that question, the more we think of our life in a sense of abundance versus a sense of lack. Um, so I think that's another really important question, one of the most important to ask ourselves. Um, it's also important to think about what, you know, what was challenging this year for us. Um, what could we have maybe done differently? And there might be some instances where there There was nothing we could have done differently. It was just a challenging time or a challenging experience. Maybe it was, um, you know, within our jobs, we were working on a really tough project and we didn't have all the information. We did what we could with the resources that we had and we tried our best and it was something new we had never done before. And so maybe it didn't go exactly the way we wanted, but that was the first step. And so asking ourselves, why was it challenging? Um, again, what could I have done differently? Or maybe, maybe I did all that I could and Now, you know, I need to think about where I go from here. So that's another important question to ask. I think it's also important to ask questions about, you know, did I— was I giving enough? Did I give back enough in my community for specific charities, within my family, within my professional life? Or could I be doing more of that? I think that's something as humans who want to make an impact, who want to do good in the world, that's always a good question to ask. Um, you know, did I give back in some way? And it doesn't necessarily have to be in a monetary sense. It could be giving back our time, giving, uh, back our energy. Um, you know, really helping somebody that was struggling or being a mentor or volunteering in some kind of way to make someone else's life better. Um, so that could be something to reflect on. And again, there's no right or wrong. Everybody is different. Everybody has different life circumstances, but it's another great question to ask so that we can, you know, really think about what we want to do differently, um, in the, the upcoming year. Um, also, what are the, the skills, um, you know, that I learned, um, this year? Did I develop any new skills? Did I have any special trainings, um, both in my personal life or professional life? In your professional life, it could be an on-the-job training. Maybe it was, um, a skill to, to learn AI, right, or technology, or, um, some other type of skill, a marketing skill or a financial skill that you didn't have. Um, or maybe you learned something new in your personal life. Maybe you took guitar lessons or voice lessons, or you learned how to ski, or, you know, whatever it might be. But think about, you know, did you learn any new skills in your life? Because that's always something that can help us to grow and expand our knowledge, our wisdom, our horizons. So that's another good one to ask yourself. And, and if you didn't learn any new skills, that's okay. You probably learned something new within the skills you already have. And if you want to learn new skills, if you want to try something new in the upcoming year, then again, asking That question could be the first step in allowing you to do that. Um, also maybe ask yourself about travel. Did you travel anywhere new this year? Um, are there places you want to travel to next year? So kind of have a sense of where you did go, what you learned, what you enjoyed, maybe what you didn't enjoy and what you would do in the following year. And again, asking these questions is never meant to make us feel bad or that we didn't do enough. We didn't learn enough. We didn't travel enough. We didn't have enough accomplishments. That's not the point of it at all. Really just to be self-aware and just to take stock of kind of, you know, where our focus was over the course of this last year. And if there are changes we want to make, that's great. If we wouldn't do it any differently, that's great too. Um, so again, there's no judgment. It's just, um, a sense of awareness and understanding of, of where things went over the years. Um, it's also important to think about any life lessons that we learned over the year. So was there something that was really monumental in your life, an important lesson that you learned about a specific person or about a type of change that you liked or didn't like. Maybe you are okay with, um, you know, a big massive change in your life, or maybe as you get older you realize that change is getting harder, and so you have to figure out new ways to deal with it. So that's another important question to be asking yourself. What were those life lessons, and, and what are you going to do with that, that information, and how will you apply that to your life in, in future. It's also important to kind of dig a little bit deeper and ask yourself, is there something that you're really craving or needing in your life right now? Is it more family support? Are you really craving more time outdoors? Or are you craving, um, you know, a new career path or traveling to a new country? Whatever it might be, it's important to also know what are the things that maybe you're longing for in your life. Maybe you want more of a community and you want to make some new friends at depending on what life stage you're in, whether you are in college or you're, you know, freshly graduated and you're out in the workforce, or you're in midlife, or you're in the retirement stage. Oftentimes those changes in our lives can bring about feelings of loneliness or, you know, seeking, you know, more support or more community in our lives. So those are questions to ask as well. What is it that you're craving, and what is it that you're needing, and who can you talk to about that, maybe in your family and friend group, and what can you do about that so that fulfill, um, those needs that you might have. Um, you could also ask yourself about your core relationships in your life. How are those going? How are you feeling about the relationships with your spouse or significant other, with your kids, if you have children, with your extended family, your parents, your siblings, um, your close circle of friends. Um, that's another important question to ask as we reflect at the end of the year, because those relationships are really important. Some of the most important aspects of our lives are the people within it and the the relationships that we have. So asking yourself, you know, how are those relationships? Are they intact? Are they in a healthy place? Is there something that I can do to make more of an effort to connect with this person or that person? Maybe I should reach out to, you know, my close friends and schedule some walks or some coffee chats just to reconnect with them because it's been several months. Or maybe with my spouse or significant other, we could plan a weekend getaway because we've been so busy with the kids and our jobs and running around, we haven't had enough time just for each other. Um, or with parents, as parents are getting older, we want to make sure we're there to help them with any needs that they have. So checking in with our parents, if we're lucky to still have them alive. So these are all just different types of relationship questions to ask. And I think the more we can ask those questions and then be proactive about reconnecting or connecting further with those people that we love the most, that's going to help grow those relationships. And it's also going to help them to in turn want to connect and make efforts on their ends as well.. So it just takes that, that first step, again, that power move of asking these questions and, and having these reflections. Um, and then when it comes to career, that's another one where, again, we're nearing the end of the year. Um, oftentimes you are having, as mentioned earlier, those end-of-year review conversations with your bosses or managers. Maybe you're looking to make a career change or move to a different department. Um, so it's important to ask those types of questions as well. Are you happy with where you are in your career? Is there something new that you want to do? Um, are you Are you trying to get promoted? Are you trying to maybe start your own business? Um, whatever it is, it all starts with those reflections and those questions. Um, when I look back on my year, um, 2025 has been a great year and it's definitely been challenging in many ways. There's been a lot of change. Um, but I really feel as I'm nearing the end of the year, I feel good about it overall. Um, I, I'm very thankful that my second, uh, book launched. It was actually at the end of 2024 in November, but there was a lot of work to continue to promote the book and get get the word out and, um, get it in different distribution channels. So that was a big accomplishment, was that second book getting out and really, um, continuing to get it out into the world in 2025. Um, also I was fortunate enough to record both my first book and my second book, so The Wellness Empowered Woman and The Wellness Evolved Woman, um, on audiobook with my awesome, uh, production team from Studio West, just giving them a shout out, um, who also works with me on this podcast. And so that was a big accomplishment this year was to get both of those books out in audiobook format, which is something many of my readers and clients had been asking for, and I had been thinking about doing for a few years, even with the launch of my first book. So, um, something new I had never done before. Um, so that was another great accomplishment that I felt good about. Um, and then getting this podcast out was a, a really big undertaking, and it still for me is a learning curve, but again, something that I've always wanted to do, and I'm really fortunate to have a great team behind me to help me with this. And, um, that's another, um, thing that came out this year that's been really exciting. And I've been speaking at a lot of different conferences, really getting the word out about my company PassionFit with new audiences that I haven't reached in the past. And then I signed 4 new athletes, um, from the University of San Diego, female athletes, um, with 4 NIL deals this year to be promoting, um, some PassionFit products from our online boutique. So that was really exciting. And something that I also love to do is partner with different universities and organizations and I'm a huge believer in helping the next generation and hopefully PassionFit can help, you know, these young female athletes and their peers as well. Personally, it's also been a big year for me. I think as I've mentioned previously on a podcast episode, my younger son graduated from middle school and started high school this year. Our older son graduated high school and started college this year at UC Santa Barbara. So that's been really exciting. It's been a lot of change. Changes I've talked about in the past, but it has been a growth experience for my husband and myself as parents and kind of getting used to our new normal with having one in college and another one in high school. My husband and I celebrated 22 years of marriage this year, which is really exciting, and it was wonderful to get to celebrate that milestone with one another and with our family. My parents celebrated their 60th wedding anniversary this year, so we had a huge party for them, and that was wonderful to celebrate. They're such great role models for all us in our family. And I feel so grateful. Um, and through this year, yeah, there were challenges too, all the change and the busy schedules and, um, you know, getting all these things off the ground for my business. They weren't easy. They definitely took a learning curve and, you know, trial and error and frustration and then excitement and exhilaration. So it was all the emotions. Um, but just so much that did happen and so much that I learned from all of those experiences. And finally, I just feel really grateful for my wonderful community of friends. We have such great friends. In our neighborhood, in our school and sports communities, and in our San Diego community. And we've just spent a lot of great weekends and, and, you know, fun, exciting times with our friends for parties and events and gatherings and get-togethers. And then also just having some quiet time at home with our family. So I just really feel grateful as I reflect on all that's happened for me personally this year. And I just want to encourage all of you to take that time to do that as well. And again, it could just be what I just did, right? Just a simple, you know, few minutes of just taking that time to think about all the highs and the lows and everything in between. And I think that will hopefully energize you and also give you some sense of peace, um, as we round out 2025 and go into 2026. So that is it for today, but I hope you guys, um, you know, exercise this power move in your life by doing end-of-year reflections. I hope that it's beneficial for you. And as always, remember to subscribe, rate, and review. Tell your family and friends, and I'm so excited for more Your Power Move by PassionFit episodes, both guest interviews and solo episodes coming for you, um, in the new year as well. So take care, and I will see you all soon. Thank you.