100 Reflection Questions for Personal and Career Growth

What is reflection?

Reflection, also known as introspection or self-reflection, is the process of examining your thoughts and feelings. It allows you to think about past or current experiences in-depth and set goals for your future. Although helpful at any time, reflection can be especially beneficial when changing jobs or transitioning into a new career path.

Self-reflection helps you examine your thoughts and create an inner dialogue that influences how you view and interact with the world. It may take time, but reflection is a critical step in your growth as an individual and a professional. The benefits of reflection may include:

• Reducing negative thoughts
• Increasing your understanding of yourself and your coworkers
• Emphasizing your strengths and improving your weaknesses
• Clarifying your intentions for your time and talents
• Defining professional goals and being strategic with opportunities for growth
• Developing creative thinking skills
• Encouraging engagement in work processes
• Building confidence

100 helpful reflection questions

No matter what stage of your professional journey you’re in, self-reflection can improve your work and career satisfaction. Here are 100 reflection questions to help you think about your past, current and future achievements and goals:

Questions about your past

Here are 10 questions that can help you reflect on your past and find value in your experiences:

1. What would I do differently in the past year?
2. Have I maintained a good work-life balance in the past year?
3. What are some challenges I’ve overcome recently?
4. What past experiences have helped me make important decisions?
5. If I could go back in time, what would I do differently?
6. What’s something I’ve accomplished that I didn’t expect to achieve yet?
7. What’s the most courageous decision I’ve made?
8. How does where I am now compared to where I expected to be at this point 10 years ago?
9. What am I most proud of?
10. What’s a significant risk I’ve taken that had a positive outcome, and what did it teach me?

Questions about your present

Here are 10 questions you can use to reflect on your present situation in life and at work:

1. What are my biggest limitations?
2. What are my values?
3. How do I define success?
4. How would I spend my time if money were not a factor?
5. What are my greatest personal and professional strengths?
6. What are some areas in which I can improve?
7. What is my morning routine, and how does it help me prepare for my day?
8. How do I feel about my role in my personal and professional lives?
9. What distracts me from reaching my full potential?
10. How do I respond to conflict?

Related: Interview Question: “How Do You Handle Conflict in the Workplace?”

Questions about your future

Here are 10 questions you can use to reflect on your plans for the future:

1. What is my primary concern about the future?

2. Where do I see myself in five years?

3. What steps do I take to plan for the future of my career?

4. How can I learn from challenges to create a positive future for myself?

5. Am I taking steps now to prepare financially for my future?

6. Do I anticipate major life events shortly that might change my routine and, if so, how can I minimize the challenges they may present?

7. How would I describe the person I want to be in the future?

8. What do I want a typical day to look like in my future?

9. What are some personal changes I want to see in the future?

10. What are some professional changes I want to see in the future?

Related: Interview Question: What Are Your Plans for the Future?

Questions about your habits

Here are 10 questions you can use to reflect on your current habits and how they present challenges or help you grow:

1. How have I improved in my work habits?
2. What work habits would I like to add to my daily life?
3. What personal habits would I like to add to my daily life?
4. What is one habit I want to stop or replace?
5. What are some positive habits I have that help me stay organized and motivated?
6. Would resources like habit trackers help me develop healthier routines?
7. What positive habits come most naturally to me?
8. What habits have I developed that encouraged me to challenge my complacency?
9. What habits do I prioritize in my work life?
10. What habits do I prioritize in my personal life?

Questions about your personal relationships

Here are 10 questions to help you reflect on how you feel about your personal relationships:

1. How do I handle it when my peers think or behave differently than me?
2. Do I ask my peers for help when I need it?
3. How do I apply constructive feedback from my peers to make improvements?
4. What are some traits I look for in people when initiating personal relationships?
5. What are some traits I try to avoid in others when initiating personal relationships?
6. Do I look for personal relationships that confirm or challenge my beliefs, values and ideas?
7. Are most of my personal relationships mutually beneficial?
8. In what ways do I rely on my friends, partner or family?
9. In what ways do my friends, partner or family rely on me?
10. When is the last time I asked a friend, partner or family member to help me make an important decision?

Questions about your connections with colleagues

Here are 10 questions to help you reflect on your professional relationships:

1. How can I be a better team member at my workplace?
2. Which work relationships need improvement? What steps can I take to make them better?
3. How is my work style different from that of my coworkers?
4. How do I apply constructive feedback from my colleagues and managers to make improvements?
5. What are some traits I enjoy in colleagues or managers?
6. What are some traits I find challenging in colleagues or managers?
7. How do I find value in my differences with my colleagues?
8. How would I describe my current relationship with my colleagues?
9. How do I benefit from interactions with my colleagues?
10. How do I use my approach to developing personal relationships to form professional connections?

Questions about your career

Here are 10 career-specific questions to help you gain insight into your professional life:

1. What have been the most challenging moments in my work?
2. What work achievements am I most proud of?
3. What can I do to prepare for my upcoming projects?
4. How can I be more productive at work?
5. What are my greatest strengths and weaknesses in the workplace?
6. What new knowledge and skills do I want to gain at work?
7. How do I use and expand on my current skills at work?
8. Do I prefer working in a leadership, team or independent role?
9. Do I find my current career fulfilling?
10. Do I want to stay in my current career or consider a change?

Questions about your personal wellness

Here are 10 questions to help you reflect on your emotional well-being and self-care approach:

1. What is my self-care routine?
2. What motivates me?
3. What empowers me?
4. What makes me feel mentally and emotionally strong?
5. How do I recharge at the end of a long day?
6. How do I encourage myself when I’m confronting a challenge?
7. What helps me stay focused on my present situation?
8. What are some ways I take time for myself?
9. How do I manage distractions and organize my thoughts?
10. How do I avoid burnout at work?

Questions about your physical health

Here are 10 questions to help you gain insight into your physical health and how it affects your personal and professional life:

1. How do I feel physically?
2. Have I been drinking enough water?
3. Do I enjoy a healthy breakfast?
4. How can I develop or maintain healthy eating habits?
5. How does my physical well-being help me perform better at work and in my personal life?
6. How often do I exercise?
7. Could I benefit from changing my health and wellness routine?
8. What are some benefits of prioritizing my physical health?
9. How do I make time to exercise and prepare nutritious meals?
10. What are some steps I can take to find enjoyment in making healthy choices?

Questions about your goals

1. Here are 10 questions to help you reflect on your current goals, improve your process for achieving them and create new personal and professional goals:
2. Have I achieved the professional goals I set for myself in the past year?
3. Have I fulfilled goals or deadlines that my manager set for me? If not, what factors were limiting for me?
4. How do I reward myself when I reach my goals?
5. What are some of my short-term goals?
6. What are some of my long-term goals?
7. How do I monitor my progress toward my goals?
8. Have my goals changed or stayed the same since the beginning of the year?
9. Do I reach my goals regularly or is that an area where I’d like to improve?
10. What’s my top goal for professional development?
11. What’s my top goal for personal development?

Tips for a self-reflection practice

Here are some of those tips to help you start a self-reflection practice:

Ask more “what” questions

“What” questions are often more objective, which can be important when trying to reflect on areas in which you can improve. Staying objective allows you to focus on the possibilities of your career and look forward to the future with hope and excitement. These types of questions also allow for more positive thinking and can help you discover how you’ve been successful in the past.

Set yourself up for success

Be intentional about setting aside time for reflection. When going through your reflection questions, try to answer them as honestly as possible. Also, you don’t need to spend lots of time reflecting at first. A reflection practice of only five minutes can still provide benefits.

Keep a record of your reflections

Recording your thoughts and patterns in a self-reflection journal can be a useful part of any reflection practice. Try to write in your journal regularly, even if your reflections are short. You can also try using techniques in your journal such as freewriting, making lists or sketching to help you expand on your reflection questions. A journal can also be a good way to see your progress over time.