Fall Reset
Fall, and more specifically, the start of the school year is a great opportunity to reset. Whether or not you have kids, this season marks a shift in the day length in most of the US, and an end to vacation season for much of the working world. As a kid, the new school year could be a time of anticipation, change, and excitement, or at least a chance to reset and shift who you are and what you leave behind.
I invite you to take that same reset opportunity this fall for yourself as a leader and a human. You likely have routines for quarterly and annual reviews for your work. You need that reset for yourself as well.
The idea of a reset is a little different from pause and reflect, or reviewing goals and seeing how you did. I think the term reset invites more open thinking and more forward looking. It’s a reset—not just a review.
I invite you to find time to pause and do this exercise exactly as you need to. You can take a hike or find a quiet spot to open your mind to what you want from the coming year. You can find a thought partner and discuss these questions together, especially if you are a verbal processor. If you journal, you can take these questions and write out your responses. Or you can just reflect right now on what this exercise invites you to do. Do what you need to do to move into this season with clarity and without the baggage that no longer serves you.
I offer some starting reflection prompts to help you find what you need to reset yourself for this fall. I hope they offer a springboard for what you want to bring into your life and leadership going forward. You can read these through and note what comes to mind in the moment. Or bring this with you to your reflective time and place, take notes and take the time to reflect and reset more fully. Add the questions that are missing for your personal reset. Here is where I suggest you start:
What do you love about your world right now?
What brings you joy?
What is satisfying?
What are you proud of?
What do you (low-key) hate about your world right now?
What is hard?
What is draining you (your energy vampires!)
What feels limiting?
What feels scary?
What is your love/hate balance, in your work and in your world?
You may have stayed in reflection, or you may have started to process this into shifts and actions. Let’s think about what you want to reset for this season.
What matters most in what you love?
What do you want to bring forward and build on?
What matters most about what you hate, or kind of hate right now?
What do you want to address?
What do you need to let go of?
What jumps out at you?
What surprises you?
What did you know already, but see more clearly?
There is a lot to dig into here. Do precisely what you need to do for yourself. Skip what isn’t important and add what is. I took two hours to go through these questions myself, and included a few more that helped me understand what I need. I wanted to capture my thoughts on my computer, so I moved from my desk to a screened porch, and went through my own thinking. That was enough for me to step out of my usual routine. I had blocked the morning and could take the time I needed.
Let’s finish by sketching out what your reset will look like for you. Translating your insights into action and intention will help you find clarity and let go of what you need to leave behind. This was the most important part for me.
What mindshift sets do you want or need going forward?
What structures and practices will help you reset?
What tasks are needed to support your reset?
What else do you need?
Review your thinking and think about what is needed to help you carry out this reset. Is this a minor reset? Or are you trying on a new identity and a bigger shift? What support do you need to make your move?
I hope that you find clarity, peace and perhaps a sense of anticipation for what you can become this year.
Please reach out if you want to learn more about resetting! And please:
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