What have you done with your life?

You are brave!

If I saw a title asking me, "What have you done with your life?" I'm not sure I would have continued reading.

I've never been good at answering questions about what I do. It's because it doesn't fit into a box. I write, speak, coach, facilitate, create courses and record the occasional podcast. It all sounds so vague. I am self-employed, so I can't answer, "I work as a writer for XYZ Publishing." Most people's eyes have glazed over before I get too far into it.

And that is just asking what I do. Asking what you have done with your life is a huge question! It encompasses education, employment, relationships, travel, and much more. It is a question worth considering and answering.

Today I would like to briefly introduce you to the second core concept on the journey of sage-ing. It is the topic of Life Review. Spending time reflecting on your life and the good, bad and ugly of your experiences is significant.

In my Sage-ing workshops, we spend time looking back over the years. There are specific exercises that I use. I think making time for Life Review helps in these ways:

1. We begin to see the patterns and themes in our lives.

2. We can identify anything incomplete that we may want to focus on in this season of life.

3. It helps us see and appreciate how much we have experienced in our years.

4. It helps us deal with any regrets we have.

5. It helps us harvest our experiences to help others in our lives who may be facing similar challenges.

6. It prepares us for the next step of conscious eldering: Life Repair (more on that one next week).

There are other reasons that taking time to go back and review the events of your life is beneficial. Joan Chittister writes in The Gift of Years: "It is the choices we made in the past that have brought us to be the person we are today. The roads not taken may have done the same. But then again, they may not have. As it is, we can now, clear-eyed and more conscious of what the years did bring us rather than what they did not, understand why we are who we are."

So, what have you done with your life? I'm guessing far more than you realize. All those choices brought you to where you are today, and from where I am sitting, that is a good thing.

I'll be teaching an online workshop in October if you want to know more about these core concepts. My co-facilitator is a wise woman I am thrilled to work with on this offering. You can head over to the link and sign up. It's free, and all the details are listed. If you need to know more, feel free to email me. We are limiting the group to 8 people, so we have lots of space to discuss these ideas. Sign up soon while there are still spots available.