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Reflectiveness 207

A REFLECTIVE WORLD

When Samuel Beckett said, “No matter. Try again. Fail again. Fail
better,” he was articulating an unusual view of the world. He seems
almost to be glorying in failure. Perhaps Beckett had intuitively
anticipated the NLP principle that there is no such thing as failure,
only feedback.
Many people find writing a useful way of reflecting. Diary,
journal, and log are all words that have come into our language
from other spheres. The captain of a ship, for example, keeps a log,
because without it, their vessel would have no record of its route or
of the conditions that led to certain decisions being taken. The
world in general seems to be divided into those who like to keep
diaries and those who do not.
There is no doubt that the act of writing is itself mysterious,
powerful and creative. You have already seen that in Will Hutton’s
words on page 198. Chris Mellor uses Anglian Water’s intranet to
write an occasional reflective column on what he has learned over a
period of a few weeks. Many people find the journal format a sat-
isfying one.
But, all modes of communication—writing, speaking, listen-
ing, and reading—have important roles to play in the process of
reflection.

Look at this list of different approaches. How many of these have you tried? Which do you
prefer?

Keeping a diary.
Writing letters to yourself.
Making up newspaper headlines that encapsulate how well you feel something went.
Using unfinished sentences like “The best thing about…,” “The thing I remember most
is…,” “That made me feel that…”
Using sentences that involve all your senses:“I saw the…,” “I heard that…,” “When I
touched the…,” etc.
Using a mind map to capture your thoughts.
Using free-noting techniques.
Using pre-formatted templates with questions.
Writing down your feelings as events happen and keeping a note of the time.
Telling your own version as a story.