In case it’s helpful to you, here’s a practice that has been enormously helpful to me over the years.
Drawn from the Ignatian spiritual tradition but easily accessible to all, it’s called the mini-Examen, and it’s a quick way to download the experience of a day.
The formula, as I learned it as a student, is simple: Thanks, Oops, Gimme, Wow.
In other words, make a small journal entry at the end of each day that starts with gratitude, acknowledges what is left undone or done wrongly, sets an intention or desire for the coming day(s), and concludes with a sense of wonder.
It need not take more than a page (or a few minutes). There are no points for being verbose, and none deducted for being brief or incomplete.
If you’re even a little bit curious, try it for a week. It’s fun to notice that there’s at least one thanks, oops, gimme, and wow packed into each day.
Colin Steele 