12/31 - 25 Questions To Ask Yourself This Year
Tuesday’s Newsletter: here’s to our orgastic future
It’s my favorite day of the year 🪩
With the passage of time, we are brought to this fixed point and offered the space to examine life. Nothing is guaranteed, but while our hearts still beat we have December 31st.
Rarely are we offered space to reflect, all at once, on the past and the luminescent future. And I’m not talking about some delusional Jay Gatsby approach to the future where we dedicate our lives stretching towards the illusion of a greener pasture.
Time, like the universe, is devoid of morality. It can’t be good or bad. It just is.
I find comfort in that. Knowing I’m a dot floating through the universe, letting wave after wave ripple through me. When the sun shines on my face, it’s warmer. When a shadow passes over, I remind myself it’s only temporary.
When I review the past year, I like to have a similar objectivity. A year can be hard or transformative or restful but it can’t be good or bad. Instead of focusing on what I did or didn’t do, what I do or don’t look like, I ask myself things like: “How much have I changed? What challenges did I face and come out on the other side? What do I want for myself in the new year?”
When you approach it this way, you’ll find yourself glowing with pride for your resilience, strength, and capacity to grow despite adversity. We have 365 days to be hard on ourselves, what is 24 hours to pat yourself on the back for making it through?
On New Year’s Eve, I ask myself (and whoever I’m partying with) a series of questions. We each choose a number and then go around the group answering the question it corresponds to. It feels like a cross between an award show and a funeral, celebrating each other’s accomplishments and grieving our losses.
If you want to join me in the tradition, I’ve created a list you can ask yourself and your loved ones. I’ve tweaked them slightly from last year and added another question (25 for 2025).
Enjoy 🫶
25 Questions To Ask Yourself This Year
What piece of art (film, music, literature, etc) made you feel something this year?
Describe a shared meal you enjoyed. How did it make you feel?
What is a memorable anecdote from a trip you took?
In what ways are you proud about how far you’ve come?
What did you want to learn this year but didn’t?
Is there anything you wish would go back to the way it was?
Were there any moments of unrequited love?
What do you want more of next year?
Would the version of yourself from 5 years ago recognize you now? The version from 10 years ago?
What changed about your physical appearance?
What did you discover?
Did you choose to change or were you compelled?
Who did you lose?
What did you lose?
Is there a common theme around the people no longer in your life?
What baggage are you holding onto that’s not yours to carry?
How did you show others love?
How did you show yourself love?
At your lowest point this year, what would you go back and tell yourself?
Do you have a new way of looking at your origin story?
What is one thing you want to try next year?
What character traits do you want to be known for next year?
What aspiration do you have that you’re afraid to admit?
What is the best thing that could happen next year?
What word do you want to meditate on in 2025?
Happy New Year!
This is beautiful, Dev. ❤️🪩