Clare Conroy - Reflective writing as a foundation of continuous learning
By Clare Conroy, APS Academy
“I’m never sure what I think until I see what I write”
Carol Loomis
Often when we think about learning, it’s easy to focus on the external sources and stimuli (the ‘who’ or ‘what’ we can learn from) and overlook the power of looking inward.
The power of quietening the external inputs for a moment and taking the time to notice and reflect on what we’re thinking and feeling. For me, a foundation of my own continuous learning is looking inward through a reflective journaling practice.
My practice is imperfect, but I’m always struck by how much it helps to retain what I’ve learned, deepen my understanding and connection, and create new insights.
So, with the hope of encouraging others to develop their own reflective writing practice, I wanted to share a couple of the practices I’ve found most impactful.
The ‘Week in review’
For over 220 consecutive weeks, I’ve written a ‘week in review’ based on a series of simple reflective questions (which have evolved over time and will undoubtedly continue to evolve). The core questions are:
What went well this week?
- What did I observe and learn?
- I’m grateful for…
- What did I read, watch and listen to that interested or inspired me?
- What did I make or create?
Sometimes I answer all of the questions, and other times I don’t. Sometimes I write a lot, sometimes by the time Friday rolls around, I’m exhausted and can barely string a few sentences together. But I never regret taking the time to do it.
After 220+ weeks, there are a few things I’ve noticed:
- A weekly cadence works well. Not too long so that you forget what’s happened, but not too frequently to feel like a huge commitment.
- Accountability is essential (for me!). While the ‘week in review’ is written for myself, it’s a practice that I share with a friend, exchanging our reviews by email. This has been critical for ensuring it actually happens! We don’t always read each other’s and we very rarely reply, but knowing someone is expecting it from me, means I don’t put it off.
- The consistency of practice is more important than getting the content perfect. The half-written, gap-filled reflection that I sometimes write is much better than the entirely aspirational ‘perfect’ journal entry!
- It changes how I show up during the week. Knowing that I’ll be writing on Friday afternoon about learning and gratitude and what went well keeps me on the lookout for these things. So I naturally become more tuned in to my inner experience throughout the week.
- Repetition is important for boosting learning and memory. Regularly reviewing past ‘week in review’ journals helps these reflections to ‘stick’ and helps me notice patterns of experiences, behaviour and thinking over time.
‘Weeknotes’
A further weekly practice I’m experimenting with is ‘weeknotes’ (inspired by Jordan Hatch at the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry).
Weeknotes are a similar practice to the ‘Week in Review’ in that they capture what I’ve been doing and learning – but they are intended to be shared publicly. I’m a big believer in the value of working and learning in the open to increase the connections between people and ideas. Making what you’re doing and thinking more easily discoverable can lead to unexpected and impactful collaborations and opportunities.
It turns out that there are many people and communities engaged in a practice of writing weeknotes and many different ways to do them (Google ‘weeknotes’ and you’ll find many examples!).
I’m still landing on a format that works for me and feels easy to maintain. I’ve been publishing on LinkedIn as well as a slightly more internally-focused version in the APS Academy’s Divisional GovTEAMS community.
I’d love to read more weeknotes from people working in Government so that we can continue to learn with and from each other!
Get practicing!
How do you reflect? Is there something more you can do to boost your reflective practice?
You can get started by using the APS Academy's Reflection Template.