21 Questions to Appreciate What‘s Now
2024, April 25
Last year, I hit a point where it felt like my focus on future planning and goal-setting started taking a toll on my mental health. It pushed me into some kind of neoliberal grindset. I realized, I needed to refocus on the here and now—on what was good or good enough in my current life, rather than what I wanted to achieve in the future. So, I put together a list of 21 questions to help me shift my view. During my morning walks, I would reflect on one of these questions. I’m sharing these questions here in case they might help you too.
Sometimes, these questions are exactly what I need, but of course, they don’t work for every situation for everyone. Sometimes, they even add pressure or nourish a toxic positivity mindset. For me, though, they’ve been a real help in letting myself lean back into the present.
5 visual details you will enjoy remembering from your current life.
3 traits of your current personality that you’re pleased with.
What is simply good in your life right now?
5 experiences or memories that you have with loved ones or friends that you cherish, but that you might not think to appreciate on a daily basis.
If you had seen scenes from your current life in a film trailer ten years ago, what would have excited you about your future life?
3 quirks about yourself that would make you endearing to an audience if you were a character in a book or movie.
5 small pleasures that you’ve experienced lately, but that might get overlooked in the hustle and bustle of daily life.
3 flavours that capture the good parts of your life.
3 things you want to celebrate about the progress you’ve made this season of the year.
5 moments when you felt truly present and fully engaged.
3 scents that remind you of the good parts of your life.
A couple of years from now, what aspects of your current life will you look back on with envy for your past self? (Envy in a kind and enjoyable way)
3 small acts of kindness that you’ve witnessed or experienced recently.
3 accomplishments or experiences from recent years that once seemed impossible.
3 words that describe the good parts of your life as a texture.
3 scenes from your current life that feel cinematic to you, as if you were a character in a movie.
3 moments in your recent life when you felt connected to something greater than yourself.
3 things you’ve done recently that first scared you, but turned out to be good.
If you saw your life from the outside, what would spark envy (in a kind way)?
One favor that life has done for you recently?
3 things you would say in a love song to your current life.