When was the last time you spent time with yourself? And I don’t mean sitting at home in yoga pants, checking Instagram and Pinterest with a glass of wine in your hand (although I am a huge proponent of everything listed above). I mean when was the last time you sat down in a quiet place that you love, and checked to see how your emotions are? How in alignment with yourself you’re actually living? To see what in your life is good, and what could be discarded for your peace of mind?

Lao Tzu said it this way: “If you do not change direction, you may end up where you’re headed.” Do you like where you’re headed? Do you know who you really are? These questions make us squirm a little, and they usually take some soul-searching and time to answer truthfully – so we push them to the side, and tell ourselves we’ll take care of it later.

Make an appointment for yourself on your calendar, right now. Schedule a two-hour slot to go sit in a place that makes you feel happy, and ask yourself the 25 questions below to get to know yourself better. There are no right or wrong answers to these questions – they’re just giving you an honest readout of where you’re at in the present moment. Remember that knowledge is power, and knowing what you do and don’t want in your life gives you power to make the changes that ensure you don’t just end up where you’re headed – you walk in that direction confidently and with intention.

25 Questions to Know Yourself Better:

1. What activity do you love doing, even when you’re stressed, tired, or grumpy?
2. What are you afraid of in life right now?
3. What have you done in life that you’re most proud of?
4. What is your highest core value?
5. How confident are you in your ability to make decisions for yourself?
6. Do you currently have a gratitude practice? How can you begin one right now?
7. What do you believe is the meaning of your life?
8. Are you happy? Content? Fulfilled?
9. What are your three biggest passions?
10. What do you think is missing from your life?
11. Is your life waiting for something to happen before it can be lived? Are you on hold until you finish your degree, get married, hit your goal weight?
12. In what areas have you not had integrity? How can you fix that?
13. Is there an area of your life that you feel out of control in? Completely in control?
14. Do you work constantly, or think you should always be working? Why?
15. What activities energize you? Deplete you?
16. What are your short-term goals? Do you have a plan to achieve them?
17. Are you a better person today than you were last year at this same time?
18. Where do you feel safest?
19. What was your last random act of kindness?
20. What if you lost all of your money?
21. Who is making most of your decisions in your life – you, those around you, or your circumstances?
22. What is the one thing you fear most when you think of yourself as an old person?
23. In what areas do you underestimate yourself?
24. What would you do with a free afternoon?
25. What are you going to do with the answers you gave to the above questions?

I’d love to hear about how this exercise went for you; let me know in the comments how you’re going to start heading more intentionally in the direction you want to move in!