Self-reflection is the key to identifying what you stand for, what your values are, and what matters most. Through self-reflection, you are able to step back, filtering out the noise and distractions. As your view becomes clearer, you can prioritize how and where to invest your time, efforts, and energy. Self-reflection allows you to gain clarity on issues, both personal and professional, because you have taken the time to think more deeply about them. The more self-reflective you are, the easier it is to make choices that are in line with your values, with awareness of the full impact of your decisions.

Self-reflection has been my lifelong practice. As I became more self-aware, I gained clarity about my values and goals. I was able to focus on what mattered most because I took the time to discern my priorities. Engaging in self-reflection on a regular and ongoing basis has made a huge difference in my life as a business leader, an active board member, a university professor, a husband, and a father of five children. What would otherwise appear to be a complicated existence has become much more straightforward and easier to navigate.

Through self-reflection, I have also become a more effective leader in my career, including as a former chairman and CEO of a multibillion-dollar global health care company and currently as an executive partner in a private equity firm with a portfolio of more than thirty companies. Likewise, whether you are a leader of a team, a department, or a Fortune 500 company, or simply an individual who is trying to manage yourself, your priorities, and your time, self-reflection helps you make choices that are better aligned with your values. You are able to discern whether what you're doing is really what needs to be done. You will know what you are deciding and why, and what the outcomes of those decisions are most likely to be. The more aware you are of your choices, whether personal or professional, and their impact, the better the decisions you will make in the future.

Being self-reflective, you take the time to think through your choices and decisions. As situations arise, you are surprised less frequently. Even when you do face an unexpected outcome, self-reflection can help you use it to your advantage for the future.