Evening review
At the end of the day, look back kindly: what went well, what you'd change, and what comes next.
The story
Seneca was one of the most powerful men in first-century Rome: a writer, a senator, and for years an adviser to the emperor Nero. In his essay On Anger, he described a habit he had borrowed from an older philosopher, Sextius.
Each night, once the lamp was out, Seneca went back over his whole day: what he had said and done, where he had lost his temper, where he could do better. He did it without excuses, but also without self-punishment, as a judge who is on your side.
“I examine my entire day and go back over what I've done and said, hiding nothing from myself, passing nothing by.”
The idea
Worry often replays the day at random, landing on the worst moments. An evening review does it on purpose, briefly and fairly, and then puts the day down.
Three questions are enough. What went well? What would I do differently? What will I carry into tomorrow? Start with what went well, even if it was small; it's easy to skip and it matters.
Keep the tone of a good coach, not a prosecutor. The aim is to learn something and rest, not to lie awake rehearsing mistakes.
Echoes in other traditions
- Christianity
The Examen of St Ignatius reviews the day for moments of gratitude and moments of struggle.
- Islam
Muhasaba is a brief, honest self-accounting at the end of the day.
- Psychology
In one well-known study, writing down three things that went well each day boosted happiness for months.
Try it with today
Think back over today, or yesterday if it's still early.
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Check your understanding
What tone should an evening review have?
Finish the lesson
Answer the question above to complete the lesson.