Socrates said an unexamined life is not worth living.
Wouldn't a more positive and affirming corollary be,
"An examined life is worth living"?
Either way, how can one examine one's life without getting stuck in endless, ponderous navel-gazing or "analysis paralysis"?
One effective way is the SWOT Analysis, which identifies Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats. It is a great way of noticing what is happening, good and bad, both within and beyond one's control. Regular SWOT Analysis can help:
Leverage strengths
Correct weaknesses
Notice and benefit from opportunities that might otherwise go unrecognized
Mitigate or preempt threats
Focus attention
Solve small problems before they become large ones
Notice and benefit from relationships between, for example, strengths and opportunities
Notice that sometimes, like a coin, weaknesses and threats might have positive flip-sides that, if carefully noticed and managed, can produce positive results.
Here are SWOT Analysis worksheets in both Excel and pdf format. We recommend doing SWOT Analyses quarterly. For professional assistance doing and interpreting your SWOT Analysis, please contact us.
