There is immense power in reflection.
So often when I’m trying to decipher the steps to solve a problem — whether it’s boundary setting, overcoming imposter syndrome, or recovering from burnout — the first step is always the same.
Notice. Reflect.
Find time, space, and energy to simply notice what is happening inside your life.
Reflection did not become part of my routine until I was digging myself out of burnout.
Before that, I was moving quickly and methodically — solving problems, taking care of everyone, checking boxes. Like many physicians, I was excellent at doing. But I had built in almost zero time for noticing.
This week, let’s go through how reflection is actually a critical skill to learn to fend off burnout, but also to build greater resilience through life.
Reflection as a Tool to Overcome Burnout
When burnout creeped in, reflection quietly entered my life through places I didn’t initially recognize as “reflection practice.”
Therapy appointments. Acupuncture treatments. Walking outside alone. Morning yoga.
At the time I didn’t even realize what was happening. I just noticed that these were moments where I had space to think.
Over time something subtle began to change.
- My thoughts felt clearer.
- My reactions were less negative and more productive.
- My decisions became more intentional.
Looking back now, I can see more clearly what was happening.
Reflection was healing me.
And interestingly, the research backs this up.
Over two hundred studies on journaling and reflective writing show consistent benefits — including reduced anxiety and depression, improved decision-making, stronger relationships, and a greater sense of meaning in life.
This tool often comes most naturally when we’re struggling. Burnout, conflict, uncertainty — these moments force us to pause.
But reflection is just as powerful during calm seasons.
Because in quiet moments, there is so much to learn.
These days reflection is deeply ingrained in my life. In fact, this podcast is one of the ways I practice it. I often find myself journaling about everyday events, noticing what they reveal about my values, my reactions, and the leader — and person — I want to become.
Over time, this habit has built something incredibly powerful:
A growth mindset toward my own life.
Studies on reflective writing show that when people actively reflect on how they handled a stressful experience — rather than simply describing the event — their resilience actually increases.
A randomized controlled trial in 2024 found that people who wrote about how they navigated difficult situations showed higher resilience and life satisfaction than those who just described what happened.
This shows me:
Reflection helps us turn experience into confidence.
Instead of just surviving difficult moments, we begin to see evidence that we can handle them.
Reflection as a Learning Tool
Reflection helps the brain organize our experiences and extract insight.
It helps us identify what worked… and what didn’t.
And that insight is what allows us to grow.
One of the easiest places to see this in my own life is parenting.
Early in my parenting journey, yelling was a default reaction. Not because I wanted that kind of home — but maybe because yelling gave me a momentary sense of control in chaotic situations.
But the truth was, I didn’t want to live in a house where people yelled at each other.
So I started reflecting.
After any difficult moment with my kids, I would think about what happened — sometimes alone, sometimes with someone I trusted.
What triggered me?
What did I actually want to model?
What could I do differently next time?
And parenting, fortunately, gives us plenty of “next times.”
Over time, that reflection changed my behavior.
Now if I yell, it’s an anomaly. I feel it. My kids feel it. And we all recognize that something is off.
That shift didn’t happen accidentally.
It happened intentionally — through reflection, followed by action.
Reflection is a Life Hack
Looking back, I now believe reflection was one of the invisible keys to my burnout recovery as well.
Invisible because at the time I wasn’t naming it.
But it was slowly doing its work.
Clearing mental clutter.
Helping me reconnect with my values.
Separating my personal identity from outcomes.
Giving me the courage to make different decisions.
Research shows this is exactly why reflection works.
It allows the brain to process emotions instead of suppressing them. It helps us reinterpret difficult experiences. It helps us build up the belief that we can handle what comes next.
In other words, reflection helps us process difficult experiences instead of carrying them around unresolved.
It helps us understand what happened, what we felt, and what we want to do differently next time.
And interestingly, two of the most resilient people I know — my husband and his mother — both journal every day.
For them, reflection isn’t occasional. It’s a daily practice.
And I can’t help but wonder how much that simple habit contributes to the steadiness and resilience I see in both of them.
Because reflection does something quietly profound.
It seems to turn experience into learning. Stress into insight. And adversity into resilience.
Sometimes the most important leadership work we do… is simply pausing long enough to notice.
But reflection doesn’t require a retreat, a journal filled with perfect prose, or hours of uninterrupted time.
It simply requires intention.
Start by noticing the small pockets of time that already exist in your day.
Walking between meetings.
Driving home from work.
Watching your kids’ baseball practice.
Standing in the kitchen after dinner.
These moments often pass unnoticed, but they are perfect opportunities for reflection.
Choose one small space in your day and decide ahead of time that you will use it to think.
You might pack a journal.
You might take a quiet walk.
You might simply sit with your thoughts.
Then ask yourself a few simple questions:
What stood out to me today?
What interaction went well?
What felt difficult or draining?
What can I learn from today?
And perhaps the most important question of all:
Did I show up in the way I want to show up in the world?
If the answer is yes, take a moment to notice that. Confidence grows when we acknowledge what is working.
And if the answer is no, that’s not failure. That’s data.
Reflection allows us to adjust course — gently and intentionally — so that over time our actions begin to align more closely with the person, parent, and leader we want to be.
And that is where the real power of reflection lives.
And for women physician leaders — who are often moving fast, carrying enormous responsibility, and solving problems all day long — reflection may be one of the most powerful tools we have to reconnect with ourselves.
Call To Action
Before we wrap up, if today’s episode resonated with you, I’d invite you to take this reflection one step further.
Because reflection is helpful, but reflection anchored in your values is transformational.
When you know what truly matters to you, your decisions become clearer. Your boundaries become stronger. And burnout loses some of its grip because you stop chasing goals that were never truly yours.
If you’d like help discovering those values, you can download my free Values Reflection Journal at womenmdleaders.com/valuesguide.
Take some quiet time with it — and see what you discover.
Thanks for listening!