Draw a timeline on a sheet of paper and write down all the significant events, the key moments of your life – both successes and hardships.
You can then ask yourself the following questions while looking at your life line:
- What are my successes?
- What have I accomplished?
- What did I gain from an experience, whether positive or negative, from a key moment...?
- What have I learned about myself?
Don't hesitate to write down all your successes, even the most mundane ones you remember (a project completed in primary school, volunteer work, helping someone in difficulty, a model you were proud of, a passed exam, a sporting achievement, a trip, a meeting that marked your life...).
But don't forget the difficult moments either: a sick leave that taught you to take care of yourself, a period as a stay-at-home parent that developed your organizational and management skills, a divorce that taught you resilience and independence. These experiences, although painful, shape us and give us valuable skills.
What made these moments – happy or difficult – formative for you? What qualities, emotional and technical skills did you use or develop?
This exercise allows you to rediscover your past actions from a new perspective, giving you better self-knowledge by recognizing that every stage of your life, even the most challenging ones, has contributed to making you who you are today.
