Introspection by Drawing a Lifeline

As part of a recent EO new member training event I attended, participants were asked to fill out a lifeline. A lifeline is a chart that marks the highs and lows of your whole life. We each drew and annotated our own lifelines and then spent 5 minutes giving the summary of the 3 high points and the 3 low points. It was very interesting and was the quickest way I’ve ever seen a group of strangers get to know each other.

Doing a lifeline  is also great for introspection. The scale allows for use of the full extent of the y-axis. “Good” and “Bad” in the chart are relative concepts, so you can draw your chart with your worst moments at the bottom of the “Bad” and your best moments are top of the “Good.”

An example chart is below:

I recommend writing out your own lifeline and using it introspectively about your past and your trajectory.

In my talk at ATDC tomorrow, I will share a similar chart to tell some interesting stories about entrepreneurship. I’ve spent a good amount of time prepping for the talk and look forward to sharing with everyone.

What other techniques for introspection have been helpful to you?