Weekly reflection questions help you look back on the past seven days, notice what gave you energy and what drained it, and choose a few priorities for next week. Below are 30 questions in four groups, a 20-minute weekly review template, and tips for making Sunday evening reflection a habit.
A short, regular pause to put lessons into words can pay off. Harvard Business School's Working Knowledge describes a study at a call center in India where trainees spent the last 15 minutes of each day writing and reflecting on what they'd learned. They scored 22.8 percent higher on the final training test than a control group, even though the control group worked those 15 minutes instead. Trainees who also explained their notes to a fellow trainee scored 25 percent higher. In an earlier experiment, people who reflected also felt more competent.
That study looked at daily reflection at work, not weekly reviews. But the idea is the same, and a weekly check-in is a lighter version for anyone who can't manage it every day. A week is also long enough to show patterns a single day hides, like which day always wipes you out.
Reflecting daily already? Our daily reflection questions cover the short version. For the bigger picture, try these monthly reflection questions.
You don't need to answer all 30. Pick one or two from each group, and rotate them from week to week.
What were my three biggest wins this week, big or small?
What didn't go to plan, and what did I learn from it?
What did I finish that I'd been putting off?
What took longer than I expected, and why?
Which moment would I like to remember a year from now?
What surprised me this week?
If I could replay one day, which would it be and what would I change?
What am I proud of that nobody else noticed?
When did I feel most energized this week?
What drained me the most?
How did I sleep, on the whole?
Did I move my body in a way I enjoyed?
Which habit did I keep, and which one slipped?
Where did my time actually go?
What's one thing I said yes to that I wish I'd said no to?
On a scale of 1 to 5, how rested do I feel going into next week?
Who made my week better?
Who do I want to thank, and how?
Did I make anyone else's week easier?
Is there a conversation I've been avoiding?
Who haven't I talked to in a while that I miss?
Did I spend enough time with the people who matter most?
Was there a moment I could have been more patient or kind?
What are my top three priorities for next week?
What's the hardest day on my calendar, and how can I make it easier?
What can I drop, delegate or postpone?
What am I looking forward to?
What one habit do I want to focus on?
When will I rest?
How do I want to feel by next Sunday?
This is an example template. Change the timings and questions to fit your life.
Minutes 0 to 3: Gather. Open your calendar, your to-do list and any notes from the week. Make a cup of tea.
Minutes 3 to 8: Look back. Scroll through the week day by day. Write down three wins and one lesson.
Minutes 8 to 12: Energy check. Answer two energy and habits questions. Note one thing to do more of and one to do less of.
Minutes 12 to 15: People. Pick one person to thank and one person to reach out to.
Minutes 15 to 19: Plan. Choose your top three priorities for next week and put them on your calendar. Find the hardest day and plan one thing to make it easier.
Minute 20: Close. Write one line: "Next week, I want to feel..."
Example answers, to show how short they can be:
Wins: finished the grant report, walked three mornings, called Grandma.
Lesson: Wednesday meetings back to back leave me useless by 4 p.m.
More of: morning walks. Less of: phone in bed.
Thank: Priya for covering my shift. Reach out: Tom, haven't talked since June.
Top three: send the proposal, book the dentist, two early nights.
Hardest day: Wednesday. Fix: block 30 minutes for lunch.
Next week, I want to feel: steady.
Sunday evening is a natural moment to close one week and open the next. Researchers at the Wharton School call this the "fresh start effect." Hengchen Dai, Katherine Milkman and Jason Riis found spikes in goal-related behavior around temporal landmarks, such as the start of a week, a month or a year. Searches for "diet" were most frequent at the beginning of a week, month or year, and gym visits among University of Pennsylvania students rose at the start of a week. The boost in motivation may be short-lived, but a Sunday review puts your planning right before Monday's fresh start.
Sunday isn't the only option:
Friday afternoon works well for work-focused reviews, while the week is still fresh.
Saturday morning suits people whose Sundays are busy.
Early Sunday evening is better than right before bed if planning makes your mind race. Finish with something calm.
Same time, same place. Tie it to something you already do on Sundays, like making dinner or setting out Monday's clothes.
Keep it short. Five or six questions is plenty. Twenty minutes is a ceiling, not a target.
Keep it in one place. A single notebook or document lets you flip back and spot patterns over a month.
Missed a week? Just restart. In research from University College London, missing one opportunity didn't significantly affect forming a habit. The same study found habits took an average of 66 days to form, so give it time.
Be kind in your answers. The point is to learn, not to grade yourself. If your reviews keep circling back to stress that feels overwhelming, talk to a doctor or a mental health professional.
Simple ones work best: "What went well this week?", "What drained me?", "Who do I want to thank?" and "What are my top three priorities for next week?" Start with those and add from the lists above.
About 15 to 20 minutes is enough for most people. On a busy week, five minutes with three questions still counts.
Journaling can be open-ended and happen any time. A weekly review is a short, repeatable check-in with set questions that look back and plan ahead.
Either works. Friday suits work reviews while details are fresh. Sunday evening lines up your planning with the start of a new week.
Dear You: Daily Letters can hold the end of your weekly review. You can write a future letter and seal it for as little as a week or as long as five years, so this Sunday's note can open next Sunday, and Personal Chapters let you organize entries by life season. According to the app's website, the paid Plus tier adds a weekly Sunday letter. It has no account or ads, and your letters and notes stay on your iPhone.
Get Dear You free on the App Store
Reflecting on Work Improves Job Performance (Harvard Business School Working Knowledge)
Need a Fresh Start? Here's How to Begin (Knowledge at Wharton)