Letter to Myself

Posted by Agnieszka from Sendzimir Foundation

TARGET GROUP

Group size

1 – 500

Subgroup size

individual

Is participant experience relevant?

It's okay if participants haven't seen the inside of a classroom in years.

Physical trust needed

Mental trust needed

MATERIALS

Material Description

Paper, pen, envelope, stamp.

Create materials quick and dirty

20 min

Create materials with love and care

60 min

REQUIREMENTS

Duration

30 minutes – 60 minutes

Experience level of the facilitator

taken part OR some facilitation experience

Number of facilitators

Location requirements

Any place

CHARACTER OF THE METHOD

Level of activation

calming

Woo-Woo Level – How touchy-feely is this method?

From 1.Rationalist-Materialist “No feelings here, folks.” to 5.Esoteric-Shamanic Bleeding Heart:

Innovation Phases:

• 5 Grounding the Idea
• 8 Upscaling

Method Category:

• Awareness raising
• Ceremony / Ritual
• Reflection

SHORT DESCRIPTION

This is an incredible exercise to do no matter how old you are. Writing a letter to yourself gives you insight and teaches you valuable life lessons that will stick with you long afterwards. It is like a time capsule.

ALTERNATIVE NAME OF THE METHOD

Write a Letter to Yourself

BACKGROUND

STEP-BY-STEP GUIDE

PREPARATION (excluding materials)

This is a useful supplementary tool to be used in goal achievement, because when you write the letter to your future self, it helps crystallize your ideal vision for yourself in the future.
When you read the letter in the future, you can assess how many things match up (or not) vs. your expectations in the past and consider why that’s the case. Often times, the goals we set and our goal achievement process are subjected to a lot of changes along the way, due to varying obstacles, unanticipated circumstances and changing priorities. The letter gives you a macro-view of your initial vision and lets you recognize how your current vision differs from the past.

1 Prepare

Prepare piece of paper, pencil, envelope and stamp. Set the date of receiving letter in the future (for example - 3 month from now).

2 Start writing

Look at today’s date. Now imagine you writing to yourself, exactly one year from now. What do you want to say to your future self?
How do you want your future self to be like one year in the future?
What are the different dreams and goals you would want to be realized by then?
What is your desired status of the areas of your life wheel at that time? Career/Business/Studies? Finances? Family? Friends? Love? Health? Spirituality? Recreation? Personal growth? Contribution?
Once you’re done, sign off with your name and today’s date.

3 Exchange for future mailing

Put the papers in an envelope. Seal it. On the cover, write your name and address. Exchange letters with your members of the group or the trainer collects all the letters and then sends them to everyone on the appropriate date.

FURTHER INFORMATION

EXAMPLES

Essentially, this is similar to the concept of a time capsule, where you write a personal note to your future self, seal it and only open it at a future moment in time. There are no restrictions on the time duration either — it can be less then one year later, three years later, five years later, 10 years later, or even 20 years later. Writing a letter to your future self is an intimate act of self-love. It's a hopeful exercise that can help save you from despair. It is a declaration and a knowledge that every single second we have a new chance to start fresh.

CULTURAL VARIATIONS

You can either write it as hard copy (for a greater sense of nostalgia due to the aging condition of the paper and seeing your own handwriting) or have it as a digital soft copy. You can also try FutureMe.org, an online time capsule service that stores and sends information to a specified email address at any time in the future.

http://personalexcellence.co/blog/letter-to-future-self/, http://www.pickthebrain.com/blog/5-reasons-write-letter/