The Power of Reflection
Today I was walking by the marina. It wasn’t planned. It wasn’t dramatic. It was just a walk. But it ended up becoming a meditation. I followed a trail to the end and then turned around. Except, this time, I walked backwards.
And that’s when it hit me—I had to go this way.
When you watch a movie a second time, it’s never the same. You catch different details. You see things through a new lens. Life’s the same way. Every time we revisit something—a relationship, a job, a mistake, a victory—we carry a different perspective with us. And that’s what reflection is. It’s the act of seeing something again. Of facing it with new eyes.
Reflection isn’t just nostalgia or rumination. It’s strategy. It’s the quiet art of turning toward the future by learning from the past.
In my work at Tesla, I’ve repeated many of the same challenges across programs. The pressure, the deadlines, the miscommunications. And while it’s tempting to believe every project is new, the truth is—it’s only new if I bring something new to it. Reflection is what gives me that. When I pause long enough to examine the order in which events unfolded, what led to burnout, what led to breakthroughs—I gain leverage. The past becomes a compass.
And it’s not just work. If I were to ever enter a relationship with my past relationship, again, I know I would do some things differently. Not because they changed. But because I did. Because I took the time to see the relationship for what it was—to understand it, not just feel it. That’s the gift of reflection. It allows us to re-encounter the past with wisdom instead of wounds.
When we reflect, we create feedback loops. We ascend. We evolve. We shape our perceptions, and through that, our choices. And then our future.
Some of the hardest decisions in life have no clearly defined "right answer."
Was it good or bad to leave Blue Origin?
Was it good or bad to stay at Tesla?
The truth is—it depends on the reflection. Decisions gain meaning only after we choose to extract the meaning from them.
If you’re tired, burned out, stuck in the same loop—pause. Don’t react.
Reflect.
Ask yourself:
What worked over the last few months?
What repeated mistakes can I stop carrying forward?
What patterns am I blind to?
What behaviors actually made a difference—and how can I repeat them intentionally?
Quitting is easy. But staying and reflecting is work. The hard kind. The kind that transforms you.
Today, I’m grateful for a simple walk. A quiet marina. And the space to think.
Because when I give myself time to reflect, I give myself permission to change. And that may be the most important work of all.
If you're reading this, and you're facing a decision—or just looking for clarity—take the walk. Take the pause. Reflect. And when you're ready, return to your life with new eyes.
You're not the same person you were before.
And that's the point.