“I wish you a Merry Christmas.” These days we hear these or similar sentences said enough – and we also say it ourselves to colleagues, friends and acquaintances. In the end, however, the Christmas season will not be, at least not exclusively, contemplative for most of us. We have the last deadlines of the year ahead of us, have to buy presents and prepare for the important holidays. As a result, the contemplation that we and others so much want at the end of the year often falls by the wayside.

Christmas offers the perfect opportunity to come to terms with yourself. Family celebrations are such that we are reminded of old patterns when we visit our parents’ house, are confronted with problematic relationships, when we all sit at the same table for a feast, or when we feel an urgent desire for distance and peace it is clearly shown that we should no longer look away.

So what if we just took a few minutes at Christmas – in addition to spending time with the family – to allow ourselves to reflect? A bit of silence, a bit of being with yourself and thinking about the year that lies behind you. About the holidays that lie ahead and everything you really want. Sometimes it could be a real enrichment, a gift from us to ourselves.

Because self-reflection is not child’s play and many of us find it difficult, we would like to give you – also as a little Christmas present – 15 questions that you can ask yourself at Christmas in order to get a little closer to yourself come. Feel free to use them as inspiration for your own variations, find what interests you and, above all, have a wonderful Christmas time.