When someone asks, “How was your 2024?” what’s your first response?
For many of us, it’s something along the lines of, “Ooh, it was hard!”. It’s natural to focus on the struggles—they stand out vividly in our minds. But if we paused for a moment, took a deep breath, and really thought about it, we’d probably find it wasn’t all bad.
Did you get a promotion at work?
Did you finally start budgeting?
Did you make your first investment in stocks with a Kenyan brokerage firm? or opened your Dhow CSD Account at Central Bank of Kenya (CBK) and started investing in T-bills and Bonds?
Did you save some money in your SACCO, Chama, or money market fund—or at least avoid depleting it completely?
These are all wins, no matter how small they may seem, and they deserve to be celebrated.
Why Reflection Matters for Kenyan Families
In Kenya, where life often comes with its fair share of challenges—from rising living costs to unexpected financial obligations—reflection is a crucial tool for growth.
Reflection is about shifting your perspective. The challenges you faced are part of your story, but they don’t define it. The lessons you learned, the wins you achieved—these are what shape your growth and set the stage for an even better year ahead.
The Gratitude Jar: A Simple, Powerful Family Exercise
One of the best ways to infuse positivity into your reflection process is by creating a Gratitude Jar for 2024. This is an activity you can do with your family or those you consider family—the people who share in your financial journey.
How to Create a Gratitude Jar
1️. Gather Your Family: Pick a weekend evening, perhaps during dinner or after church, when everyone can come together to reflect.
2️. Reflect on the Positives: Recall the wins from the past year, both big and small. Write them down on small pieces of paper and add them to the jar. Wins could include milestones like paying off school fees on time, starting a side hustle, or reaching a savings goal in your Chama.
3️. Learn from Challenges: For every tough time you recall, try to identify the lessons it taught you. These lessons are also wins—gifts of wisdom you can carry into 2025. Write those down and add them to the jar as well.
4️. Celebrate Together: Once your jar is filled, set aside a family night to read through the notes. It’s a beautiful way to close out the year on a high note and set the tone for the one ahead.
Why This Activity Works
For families navigating both personal and financial challenges, the Gratitude Jar exercise helps reframe experiences and shifts the focus from struggles to growth.
✅ Fosters Gratitude: Encourages you to appreciate the blessings, big and small, that the year brought.
✅ Builds Resilience: Challenges are reframed as learning opportunities, giving you the strength to tackle the new year.
✅ Strengthens Bonds: Reflecting as a family creates shared purpose and deepens the connection among members.
Applying Gratitude to Financial Goal Setting
As you look ahead to 2025, use this reflective exercise to set intentional, actionable goals. Whether it’s increasing your savings in a money market fund, investing in Kenyan government bonds, starting that small business idea, or simply building better financial habits, reflection helps you start with clarity and purpose.
Moving Forward with Purpose
Reflection is not about ignoring the hard times; it’s about finding the lessons and victories within them. As you start off 2025, make gratitude and intentionality central to your journey. And remember, even the smallest wins are worth celebrating.
