Reflektime

Reflektime is a concept and practice that refers to scheduled periods dedicated to reflective thinking and metacognitive review within personal or organizational workflows. It combines reflection with time management to improve learning, decision making, and well-being. The term is used across education, business, and personal productivity contexts and may be implemented as a formal routine or as a flexible habit.

The term emerged in early 2010s productivity and organizational development literature, with proponents advocating deliberate time for critique of work processes, outcomes, and reasoning. It has been popularized by educators, coaches, and software tools that prompt reflective sessions and track progress.

Key features of reflektime typically include time-boxed sessions, guiding prompts (for example, what happened, what went well, what could be improved, what next steps), integration with calendars or task systems, journaling or note-taking, and analytics on frequency and impact. It can be used individually or in teams; in team settings, it supports post-project debriefs, sprint retrospectives, or learning reviews.

Applications span curriculum design, team retrospectives, project management, and personal development. Reported benefits include improved learning outcomes, better decision quality, and reduced burnout, though evidence is mixed and effectiveness depends on thoughtful design, organizational culture, and facilitator skill.

Critics caution that poorly designed reflektime sessions can become perfunctory, add time burden, or raise privacy concerns with journaling. Successful practice often requires a clear purpose, supportive culture, skilled facilitation, and alignment with broader goals.

See also: reflective practice, metacognition, time management.