1: “We do not learn from experience,” John Dewey tells us. “We learn from reflecting on experience.”
Yes, indeed.
But life moves fast. And without the right toolset, it’s easy to overlook the reflection piece and miss out on the learning.
To address this problem, author Anne-Laure Le Cunff has developed a weekly process she calls “Plus Minus Next,” a simple yet powerful tool designed to spark reflection and learning in our careers, health, and relationships.
“It’s the feedback after practice, the thinking that comes after doing, the debugging of life as it unfolds,” she writes in her book Tiny Experiments: How to Live Freely in a Goal-Obsessed World.
“Without much effort, we can have a moment of reflection that will inspire us to take actions that will improve our lives,” Anne-Laure observes. “Take a look at what we did last week, reflect on it, and take a better step this week.”
2: How does Plus Minus Next work?
We start by taking out a sheet of paper. We write the date and then draw two lines creating three columns.
We draw a plus (+) at the top of the first column, a minus ( – ) over the middle column, and an arrow (–>) in the final column.
Next, we record the events and interactions that occurred over the past week.
“Any experience constitutes valid information to include in your Plus Minus Next review,” she writes. “That includes celebrations, questions, emotions.”
The pluses are our positive observations. “Write down any accomplishment that made us proud,” Anne-Laure recommends. “These could be largely work-based, but don’t neglect other areas of our lives, such as relationships, hobbies, and home life.
“Our achievements can be big or small, such as completing a project at work or learning a new skill, or small daily victories such as maintaining a consistent exercise routine.
“Reflect on moments that brought joy,” she writes, “such as special occasions, positive feedback we’ve received, time spent with loved ones, or even time spent alone. We could also more generally capture what we are grateful for in our lives, ranging from meaningful relationships to our health or the comforts of our homes.
The Minus column is for our negative observations.
We “identify any challenges or obstacles we faced,” Anne-Laure states, “whether it was a difficult task at work, an unexpected setback, or an opportunity we missed.
“Maybe we experienced a misunderstanding in a personal or professional interaction. Maybe there are tasks we intended to complete but didn’t.
“Acknowledge any mistakes we made, biases we noticed, decisions we regretted,” she suggests. “This is also where we can note any areas of our lives we feel were neglected, such as personal relationships, hobbies, or self-care.
“Keep track of when we strayed from our healthy habits, such as skipping workouts, eating unhealthily, or not getting enough sleep,” Anne-Laure notes. “If we experienced persistent negative emotions such as stress, anxiety, or frustration, jot these down as well.”
The final column is titled Next. As in, what comes next.
We “use the insights from both the Plus and Minus columns to shape our actions for the upcoming period,” she writes.
“Consider strategies to foster more of the positive observations listed in the Plus column. This might involve protecting our time for work that brings us joy, seeking resources to acquire new skills, or finding ways to deepen the relationships that matter to us.
“Simultaneously, think about constructive ways to address the negative observations from the Minus column,” Anne-Laure recommends.
“We could plan to tackle an unfinished task, set time aside for an area of our lives that needs more attention, attempt to break a bad habit, or commit to one activity that supports our well-being.”
Our goal is to let our minds flow. We do not impose an artificial structure beyond the three simple columns.
“There’s no need,” she writes, “to rank our accomplishments, challenges, or next steps in any particular order. [We] also don’t necessarily need to tie next week’s plans to what didn’t work the previous week.”
Why not?
Because “not everything needs to be fixed; not every problem needs a solution. This is especially the case for one-off challenges. Acknowledging them is enough to move on.”
3: The power of Plus Minus Next is that it creates space to reflect on our successes and our mistakes.
“Only through combined action and reflection can we achieve meaningful growth,” Anne-Laure writes. “Trial and error create a feedback loop of guaranteed learning—a successful cycle of experimentation.
Many use Plus Minus Next for their weekly review. The framework works because it’s fast, flexible, and future-focused.
Fast: “Filling our weekly page shouldn’t take more than five minutes,” she observes. “A few bullet points, and we’re done.”
Flexible: “Life is complex, but a lot of reflection methods are overly rigid,” Anne Laure explains. “The Plus Minus Next method works for all areas of our lives; there’s no need to separate the personal from the professional.”
Future-focused: “Instead of dwelling too much on stuff that didn’t work, Plus Minus Next is about acknowledging the negative in a constructive way. Didn’t finish that project we were planning on shipping last week? Don’t beat ourselves up; just make it a priority next week.”
Creating time for reflection weekly helps complete last week on a positive note. “I found it a great way to express gratitude and to realize that last week was really productive, as opposed to the Sunday gloom of looking forward to the next week,” physician and researcher Dr. Scott Wagers says.
Esteban Balderas, a content creator in Mexico, has utilized the weekly Plus Minus Next framework for over two years. He considers it the centerpiece of his personal growth.
“Even if I have the worst week, I can save five minutes to respond to some questions and benefit from the short reflection,” he says. “Being able to make small adjustments every week is something that you can’t stop doing once you see the compound effect.”
We can utilize the tool to enhance our one-on-one weekly meetings.
“Each team member brings their filled-out Plus Minus Next to our 1:1 meetings,” Anne-Laure writes, “allowing us to have structured discussions about their achievements, challenges, and plans. It ensures that we regularly reflect on what we can do differently moving forward and helps keep everyone aligned and motivated.”
More tomorrow!
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Reflection: How would my mindset and outcomes change if I set aside a few minutes every week to reflect and plan, rather than just moving from week to week with no pause?
Action: Draw three columns for Plus, Minus, and Next, and use five minutes at the end of the week to experiment with this simple reflection framework.
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