Significant Times – Story Prompts That Highlight Important Times on Your Journey

What events or achievements would you like to be remembered for?

• In Stephen Covey’s funeral exercise you actively think about what you would what others to say about you at your funeral. While rather morbid, it’s a great way to think about what you want to be remembered for, while motivating you to make every day count.
• Life is long and it can be hard to list everything. What would be your top 5 or top 10 things that you would like to be remembered for?
• It’s likely that many people in your family were not present or aware of these moments. By sharing the details in a story, no detail will get forgotten, and future family members will hear about them too.

What is something from your past you’re thankful you gave up on?

• We’re all far from perfect. What’s important is our ability to recognise our bad habits and find the motivation to do something about them.
• What are you proud to have overcome?
• How is life better since the change?
• Do you ever struggle with maintaining your good habits? If so, how to do restrain yourself?

What are your earliest memories?

• Our first memories are typically around 3 to 4 years of age (but are as early as 2 in some).
• Can your parents or siblings recall the occasion?
• Are there any old photos or videos that date back to then?
• Psychologists show that these early memories show indications of what is meaningful for us.

What key moments in your life made you who you are today?

• Everyone faces life-changing moments where a decision takes you down one path in life and blocks others.
• Your choice of education, moving home, a career decision,  relationships and so on.
• What moments are they for you?
• When did they happen?
• How did you decide what to do?
• Do you have any regrets or ever wonder what might have been if you chose differently?

As a parent, what changes do you see as your children grow up?

• They might be the childhood milestones that mark physical and mental development.
• They might be the small details that only a parent would notice.
• Preserve stories about these special times, as they can fade from memory surprisingly quickly.
• Their grandparents will love being updated with news about their precious grandchildren.
• Wouldn’t it be amazing, to have the stories and photos from your childhood available to you, so you could be reminded of the people and things you used to do?!
• By capturing these stories about your children, you are creating a gift for the future – a portal that you and your children can enter into, to relive these precious times.

As a parent, why not ‘interview’ your child annually on topics they find interesting?

• Create a list of fun and insightful ‘interview’ questions that they will enjoy hearing their answers to in later years.
• Simple questions about their best friends, what their daily life looks like, and their favourite toys and books will be priceless in the future.
• Write down their answers, or better still record your discussion using video or audio.
• Evolve the questions as they age, perhaps getting their involvement.
• As adults, we easily forget how we thought about things and what we did when we were young. Even a simple 10-minute interview each year can capture remarkable insights you’ll treasure forever.

What was it like moving away from your childhood family home?

• How did you feel in anticipation of leaving your family hope and being truly independent for the first time?
• At what moment did you realise the enormity of the move? As you were leaving? Only days later?
• How was it for the first days/weeks/months?
• Do you have any advice for family members who will one day leave home too?

How would you sum up the last year?

• What did you enjoy?
• What achievements are you pleased about?
• What were the main family events?
• What were the main social events?
• What world news events affected your life?
• What would you do differently if you could?

If you could revisit special moments in your life, which would they be?

• Moments from childhood?
• From your adult years?
• Why are those moments so special?

When have you really pushed yourself outside your comfort zone?

• At work or at school?
• What did you find difficult about it?
• How did it feel after the event?
• Do you have any advice for others about pushing themselves outside of their comfort zone?

What decisions have you taken that shaped your daily life, career or where you live?

• Can you think of the top 5 decisions you made in your life that brought you to where you stand today?

What challenges have shaped your character?

• Health related?
• Education related?
• Career related?
• Relationship related?

If your life was a book, what would the chapters be?

• How would you break your life down into, say, 10 chapters?
• Can you give a descriptive title to each chapter?
• What are your key memories or emotions relating to each chapter?

What was it like becoming a parent for the first time?

• How did you learn that you will be a parent?
• What was your reaction to the news?
• Were you excited about becoming a parent, or were there concerns too?
• What was it like being pregnant and/or getting ready for the birth of your child?
• How was the day of birth?
• How did you feel when you stepped into the role of a parent?
• How were the coming weeks and months as you learned to become a parent?

What mischief did you get up to as a child?

• Perhaps with a sibling?
• In school?
• With friends?

How did you propose to your partner, or how did they propose to you?

• Is there a backstory about the lead-up to the proposal?
• Did the proposal go according to plan?
• How was the moment of the proposal for both parties?
• What happened afterwards?
• When did you tell family and friends?
• If you could do it again, would you change anything?

What memories do you have of your first-ever friends?

• Who were your first friends?
• What did you enjoy doing together?
• Are there any stand-out moments that you recall?

What special dating memories do you have with your partner?

• Was it love at first sight?
• How did you meet?
• What was your first date?
• What did you think after that first date?
• How did dating evolve over time?
• What are your most treasured memories from those days?

What special memories do you hold of family members who passed away?

• How do they look in your minds-eye when you think of them?
• When was the last time you were with them?
• What are your most precious memories with them?
• What were their passions and interests?
• How would you describe them to family members who will not get a chance to meet them?

Are there special moments with someone you will treasure forever?

• What were the best moments with people you care about?
• What were the top 5 moments in the last year?
• If you could go back to a single moment, which would it be?

What feels like ‘progress’ for you in the last year?

• What projects or tasks have you been passionately working on in the last year?
• They could be work-related, home-related or people-related.
• It might not be a physical task, but more about a change in your habits or outlook.

Have you created scenes of chaos, surprise or laughter?

What family or world stories have affected you the most and why?

• What’s happened in the world that has impacted you?
• In your country?
• In the area where you live?

What is the hardest thing you’ve ever done?

If you could return to any age in your life which would it be and why?

• Would you want to relive moments?
• Would you want to make changes?

When have you been really excited?

• Receiving news about other’s lives?
• Was something exciting lined up for the future?

What are the most memorable parties you have been to?

• As a child partying with school friends?
• From back in your young adult days?
• Where were you?
• Who was there?
• What made it so special?

What are your happiest childhood memories?

• How old were you?
• Who was there?
• Why were they so special?
• Do you have any photos of such occasions?

What is something special that happened to you?

• Perhaps it was special because it was the first time you experienced it?
• Did the event have a big impact on your life?

What memories do you have of your childhood holidays?

• How did it feel leaving home to start your holiday?
• How was the journey to get there?
• Where did you go?
• What did you love doing?
• If you could pick a single favourite place, where would it be?

What was it like to get married?

• How was it planning your wedding?
• Did the day go as planned? Any challenges?
• What are your fondest memories?
• Did it meet or exceed your expectations?

What do you miss most about the ‘good old days’?

• Sometimes things seem better in the old days.
• What was it from the past that you think is better than the modern-day alternatives?
• It might relate to societal norms, not just changes in technology.

Have you ever been in an accident and how did it affect you?

Can you think of a time when something impossible became possible?

• Perhaps it was a dream or ambition of yours that came true.
• Was it just luck, or did some other factor bring it about?
• How important is it for you that this happened?

What’s the nicest thing somebody has ever done for you?

• Sometimes even the simplest of gestures that mean the world.
• Who has treated you well?
• What did they do?
• Have you learned anything about how to treat others?

If you could only keep 5 photos from your life, which ones would you keep and why?

• Can you collect these photos and share them with your family?
• What’s happening in the photos?
• Who is in the photos?
• Why are these photos so special for you?

What is your greatest call to fame?

• Have you ever been ‘famous’?
• Perhaps appearing on TV, on the radio or in the news?
• What are your memories of it?
• Do you have any clippings or recordings of your moment of fame?

What entertaining stories do others tell about you?

• Sometimes it’s our friends who tell them best!
• Who has the best stories about you?
• What stories would they tell about you?

What hard moments in life have you progressed through?

• Though they are far from nice, it’s the hard times that can really shape who we are.
• What hard times have you faced and when was it?
• How did you cope?
• Do you have any advice for others facing the same challenge?

Which special moments from the past do you wish you had photos/videos for?

• It’s easy to think that we’ve surely captured all the important moments in life. But that’s not true.
• Cameras were not used so much in the past.
• And many occasions are enjoyed at the moment, with no photos to recall the occasion.
• Which special moments from yours or your family’s life, do you wish you had photos or videos for?

When have you been speechless and why?

• Who has surprised you and how?
• When did it happen?
• Would you still be so shocked if it happened again?

What are the 5 standout memories that sum up the last year?

What key moments or decisions led to your children’s existence?

• The chances of anyone’s existence is almost zero – it’s a miracle we exist.
• What serendipitous moments from your life do your children have to be thankful for?
• Without these moments, you would never have met their other parent and they would never have been conceived.
• It’s amazing to see how miraculous every life is.