Three-pass pattern spotting

When This Fires

• During monthly or quarterly reviews when analyzing accumulated reflection data
• When you want to identify recurring patterns in your behavior, emotions, or outcomes
• When Read 4-8 weeks of entries in a single sitting for pattern…'s batch reading has produced raw material for pattern analysis
• Complements Annual review phase 1 (annual calendar scan) and Read 4-8 weeks of entries in a single sitting for pattern… (batch reading) with the analytical method for extracting patterns

Common Failure Mode

One-pass pattern naming: reading through entries and immediately declaring "I see a pattern of burnout!" without checking whether burnout is actually a pattern (consistent across many entries) or a salient recent experience (vivid in one entry, projected onto others). Premature naming produces false patterns that misinform future planning.

The Protocol

(1) Pass 1 — Open coding: Read through your entries. Mark (highlight, tag, or note) anything that appears more than once across entries. Do not interpret or name patterns. Just flag recurrences. (2) Pass 2 — Clustering: Group your flagged recurrences into pattern types: Emotional (what feelings recur?), Behavioral (what actions recur?), Situational (what contexts recur?), Outcome (what results recur?), Avoidance (what's consistently absent?). (3) Pass 3 — Counterexample check: For each proposed pattern, search for entries that contradict it. "I always feel drained on meeting-heavy days" — are there meeting-heavy days where I felt energized? If counterexamples exist, refine the pattern: "I feel drained on meeting-heavy days when meetings lack clear agendas." (4) Only name the pattern after it survives counterexample checking. (5) Each named pattern should be specific enough to suggest an intervention and robust enough to survive counterexample scrutiny.