It can be so easy to write off this year.
It started very normally and then evolved into something nobody could have predicted.
I have been at home since March like most people. Spent 5 months homeschooling my two children while working in a new role. My team grew 10x in size as I learnt how to manage remotely. I faced my feelings as I navigated the ups and downs of this new normal. I learnt the best time to go to the supermarket so I could get my essentials 🙂 and I built a huge amount of resilience.
Other things I have learnt this year:
👉🏿 How to slow down
When everything is removed you are forced to stop. Saturday mornings became this new thing, no more ferrying the kids about to activities, but actually, we could have a lie-in, eat breakfast together and watch a Saturday afternoon movie. Equally those things I had been avoiding because with busyness you can place them in a box and ignore, become front and centre and I was faced with no option than to deal with them. #nomoreexcuses
👉🏿 How to prioritise and set boundaries
BIG one for me. Lockdown at home with kids meant less time to work. I had to figure out the important things and focus on them early. I quickly learned that I need to raise up leaders in my team and empower them quickly. In my personal life, I learnt this year that I needed to have better boundaries and stop tolerated things that don’t align with my values. I ignored my own needs for other people’s and this led to resentment but also me losing touch with who I am, what I like, my hobbies my passions. I learnt this year that I am THE expert on me.
👉🏿 How to be a more empathetic leader both at home and at work
I learnt how to asked better questions and became more vulnerable, both inside and outside of work. I became okay with my feelings, I embraced my emotions and stopped pushing them away. “How are you?” became “what’s on your mind?” and I recognise the importance of having rhythms and routines for the things I could control so that I knew what to expect.
👉🏿 You only have one life
COVID really highlighted the fragility of life and how nothing is guaranteed. This year I was encouraged to stop procrastinating on life, to stop settling and to step into God’s purpose for my life. I learnt that everything that has happened so far, has happened for a reason and it has made me the woman I am today. Rather than hide in embarrassment and shame for past mistakes I can be proud of my story and openly share it.
👉🏿 Gratitude
To be thankful for the small things and appreciate people, experiences and opportunities all the more. There is always someone you can help, encourage and support and in the midst of things not panning out how you would want them to be, there is always a place for gratitude.
What lessons have you learnt this year, I would love to hear.