Firstly, a happy new year! This new year brings a sigh of relief, a new hope, and a new resolve, doesn’t it?
The black swan events of 2020 changed things. A lot for some, and enough for everyone to change our lives. On personal front, it brought to the fore the importance of our health, family, and savings. And on professional front, it showed us that work can be flexible, more efficient & yet fragile.
But most of all it took us by the collar, shook us and reminded us that life can be really unpredictable. We always heard from the jolly fellow to live life in the present, and then promptly filed that advice for a few years later. Once we have that bank balance, that title, that house, that car, that unicorn status maybe, we said.
But can we do that anymore? And should we? I’ll bet each one of us has at least one 1st/2nd degree person who lost their life in this pandemic. It’s depressing, and even more so because most of us already don’t think much of it. This is the new normal we say. Our collective resilience is a wonder and paradoxically a tragedy.
This new year is a huge opportunity to take a pause. To think deeply, honestly and most of all bravely. Let’s not squander it. Do we really want to be in that crazy job, that vicious relationship, that toxic environment, that unfit body, that treadmill-of-a-life?
And what’s stopping us from moving on? Isn’t it mostly ourselves? We now know we can live with much less. A majority of us are guilty of imposter syndrome and undervaluing ourselves. Let’s move on. We will find the next gig, the next person, the next excitement, the next certainty.
Let’s enter 2021 bravely. Let’s live more for the present. I’ll be trying for sure.
Happy New Year!