We did it y’all, anew year is knocking at the door, and I have to say I am relieved. I am releasing this blog on New Year’s Eve because I want to reflect on the last year we all just encountered. For each and every single one of us, it was a year of shock and awe. No one was unaffected by the events that unfolded this year. And on a global scale, we shared the same trauma. But what was the shining light that kept you pushing through the muck?
At the beginning of every year, I set myself a goal list in six different areas of my life. These areas include spiritual, financial, mental, family, physical, and finally, personal. I have done this for years. I’ll start a new journal and on the last page, I will define the goals in these areas. So let me define them for you!
Spiritual – Enhancing our spirituality is an important facet of our mental health. This is how you keep a positive attitude, and I know in the last year, we were challenged harder than ever to keep the spirits high. One way I’ve found in the past to work on this aspect is by meditating. I am mesmerized by how learning to meditate has transpired in my ability to choose to respond instead of reacting when adversity crosses my path. don’t want to necessarily say that exactly however I don’t like “telling” people what to do rather reflecting on how it has changed my ability to control my destiny You need to explore how you get in touch with that higher power, whatever you may find it to be.
Financial – This goal is all about how to improve your monetary health. Debt is such an individual journey. For me, there is nothing more satisfying than being debt-free. I will just put this out there, I am extremely uncomfortable with debt. A great book that has helped me cope with this is Robert T. Kiyosaki’s book Rich Dad, Poor Dad. Each year I challenge myself to set a big financial goal. Of course, Covid put a huge speed bump for 2020 and I am challenging myself to put the pedal to the metal and recoup this coming year. One example, I can share is 15 years ago, I wanted to pay off my mortgage. So, I took one payment divided into 12 and added that amount to my monthly payment – that simple move allowed me to become mortgage free years earlier.
Mental – Think about how you can nourish your mind in the next year. A good goal could be to read 25 books in the next 12 months. Try for something new, pushing the boundaries of your mind, exercising those muscles.
Family – When it comes to family, I have two categories. My family by relation, my daughters, parents, siblings, etc., and then my “framily”. My goals with my daughters could be to take them out on mother-daughter dates once a month. O, a family vacation to a new country once a year. And if you’re wondering what “Framily” is, they are the friends who become so close, they are like your adopted family. Think about in the new year how you could strengthen those relationships.
Physical – Physical well-being compliments the other areas so perfectly and setting one big “attainable” goal in physical fitness is my secret sauce. In 2019, I had major shifts in my life and instead of doing what most would have done, I decided to focus my energy on training and completing the Chicago marathon. So what goal in the next year would you like to push your body to accomplish?
Personal – Like an umbrella, sheltering all the previous goals listed, defining your personal goals for the next year is influenced by many factors. The most important being self-care. Focus and define what ultimately will bring you peace and balance in the next year.
When you’re setting these goals for yourself, it’s important to set realistic and attainable goals. You can always set your bar higher, further in the year. But if you start too high, you’ll feel intimidated by the size of what’s in front of you. It also helps to be realistic. I know that in the next year, taking the girls to South America will be much harder than in the years before, so I should instead focus on a vacation where we explore new parts of this country. The goal of spending quality time with them will still be met, but I’m not reaching for something that could be out of my control and possibly falling apart.
At the beginning of the year, there was so much hope. I think we were all excited about our Gatsby moment. And then March 13th came and everything we had planned was burnt before our eyes. As I get ready to watch the ball drop, or as we do here in Idaho, the potato drop, I know I can look back and find highlights from this wild year.
When I reflect on this year, I hear the phrase “Oh The Places You’ll Go” from Dr. Suess’s book over and over again. And not in the way that you might think. When I say this, I mean oh the places your mind will go. I can reflect that this year was an obstacle course of restless nights, nails bitten, and complete exhaustion. My mind went to new, and rather fearful places that it had never been to before. I saw the cracks within myself and the companies I am running. But through those cracks, I saw a fresh new light peeking through. I had to look my fears right in their face, get to know them so that I could conquer them. The only way I could do this was to just keep going. Keep working. I didn’t pivot but see the aspects of my life that I could rise up to handle the new normal. Proudly, I say now that I have won. More obstacles will be sure to come my way, but I have the knowledge to know I AM whatever I need to be. I can achieve what I need to achieve, and I will go into 2021 stronger, thanks to the year 2020.
