A Lesson from Lockdown
Well 2020 has been quite a year. What started as a year full of new and shiny plans, became nothing I had envisioned. I know most would agree. Now that we are emerging from over 3 months of isolation, it is time to reflect on the past several months.
Were they so bad? In some ways, yes, but in other ways definitely no.
As an action-oriented person I am accustomed to planning and goal setting which keeps me energised, accomplishing, and always moving forward. I am by nature a jet setter, always on a plane or a train going somewhere. And while I generally enjoy this lifestyle, I learned something about myself during the past few months.
It is nice to slow down, take a pause, and do nothing.
It is interesting for me to have this realisation given that much of what I do as a life coach is helping people reach their career and life goals. And while it is motivating and exciting to have personal aspirations, I quickly came to see that sometimes we need to abandon our goals and recognise how great our life is as it stands. It was a chance for me to see what was already going well.
A lot of the gifts in life are in the mundane day-to-day moments. This year I was able to really enjoy my home and the beautiful scenery around me. It was an opportunity to finally have flowers that had a chance at making through the spring (although I should credit my husband’s green thumb for that).
It was a time to forge deeper relationships with family and friends, as ironic as it may seem given we were physically apart.
It was also a chance to realise we are not in complete control of our future and, as scary as that may feel, it makes it even more important to nurture what we have in this moment. In short, it was a relief to take the self-imposed pressure off myself and just be.
I always loved the saying “life is a journey, not a destination”, but it wasn’t until 2020 that I really embraced it and lived it.
Now we are slowly getting back to the new “normal”. I am starting to look up flights, book Airbnbs, and update my calendar again. It is a strange feeling. I am excited to re-integrate back into society, to see family and friends (and to get a haircut!). Yet I have changed and I am not fully ready for life as it was. I am hopeful to take the gifts I have been given this year and carry them with me in the coming months and years ahead.
If there is one thing I will do more of it will be to take time to stop and smell the flowers.
For more on gratitude click here.