I’m so ready to put up the Christmas tree and ring in the new year. After surviving the first half of 2020, who could blame me? I know it’s the end of summer, we’re still in phase one of a pandemic and drowning in social unrest, but this year sucker-punched us all and we’re hopelessly reeling from the shock. We need a spark of joy fast!
One of the biggest lessons I’ve learned this trip around the sun is that opportunities can show up disguised as obstacles to awaken our true potential. They provide lessons wrapped in ugly packaging leaving us with the option to choose what will break, or define us. 2020 is a prime example full of dire circumstances which reshaped our perception of what we consider to be normal.
Jobs have ended, relationships have dissolved, and many are finding themselves in food lines for the first time, homeless, and rethinking the trajectory of their lives going forward. There isn’t anyone who hasn’t been impacted by COVID-19 and the economic fallout from it’s tightly held grip on the planet. With all that we’re facing, I’m convinced, that 2020 can still, be your year!
The uncertainty of job security forced many of us, including myself, to move in with family to survive.
I’m not crazy I assure you, but I can tell you based on my personal journey that you can use every bit of your current discomfort to build a new life from the ground up. The most painful part about what we’re all experiencing is the inability to let go of what was, and the nagging fear that what’s next, won’t be as good.
Our predictable routine of how we went about our lives pre-COVID facilitated a (false) sense of security. Unfortunately, ignorance is no longer a state of bliss and 2020 has shown all of us what isn’t working.
On December 31st, 2019, I claimed that 2020 would be a year of breakthroughs. I didn’t know how I would pull it off having been unemployed well before coronavirus ever became a reality. It has proven to be an uphill battle but I told myself I will get a job, and have the life I dreamed of or die trying. I made the uncomfortable choice to be and think differently. Through trial and error, I crossed paths with individuals who encouraged me to focus not on what I’ve done, but what I wanted to do, and who I needed to become to achieve my goals.
The shift in perspective is always in the option to DO when things aren’t ideal. I hated my circumstances enough to keep going despite rejection, and lack of a physical address. Ultimately, I had to do something I’ve never done before. I traded comfort zones for manageable chaos hoping it would motivate me to reclaim my power. It did!
As I watched friends become furloughed or had their jobs terminated altogether, I received several requests for interviews. I’m on the slow climb to something greater but I have no desire to get my old life back. I need a new one that’s in alignment with who I’ve become through hardship, tragedy and resilience.
The uncertainty of job security forced many of us, including myself, to move in with family just to survive. We discovered degrees, affiliations with organizations, or social status couldn’t compete with a virus, and that the only thing that matters is a connection with the right people.
I’ve talked about the coronavirus reset before and how it can permit us to live more authentically. I think it’s time we choose to evolve rather than remain stuck clinging to a life (and world) that no longer serves a purpose.
I can’t promise you that simply thinking, and doing things differently will automatically translate to an abundant life, but the very reason you are still standing is worth the laborious journey to finding out what’s possible. You may not be ready to join me in decking the halls to celebrate the holiday season early, but you also don’t need to cancel 2020 without examining what it’s here to teach you. I’m getting excited about my becoming, and so should you.
