By Jamie Kirk
We Got This. Whatever it is. We Got This. We GOT losing weight. We GOT working out more. We GOT mending broken relationships. We GOT getting a new job. We GOT getting a promotion. We GOT getting a new vehicle. We GOT just making it to 2021.
This has been a shit year for most people in some area or another in their lives. It could be in the area of health, wealth, having to move, losing a job, unfortunately making a career change, having a favorite movie star pass away, perhaps not being able to run a marathon that you trained for, or travel to an exotic place that you had been saving for years to take.
Just because we have been negatively impacted in one area of our lives does not mean there are others you are not thriving in. Sometimes we can get so focused on what is lacking that we miss the opportunity to be grateful for the things that are staring us in our face. We have to step back and really look at this past year as phases. And admitting that every phase of this year has not been thud.
Phase I
Coming off the holidays. The first phase of the year was kinda taking it easy, settling into the winter months. Staying bundled up. Staying in bed a little longer and missing the gym (with little to no regret). If you had a valentine, it was likely a nice dinner and a few gifts. And if you didn’t have a Valentine, it was putting yourself out there and really looking to find someone to spend quality time with. Coming out of the gate for 2020, things were moving a little slow as we prepped for Spring. Prep work for Spring included goal setting, planning, and thinking of your life strategy for the year. You know, proactively take charge of your life.
Phase II
Well, normally, this is a period to plant. Sowing good stuff so that you reap good stuff. Then, this phase of the year took a turn for the worse and became a buzz kill. For most office workers, this was the time of the year you were notified not to show up into the office on Monday. If you work in the hospitality industry, you likely saw your hours cut, shifts removed from the schedule, and everyone began to stock up on tissue and paper supplies. This phase, this year was painful. Looking at the COVID numbers, realizing that we have not made the strides we had hoped as a country was stressful, heart-breaking, and impactful. Phase II of this year, had there only been two phases per year, we likely would have ended the year with a huge thud. Almost everyone could easily forget this phase of 2020. No regrets, just wishing this phase could have been a little less painful this year.
Phase III
The final phase of this year is our comeback phase. We are seeing a transition in our leadership, a change in power. Which regardless of how you voted, a change will be most certainly welcomed. This phase will unveil a vaccine to help us fight the Coronavirus, and finally, this phase will set us up for success. We have to use Phase III as a Lessons Learned phase. Really looking introspectively to get the lessons from the trials and tribulations we experienced so far in the year. What did we learn about our family after being quarantined for several weeks? What did we learn about our work-life balance after not going into the office? What knowledge have we gained from being with our kids 100% of the time? Or perhaps asking ourselves the question: Am I living my life or merely surviving?
Obviously, Phase III is the most important phase of this year for us to concentrate on. We simply cannot continue to focus on what happened. We have to look at Phase I and Phase II and think hard about changing the narrative in our heads about where 2020 stands for us. We are present and standing in 2020, but we have to look at the horizon and think to ourselves: I GOT THIS. We need to overpower the negative thoughts of 2020 and replace them with positive thoughts of what WILL happen in 2021. Not the obstacles, not the challenges, not the missed opportunities, but focusing on the lessons we learned, the relationships (romantic or not) that have been strengthened, and lastly, how much we have grown.
As we round the bend of the final weeks of 2020, we have to remain steadfast and deliberate in our intentions to strive and thrive. Wishing and hoping that 2020 would not have happened depletes us from being grateful for all the work we did in Phase I. So yes, Phase II did happen, oh well. It would be unfortunate not to relish our efforts of attempting to have a successful 2020. It would not serve us to show a lack of gratitude. It could be viewed as selfish and unloving to feel that this year was a “waste” continually. Nothing that happens in our lives is a coincidence. We have to be committed to learning from the valleys as quickly as we are willing to be committed to the peaks.
At the end of the day, 2020 is about done. 2020 shall be no more. 2021 is moving quickly upon us. Let’s be ready for it. Let’s not run from it, but embrace this new year with strength, tenacity, and a fresh outlook. Just because you look away and try to pretend it didn’t happen doesn’t mean it didn’t happen. 2020 did happen. Let’s move upward and onward a new year, rounding out phase III on a natural high.