New Year, Same You
This is it. The moment that your mind has been telling you that will change everything. EVERYTHING.
The start of the new year. 2020 is over! YES, we can celebrate what some called the “trash dump fire” of a year is over. Hooray! Let the bells ring out and fireworks flame. Let the champagne run freely. HAZZAH!
There’s just one thing. You are still you. You can rip up that calendar page and throw it in the fire – but it doesn’t change that you are still the same person who lived through 2020. Those experiences aren’t burned up with the calendar page. They are seared into your mind and heart.
Pretty cheerful, huh? Some life coach I turned out to be. Ha.
But to be honest with you, this is exactly the life coach I want to be. Let’s look at the last year, square in the face. Not the circumstances of last year. Not the virus, or the election, or the racial upheaval, or the crazy fires and hurricanes. Let’s look at you.
How did YOU respond? What are YOU really made of?
Start with what worked. You faced insurmountable odds with schools being closed, and stores being out of stock. You held the family together when a quarantine threatened to tear it apart. You became seen as a rock star celebrity, when the rest of the world was faced with what it means to be a mom every.single.day.all.day. You found a way to stay connected with family and friends when meeting in person was impossible. You wrote letters, and shared posts, and called old friends, and texted, and emailed, and served until exhaustion took over. And then you woke up and did it again. All the while, attending to your normal, expected duties of work and home life.
So yeah, it’s a new year, and the same you. The same you who faced 2020 head on and came out of it stronger. With 2021, anything is possible. ANYTHING.
You faced a pandemic. With babies. That’s what you did.
Now, your mind is going to step in here and tell you that you really didn’t do that much. You didn’t really ROCK it. I mean, compared to so and so, you kind of didn’t do anything. And there was loss. And there was fear. And it really doesn’t matter because, well everyone was dealing with it. And you can let your brain say those things.
But you don’t have to listen.
You can choose to make 2021 whatever you want it to be. Do you know how I know how? Because you did 2020. Because of who you are. You don’t need any other proof. You have come through a war. You are a hero. So let’s do 2021 knowing that we faced the giant and won.
Just one more thing. Your brain is going to want you to completely forget about 2020 and move on. Don’t let it. This is where amazing learning can happen or completely dissipate. Take some time and think through what worked, what didn’t work, and what you want to do differently. These 3 questions will propel you into 2021 with so much clarity and purpose. Talk about it with your partner, write it out, stew a little here. Celebrate the wins. Mourn the losses. This is rich stuff and stuff the majority of people miss because there might be pain or discomfort in remembering. That discomfort is essential to you becoming the person you want to be, and not just becoming the person you become by default. You get to choose.
ANYTHING is possible.
Now, go be awesome.
About the Author
Heather Davila is a Life Coach who helps you make better decisions. One at a time. She loves the crackle of a fire on a cold day and the laughter that erupts at her dinner table when someone burps. Heather is married to Jason, the man of her dreams, and mother of Thaddeus the Leader, Judah the Joyful, and Delia the Adventurer. Heather graduated out of CECPTA in May, and adores the organization and all who make it a reality.
